A Passion Play is one of the 3 greatest albums ever recorded along with Animals by Pink Floyd and Selling England By The Pound by Genesis. Benefit and TAAB are great also.
My history with Jethro Tull is a pretty odd one. I have been aware of them pretty well my entire life as my dad is a big fan and played them quite a bit when I was growing up. However, they were the first band I ever remember hating and it was from a very young age. My hatred of Jethro Tull was a running joke throughout my childhood and something I expected to always feel. However at some point in college I decided to listen to Aqualung for whatever reason and I was like "damn this is actually good". I remember calling my dad to tell him that I guess I didn't hate Jethro Tull anymore after all. Since then I didn't explore them all that much outside that album and a few others so I was pretty excited to finally do a full dive after such a long history. Some of these albums were like catching up with old friends as I heard them growing up but others I was less familiar with. I'm sure my list may be a little messed up for some super fans but I enjoyed this overall. 23) Rock Island - 2 22) Under Wraps - 2 21) The Zealot Gene - 2.5 20) Rokflote - 2.5 19) Catfish Rising - 2.5 18) This Was - 2.5 17) Roots to Branches - 3 16) J-Tull Dot Com - 3 15) Crest of a Knave -3 14) The Jethro Tull Christmas Album -3 13) A - 3 12) A Passion Play - 3.5 11) Too Old to Rock - 3.5 10) Stormwatch - 3.5 9) War Child 3.5 8) Minstrel in the Gallery - 3.5 7) Benefit - 4 6) The Broadsword and the Beast - 4 5) Stand Up - 4 4) Thick as a Brick - 4 3) Songs From the Wood - 4 2) Heavy Horses - 4 1) Aqualung - 4.5
#1 Stand Up (10) #2 Thick as a Brick (10) #3 Aqualung (10) #4 Benefit (10) #5 Songs From The Wood (9) #6 Minstrel in The Gallery (9) #7 War Child (8) #8 A Passion Play (7) #9 Heavy Horses (7) #10 Stormwatch (6)
I'd have to agree despite my pet peeve of splitting the longer songs ("Thick As A Brick," "A Passion Play," and "Baker St. Muse") into multiple parts. Everything else? The definitive way to listen to 70s Tull.
23. Under Wraps (1984) 1.5/5 22. The Jethro Tull Christmas Album (2003) 2.5/5 21. J-Tull Dot Com (1999) 2.5/5 20. The Broadsword And The Beast (1982) 3/5 19. Rock Island (1989) 3/5 18. A (1980) 3/5 17. The Zealot Gene (2022) 3/5 16. This Was (1968) 3.5/5 15. Too Old To Rock 'N' Roll: Too Young To Die! (1976) 3.5/5 14. RökFlöte (2023) 3.5/5 13. Catfish Rising (1991) 3.5/5 12. Roots To Branches (1995) 3.5/5 11. War Child (1974) 4/5 10. Crest Of A Knave (1987) 4/5 9. Songs From The Wood (1977) 4/5 8. Stormwatch (1979) 4/5 7. A Passion Play (1973) 4.5/5 6. Stand Up (1969) 4.5/5 5. Heavy Horses (1978) 4.5/5 4. Benefit (1970) 4.5/5 3. Minstrel In The Gallery (1975) 4.5/5 2. Thick As A Brick (1972) 5/5 1. Aqualung (1971) 5/5
For me it's A Passion Play #1. Pretty indifferent to all the other albums now, except for Roots to Branches maybe. The song Home from Stormwatch brings up nostalgic feelings though.
Totally agree about Passion Play. I'd put it up there on the Mt Rushmore of "proggiest" prog albums with Relayer, Larks' Tongues in Aspic, and Wind & Wuthering.
This was very tough ... literally! 23-The Zealot Gene* 22-RokFlote* 21-J-Tull Dot Com* 20-Roots to Branches** 19-Rock Island** 18-Crest of a Knave** 17-Catfish Rising** 16-Christmas Album**1/2 15-Under Wraps*** 14-Broadsword & the Beast*** 13-Stormwatch***1/2 12-Heavy Horses**** 11-A**** 10-This Was**** 9- (5*) The top 9 spots are reserved for all 9 studio album releases from Stand Up through Songs from the Wood. Every album from 1969 through 1977 are all 5* rock albums from my perspective, and are too close for me to rank. On any given day, my personal ranking for these can vary. I hold these albums in high regard, being born in the 50's and a Tull fan since my youth. I have not purchased a Tull studio album in over 20 years, but I did listen to The Zealot Gene and RokFlote on several occasions, so I'm confident in my ranking of those. I have ranked all these albums solely on musical enjoyment, and not recording quality or technical proficiency.👨🏻
Nice discussion and ranking. The top albums on my list are Aqualung, Songs Of The Wood, Thick As A Brick and Stormwatch. I have been thinking about why JT have never been one of my absolute favourite bands. I admire them as musicians and enjoy Ians flute playing but the music is kind of academic almost without soul and does not create so much feelings when I listen to them. And music for me is all about create some kind of feeling.
So Jethro Tull was one of my favorite bands in highschool/college and owned every vinyl from This Was to Heavy Horses. I was married in 1978 and funds for new music pretty much dried up. I know nothing about any LP's after Heavy Horses but looking at your lists that appears not to matter much. I always thought they would never outdo Aqualung but on May 4, 1973 their tour lead them to Evansville, IN, the Passion Play tour. Tull opened with Thick As A Brick and an hour and twenty minutes later "and now for our second song" played Cross Eyed Mary. TAAB live was absolutely mesmerizing and nothing has replaced it as #1. Here is my admittedly abbreviated list: 1. Thick As A Brick - I never tire of listening in its entirety - Do you have the newspaper cover? 2. Aqualung 3. Songs From The Wood 4. Benefit 5. Stand Up 5A. Living In The Past 6. Heavy Horses 7. Minstrel In The Gallery 8. War Child 9. Too Old To Rock and Roll 10. This Was 11. Passion Play 12 - 23. Get your dart board out. Thanks for ranking Tull. I know it takes time and you have to listen to some uninspiring music (Really don't mind if you sit this one out!). But there is some great music here. Great job Now if I could interest you in Little Feat - at least the Lowell George era (1969-1979).
YES!>>>>>> Fat Man in the Bathtub, Willin', Time Loves A Hero, All That You Dream, etc. etc. Another band that will never be allowed in the overblown RRHOF.
Thanks for taking the time to do this and share. Of course I did not totally agree :-) but these things are totally subjective. I do appreciate you giving fair critique and reasoning behind yor rankings and score. So many just say here it cause I like it. So very well done. I am a huge Tull fan and have been since the early 1970s. Agreed with most of your 16 - 23. Also, my cut off from most of thier best music is 1980. After that the overall direction of the band took a turn it never recovered from I believe. I do take exception the one Passion Play ranking in that low range (as will half the Tull fans while the other half will agree whole heartly). To each there own but some of the bands best music comes from that album. I get as an album it's not everyone's taste but it's still one of their better works. The rest is more personal preference I guess. My top 10 would look more like below. Not as detailed as yours but I did provide a highlight or two of why. I honestly focused more on the songs I liked on the albums and the overall sound.: 10. War Child - Honestly this gets here on one song, Skating Away. The rest is OK but very repetitive. Bungle in the Jungle is a fun little song that I like more than most but Skating Away is to me a quinticential Tull song. I love the start and build up. It's a great song start to finish. Rest is decent but not stellar. 9. Too Old For Rock 'n' Roll: Too Young To Die - Title song is enough for me but then you add Chequred Flag and one of my unsung hero songs Quizz Kid. Seriously highlights John Glasscock, a very underrated bass player. I also really like Taxi Grab. Very top lineup for Tull. 8. Heavy Horses - The last of the best Tull IMO. The title song is very good. I also really liked One Brown Mouse and Moths which comes out as a nice surprise. But No Lullaby makes this album. It makes my top 5 Tull songs of all time. It's amazing to see live. 7. Benifit - I like most of the album but it's highlighted by Nothing to Say and one of my all time favorites Teacher. The whole album has a good Tull feel to it coming on the heels of Stand Up it's what you should expect. 6. Stand Up - Again for me there are few flaws here. Some stand out classics from this album - Nothing is Easy, Boureee, A New Day Yesterday and my favorite song on the album Fat Man. This was when Tull really started to find themselves. Even Jeffery is interesting if not my favorite. 5. Minstrel in the Gallery - This album has very few flaws. This starts the albums where I like most every song headlined by Baker St Muse. Again the title song is very good and I like the cheeky little ending with Grace. 4. Passion Play - A very polarizing album for sure. In fairness I hated this album for a long time, but msotly because I would only listen to parts. You really have to listen to this album in it's entirety. Because of that it should probably not be as high. But there are so many steller parts of this album that I just can't rank it any lower. Admittedly it can be a slog to get through the Story of the Hare at times but the reward of getting to The Business Office makes it all worth while. What a masterpiece the entire Act 3 is for me! 3. Songs from the Wood - This album is fire from the first notes of the title song to the last notes of Pibroch. I love every note of this album. The flow of the songs the arrangments, and general musicianship is astounding. 2. Thick as a Brick - I was hooked the first time I heard it. The lyrics are so silly but are matched to incredible music. One of the highlights of my musical youth. For me there is no flaw in this album. Even the silly story still flows and takes you on a musical journey that I can listen to over and over. 1. Aqualung - Should not have to say anyting here. Even if it's not your top album it's attributes are clear. This album put Jethro Tull on the map and for good reason. Locomotive Breath, Aqualung, Cross Eyed Mary are obvious to even non-tull fans. But then you have Hymn 43, My God and a very underrated Wonde'ring' Aloud. My God and Hymn 43 may be my top 2 Tull songs. For what it's worth there is my top 10 with at least some reasoning. Thanks again for your ranking. Motovated me.
There are so many things you both say that I agree with and plenty I could disagree with at length, or at least challenge or attempt to qualify. But, I genuinely appreciate the fact you've even done a discography for a band that I think you both find a bit weird - face it, not everyone is going to be passionate to the point of certifiable about JT. Besides, I took up residence in the 'different folks, different strokes' camp long ago, so I'm going to focus solely on the positive things. Joe, you are right about A and Broadsword, which are both really fun albums. The latter, like War Child, could have been an even better album if other material from the Broadsword sessions, released slowly over decades, had been put out at the time. Jason, you are right about TOTRNR. 'Crazed Institution', which you didn't mention, is one of my all-time favourite JT songs. The fact that TOTRNR isn't in my top 10 doesn't mean I don't have huge affection for it. More excellent outtakes from War Child, in addition to those you mention, are 'Saturation', 'Good Godmother' 'Glory Row' and 'Tomorrow was Today'. You're both right about MITG. And, Joe, my favourite moment here is hearing you enthuse so much about 'Cheap Day Return' - a perfect short story in song with not a wasted word - on Aqualung. Hearing this for the first time, Christmas night 1975, with my ear pressed to the speaker - played low so as not to disturb those in a post-gluttonous haze watching TV in the other room - was precisely the moment I fell in love with JT. Oh and Thick as a Brick, which arrived by post just after my birthday at the start of summer 1976, is what passed for a multimedia event in those days. I still play it regularly. It's probably my favourite thing involving bricks that didn't require a mortgage. It’s maybe my favourite thing, full stop. Like I said, certifiable. 23. Under Wraps 22. Rock Island 21. j-tull dot com 20. RökFlöte 19. Catfish Rising 18. The Zealot Gene 17. The Christmas Album 16. This Was 15. Crest of a Knave 14. Roots to Branches 13. Too Old to Rock ’n’ Roll: Too Young to Die 12. Broadsword and the Beast 11. Stormwatch 10. War Child 9. A 8. Heavy Horses 7. Stand Up 6. Songs from the Wood 5. Minstrel in the Gallery 4. Benefit 3. A Passion Play 2. Aqualung 1. Thick as a Brick
1) A Passion Play (5) 2) Aqualung (5) 3) Songs From The Wood (4.5) 4) Benefit (4.5) 5) Thick As A Brick (4.5) 6) Heavy Horses (4) 7) Stormwatch (4) 8) Stand Up (4) 9) War Child (3.5) 10) Minstrel In The Gallery (3.5) 11) Broadsword (3.5) 12) This Was (3.5) 13) A (3.0) 14) Too Old to Rock n Roll (3.0) 15) Catfish Rising (3.0) 16) Roots to Branches (3.0) 17) Crest of a Knave (2.5) 18) Under Wraps (2.5) 19) J-Tull Dot Com (2.5) 20) Christmas Album (2.5) 21) Rock Island (2.0) 22) Zealot Gene (2.0) 23) RokFlote (2.0) If Living In The Past was able to be included, it would be top 5 for sure. Maybe as high as #3.
1. Thick As A Brick 2. Stand Up 3. Songs From The Wood 4. A Passion Play 5. Aqualung 6. Heavy Horses 7. Benefit 8. Minstrel In The Gallery 9. Stormwatch 10. War Child 11. This Was 12. Too Old For Rock n' Roll
Maybe is because I come from a different background musically speaking, but I like 80's Tull a lot. That mix of the classic Jethro Tull sound with synths and 80's production works quite well for me. It has a lot of textures.
Thank you very much. I think you've done justice to their catalogue, even though my overall ratings as a long time fan are higher. My list: 1. Songs from the Wood (5) 2. Heavy Horses (5) 3. Thick as a Brick (5) 4. Minstrel in the Gallery (5) 5. Stormwatch (4,5) 6. Stand Up (4,5) 7. The Broadsword and the Beast (4,5) 8. Benefit (4,5) 9. Aqualung (4,5) 10. A Passion Play (4) 11. Warchild (3,5) 12. Crest of a Knave (3,5) 13. A (3,5) 14. Too Old to Rock and Roll (3,5) 15. This Was (3) 16. Under Wraps (3) 17. Catfish Rising (3) 18. Roots to Branches (2,5) 19. Christmas Album (2,5) 20. Zealot Gene (2,5) 21. J-Tull Dot Com (2,5) 22. Rock Island (2,5) 23. Rökflöte (2,5)
1. Aqualung (1971) 5 2. Benefit (1970) 5 3. Thick as a Brick (1972) 5 4. Stand Up (1969) 4.5 5. A Passion Play (1973) 4.5 6. Minstrel in the Gallery (1975) 4 7. Songs From the Wood (1977) 4 8. Heavy Horses (1978) 4 9. This Was (1968) 4 10. Stormwatch (1979) 3.5 11. Roots to Branches (1995) 3.5 12. War Child (1974) 3 13. A (1980) 3 14. Too Old For Rock 'n' Roll: Too Young To Die (1976) 3 15. The Broadsword and the Beast (1982) 3 16. Crest of a Knave (1987) 3 17. The Jethro Tull Christmas Album (2003) 3 18. Rock Island (1989) 2.5 19. J-Tull Dot Com (1999) 2.5 20. The Zealot Gene (2022) 2.5 21. RökFlöte (2023) 2.5 22. Catfish Rising (1991) 2 23. Under Wraps (1984) 1.5 CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER: 4 0 This Was (1968) 4.5 Stand Up (1969) 5.0 Benefit (1970) 5.0 Aqualung (1971) 5.0 Thick as a Brick (1972) 4.5 A Passion Play (1973) 3.0 War Child (1974) 4.0 Minstrel in the Gallery (1975) 3.0 Too Old For Rock 'n' Roll: Too Young To Die (1976) 4.0 Songs From the Wood (1977) 4.0 Heavy Horses (1978) 3.5 Stormwatch (1979) 3.0 A (1980) 3.0 The Broadsword and the Beast (1982) 1.5 Under Wraps (1984) 3.0 Crest of a Knave (1987) 2.5 Rock Island (1989) 2.0 Catfish Rising (1991) 3.5 Roots to Branches (1995) 2.5 J-Tull Dot Com (1999) 3.0 The Jethro Tull Christmas Album (2003) 2.5 The Zealot Gene (2022) 2.5 RökFlöte (2023) If you told me Jethro Tull invented defying categorization I'd believe you. Are they blues rock? Folk rock? Hard rock? Prog? Pop? Well, yes. Led by the Laird of Strathaird, Ian Anderson (one of the most underappreciated composers in rock), Jethro Tull blazed an eclectic trail across multiple eras of music. Too unique and consistent to be pigeonholed as only a product of the 1970s, this is timeless music in the most literal sense- many of these songs feel like they'd have been hits during the Middle Ages. This Was (1968) is remarkably sophisticated for a debut. It tackles everything from blues ("A Song For Jeffrey") to psychedelic rock ("Cat's Squirrel") and even borders on jazz in places ("Dharma For One," "Serenade to a Cuckoo"). But it's their sophomore effort that establishes Tull as a major artist. Stand Up (1969) cements their signature flute-heavy sound and expands their range into classical music ("Bourée," "Reasons For Waiting"). Ian Anderson has cited "Nothing is Easy" as a creative catalyst that served as something of a mission statement for the group. (The deluxe reissue of Stand Up gets to 5 stars for including the seminal singles "Living in the Past" and "Sweet Dream.") Benefit (1970) incorporates prog elements ("To Cry You a Song," "Nothing to Say," "Inside") and qualifies as a perfect album in my book. If they hadn't left out "The Witch's Promise" I'd have ranked it Tull's #1 album overall. Ian Anderson insists their 1971 mega-LP, Aqualung, is not a concept album. But it's so effective at combining stark snapshots of the human condition with denunciations of religious hypocrisy you'd be forgiven for thinking otherwise. "Cross-Eyed Mary" and "Locomotive Breath" are the most flammable materials here, along with the title track. Ian Anderson was so amused with people calling Aqualung a "concept album" that he set out, in jest, to make the *ultimate* prog rock concept album (and arguably succeeded) with Thick as a Brick (1972). A single continuous composition split across two album sides, 'Brick' is so relentlessly creative it's hard to believe they were basically making it up on the fly in the studio. Things take a theatrical turn on A Passion Play (1974), the Tull LP that's typically the hardest nut to crack for the uninitiated. I'll concede the music can be pretty dense at times, but repeated listens are greatly rewarded. War Child followed in '74, and though it's not without its moments- "Bungle in the Jungle," "Skating Away," "Back-Door Angels"- I find it rather spotty. The band gets back to rockin' hard on 1975's Minstrel in the Gallery, which might he their most underrated LP. The title track and "Black Satin Dancer" compete with anything in Tull's catalogue. I go back-and-forth on whether Songs From the Wood (1977) or Heavy Horses (1978) is the best album of their so-called "folk rock trilogy" (which includes 1979's Stormwatch). It was following Stormwatch that John Evans (keys), Barriemore Barlow (drums), and Dee Palmer (keys & arrangements) were dismissed from the band, which, for a lot of people, marks the end of Tull's classic period. Indeed, the very next album, A (1980), was originally meant to be an Ian Anderson solo album. It embraces the prevailing sounds of the new decade, complete with synths and processed vocals. Luckily, its best cuts ("And Further On," "Black Sunday") make the sonic shift more palatable than expected. The Broadsword and the Beast (1982) continues the 1980s production values and Ian rediscovers his gift for melody on "Broadsword" and "Slow Marching Band." 1987's Crest of a Knave features a late career classic ("Farm on the Freeway") but gets demoted for the common (and valid) complaint that it sounds way too much like Dire Straits. I think their Middle-Eastern flavored LP from 1995, Roots to Branches, is a grower that qualifies as something of a return to form. On the grand scale of bands I slightly penalize Jethro Tull for being more of a one-man dictatorship than a true band of equals (although their longtime guitar player, Martin Barre, deserves special mention for being the second biggest contributor to the Tull discography). Nevertheless, Jethro Tull is a borderline top 50 artist for me in the pop/rock realm. I've been listening to them since I was a kid because I have an older brother who likes them better than he likes Led Zeppelin, and played them more often. I wouldn't personally put Tull ahead of Zeppelin, but I think it's a close call, and that says a lot. MY RATING SYSTEM: 5.0 = major classic (consistently great *and* stratospheric highs) 4.5 = minor classic (consistently great *or* stratospheric highs, but not both) 4.0 = great (a clear majority is worth revisiting and it's one of the best things for this artist/style) 3.5 = seriously good (at least half is worth revisiting) 3.0 = nominally good (less than half is worth revisiting) 2.5 = fair (competent but uninspired, not worth revisiting) 2.0 = poor (difficult listen) 1.5 = awful (can't finish it) 1.0 = historically awful (musical apocalypse) ▪︎ "Consistently" does not mean "flawlessly." I allow for a few duds if the rest of the songs are good enough. "Stratospheric highs" refer to albums that feature iconic songs or have an iconic sound. (Albums I consider to be "perfect" can also reach 5 stars, even without containing legendary songs or being highly influential.) ▪︎ I don't go below 1 star because once I'm in the realm of the truly terrible, I don't care to differentiate anymore. ▪︎ Anything I rate 3.5 stars or better is an album I'm enthusiastic about and would likely revisit at some point.
Very well-done Whammy! Interesting that you go back and forth on Songs from the Wood and Heavy Horses as to which is best. I went ahead and called it a tie! (my song rating average to both comes out to 4.19). Interesting that you put A above Broadsword (like I did); just about everyone else on the discord server put Broadsword (way) ahead. Other than that, I think "Farm on the Freeway" is just OK. Great commentary! Cheers mate! Hope you are doing well.
I gotta disagree about Under Wraps. The quality of songwriting on there is leaps and bounds over the two newest albums. All 3 albums have bad production, in different ways. A tune like "Paparazzi" will stick in your head for days, though.
@@Cpayne301.5 doesn't mean irredeemable, It just means as a whole I can't finish listening to it. The production definitely plays a role. I've always been slightly averse to albums by '70s acts who adopted '80s production. It also factors into why I don't have A or Broadsword & the Beast rated higher.
@@AbbeyRoadkill1 What choice was there production-wise though? I can't image them doing anything that sounds like, say, Stormwatch in 1984. Or 1982. Also, your rating system says 1.5 is awful, which sounds a lot like an irredeemable record to me. If I can't finish an album, I'd say it's irredeemable!
@@Cpayne30 The blessing of an artist like Tull is that they're always changing, often with the times. But the flip side of that is that there eventually comes a time in every artist's journey when those changes start being a mismatch with their songwriting style. For me, that occurs in the '80s with respect to Tull. But your point is taken. No doubt resisting '80s production would've been hard for them, if not impossible. Everybody was doing it.
My prayers have been heard!!!! 👍 Everything up to (and including) Broadsword is pretty stellar. Don’t forget, the compilation Living In The Past and the 20 Years box set are essential additions to the core catalogue if you haven’t scooped up all the deluxe editions.
Great effort guys. Clearly Aqualung the pick of the bunch. Great to see Jason put Heavy Horses up so high as I really love this album. I remember in high school my English teacher bringing in the cassette of Heavy Horses and playing it to the class for maybe no other reason than he truly loved it. Looking back now he was a pretty cool teacher.
Love that you guys are doing Tull. I am a massive fan (They are in my top 10 bands of all time) so my ratings are super biased, but I generally agreed with your placement of their albums. Great Job! ALBUM RANKING: 1. Aqualung (1971) - ★★★★★ (10) 2. Songs From the Wood (1977) - ★★★★★ (10) 3. Thick as a Brick (1972) - ★★★★★ (10) 4. Minstrel in the Gallery (1975) - ★★★★★ (9.9) 5. Heavy Horses (1978) - ★★★★★ (9.9) 6. Benefit (1970) - ★★★★★ (9.8) 7. Stand Up (1969) - ★★★★★ (9.8) 8. A Passion Play (1973) - ★★★★★ (9.8) 9. Stormwatch (1979) - ★★★★★ (9.6) 10. The Broadsword and the Beast (1982) - ★★★★★ (9.6) 11. A (1980) - ★★★★★ (9.5) 12. War Child (1974) - ★★★★★ (9.5) 13. Crest of a Knave (1987) - ★★★★½ (9.2) 14. Too Old to Rock 'n' Roll: Too Young to Die! (1976) - ★★★★½ (8.9) 15. This Was (1968) - ★★★★½ (8.8) 16. Roots to Branches (1995) - ★★★★½ (8.6) 17. The Jethro Tull Christmas Album (2003) - ★★★★½ (8.6) 18. The Zealot Gene (2022) - ★★★★ (7.9) 19. RökFlöte (2023) - ★★★★ (7.8) 20. J-Tull Dot Com (1999) - ★★★★ (7.7) 21. Rock Island (1989) - ★★★★ (7.6) 22. Catfish Rising (1991) - ★★★★ (7.6) 23. Under Wraps (1984) - ★★★★ (7.5) RATING SCALE: ★★★★★ (9.5 - 10): Amazing ★★★★½ (8.5 - 9.4): Great ★★★★ (7.5 - 8.4): Very Good ★★★½ (6.5 - 7.4): Good ★★★ (5.5 - 6.4): Decent ★★½ (4.5 - 5.4): Mediocre ★★ (3.5 - 4.4): Bad ★½ (2.5 - 3.4): Very Bad ★ (1.5 - 2.4): Awful ½ (0 - 1.4): Terrible
Yes! The man of the people strikes again! The Broadsword and the Beast at number four… Whoot Whoot!! This was the first Jethro Tull album l ever purchased - on vinyl - way back in 1982. This was my entry point into the wacky worlds and unusual realms of IA and JT. After hearing Ian Anderson promoting the Broadside elpee on an old, syndicated, live call in radio show called Rockline - look it up - l bought this slab of wax as a wee lad. (Okay, perhaps I was more of an impressionable young teen.) At any rate, I’ve loved it for the last 42 years, and even shelled out for the deluxe box set last year… though l have yet to unearth all of the treasures contained within. It’s quite voluminous, cantankerous and extravagant; much like Ian himself! Martin Barre’s guitar work is excellent throughout the entire Beast album, especially his solos on the magnificent “Seal Driver,” tucked away at the end of the record. As I’m typing this, the lines are running through my head. And Peter-John Vettese’s keyboard work on the whole platter is 🔥fire 🔥 to me, too! Obvs, l have a very soft spot The Broadsword and the Beast, but l don’t give a flying fish! It sits in the upper echelon of Jethro Tull albums to me as well. Keep up the groovy work, you kooky kats! Cheers from The Big Apple. 🍎 Rock Out, Prog On and Pogo! Your pal and mine, ~ The Delicious, Delectable Davey Cretin from CRETIN CLASSICS. PS: Please pardon my odd prose, l worked two different eight hours shifts on Friday and now desperately (seeking Susan!) need to sleep all day on SaturDAyVE! Boom! 🤯 🎵”Beastie!”🎵
I finally caught up to that album some years ago and it does hold up. Like it a lot. Flying Colors, the Clasp, Beastie …. great stuff about more everyday experiences
@@gregdale1066 The Monster Edition is indeed monstrously good. Been playing it to death since September. TBATB could have been a great double album back in 1982, as War Child could have been in 1974. Some of IA's decisions about what to put out, and what to lock in the vault for years, decades even, are truly puzzling.
I was playing freshman football in the fall of 1973. We were riding the bus home from another loss and one of my teammates recited "The Hare Who Lost His Spectacles" from A Passion Play to me. I tried not to crack up too much because it was a pretty somber atmosphere in the bus. Fast forward about 45 years, and A Passion Play got a good workout on my headphones at work. One great tight melody after another. It made the time go by fast, along with the Todd solo album, Tales from Topographic Oceans, and Foxtrot. Man there was a lot of good prog rock in the early and mid 70s.
1. Aqualung 2. Stormwatch 3. Songs from the Wood 4. Thick as a Brick 5. Heavy Horses 6. Benefit 7. This Was 8. War Child 9. Too Old to Rock 'n' Roll: Too Young to Die! 10. Minstrel in the Gallery 11. The Broadsword and the Beast 12. Stand Up 13. A Passion Play 14. A
He'd be on my list, but in the lower rungs (like around the 80-100 range). There's a lot of great guitarists I'd put above him. That said, I think his contributions to Tull are underrated (especially in the 70s). And that as much as I liked The Zealot Gene and Rokflote for what they are, Martin's presence is sorely missed.
thanks for taking the time. Just have to say I love RokFlote. A most cohesive concept album with tons o Tullish hooks. i would put it in the high center.
I can't wait to watch this video after work!! Love this band! My 10th fave band of all-time! Thick as a Brick is in my top 10 fave albums of all-time. Prog is my fave genre and that album is one of it's definitive statements! Masterpiece!
I love that you Both educate yourself with the history of the Bands, the times and what went on during each specific Album Productions , the whole backround…. And don’t get me started about the ways you are describing the sound and feel of each Album! (Seriously, don’t - my English isn’t good enough ;)
I agree with Aqualung too. For me the icing on the cake on 'Locomotive Breath' is John Evan's piano introduction: it starts grave and classical (Rachmaninov influences) and morphs into wistful blues and then upbeat boogie-woogie. Genius!
Tier lists take an hour to make. A Listography like Jethro Takes at least 15 to even listen to (if you don’t do any repeats) 2+ to record and probably 8-10 to edit… just in case you were wondering why we don’t do as many. - Joe
Regarding the sound of The Zealot Gene, it was very much a COVID album. Ian recorded his parts, sent them to the other guys, and they added their parts at home. Who knows what kind of equipment they has access to.
Concerning the production shortcomings you guys often mention: Did you ever listen to the series of remixes and remasters of most albums that were released as Media books, with Steven Wilson and others on the desk?
Went up to Broadsword and called it a day. 1) Aqualung - ★★★★½ (9.0) 2) Thick as a Brick - ★★★★ (8.5) 3) Minstrel in the Gallery - ★★★★ (8.0) 4) Songs from the Wood - ★★★★ (8.0) - Life Is a Long Song - ★★★★ (8.0) 5) Benefit - ★★★½ (7.5) 6) War Child - ★★★½ (7.5) 7) Heavy Horses - ★★★½ (7.0) 8) The Broadsword and the Beast - ★★★½ (7.0) 9) Stormwatcher - ★★★½ (7.0) 10) Too Old to Rock 'n' Roll: Too Young to Die - ★★★½ (7.0) 11) Stand Up - ★★★½ (7.0) 12) This Was - ★★★ (6.5) 13) A Passion Play - ★★★ (6.5) 14) A - ★★★ (6.0)
Of the Albums I've Heard: 1. Stand Up (1969) - 5 2. Aqualung (1971) 5 3. Benefit (1970) 4.5 4. Minstrel in the Gallery (1975) 4.5 5. Thick as a Brick (1972) 4 6. This Was (1968) 4 7. Songs from the Wood (1977) 3.5
Great video guys! I had a similar experience with Minstrel in the Gallery. I picked it up in the mid 90s in a charity shop, wasn't expecting a great deal actually as I'd never heard it mentioned. Played it and went back to it over and over; what a great album!
Great band, great discography, one of the all-time great rock bands, Prog or otherwise. Out of all their albums, really only one I would call bad and one that's just ok. All the rest are at least good, with a solid 8 legitimately great, and 3 that are among the best ever. So, here is my list (FYI, I did not include the Christmas album, but I did include Living in the Past, because when it came out the songs were mostly all new in the US even though released earlier in the UK). #23. Under Wraps (1984) 2.0 #22. Rock Island (1989) 2.5 #21. J-Tull Dot Com (1999) 3.0 #20. The Zealot Gene (2022) 3.0 #19. RokFlute (2023) 3.0 #18. Catfish Rising (1991) 3.0 #17. Crest of a Knave (1987) 3.0 #16. Roots to Branches (1995) 3.0 #15. This Was (1968) 3.0 #14. Benefit (1970) 3.5 #13. Broadsword and The Beast (1982) 3.5 #12. Too Old To Rock n Roll, Too Young To Die (1976) 3.5 #11. A (1980) 3.5 #10. Stormwatch (1979) 3.5 #9. Stand Up (1969) 3.5 #8. War Child (1974) 4.0 #7. Heavy Horses (1978)4.0 #6. Minstrel in the Gallery (1975) 4.5 #5. A Passion Play (1973) 4.5 #4. Living in the Past (1972) 4.5 #3. Songs From the Wood (1977) 5.0 #2. Aqualung (1971) 5.0 #1. Thick As A Brick (1972) 5.0
Great review of the catalog guys. Some great insights and commentary on a band that frustrates me for the wide swings in consistency in their catalog..
lol you guys sound so enthused... I kid i know its just your standard delivery. A great Catalog regardless, one of my all time fave bands. Hard to rank for me, but I agree once in the 90s things take a turn, and totally agree about the production of the last 2.
Aqualung is the masterpiece but Stand Up is a close #2 for me. Every song is good. They sound great. The folk- rock songs predate LZ III and it comes in a very cool gatefold jacket.
Nice to see this ranking. I wasn't too bothered about Jethro Tull "in the day" but have been won over by them in recent years Can't argue with Aqualung, 5 star album. Also big fan of Stand Up(also 5 stars) and Minstrel in the gallery. I think Thick as a Brick may eventually get there as well, but needs a few more listenings. Stormwatchalso a good 4 star album
Interesting! I’ve never taken a dive past the hits with them. I may have to. Nice list! I would love to see you folks do a list on Gordon Lightfoot or Laura Nyro soon! I know Joe’s a fan of Nyro! Keep up the good work! Love your vids!
jethro tull is a deep band. albums i hated (too old too rock n roll, warchild) later became my favorites. theres a lot to discover over the years of listening. i actually hated this band for years, until i rediscovered songs from the wood while living in britain, and they really grew on me. martin barre is probably the most underrated guitarist of all time
I included Living in the past. Yes its technically a compolation but its not a best of. 3 sides are almost all stand-alone non album singles and B sides predating Aqualung. These songs are some of their best songs. Any would have on Stand Up or Benefit.
Thanks for doing this one. I have a lot of history with this band and saw them once in the 90s post Anderson's voice loss - the band were good but it was disappointing. Anderson has turned into a bit of an old reactionary and I lost interest in anything new from him/them since Roots to Branches. I've based this ranking on how likely I am to play these records after listening to them for most of my life. Songs from the Wood (1977) - This is one of the earliest albums I purchased for myself in 1977 and still like it as much as did back then. Minstrel in the Gallery (1975) - One that gets better with age and holds up very well. It was an album that took some time to gel with me. Heavy Horses (1978) Thick as a Brick (1972) War Child (1974) - Way too high of course but after so many years I still choose to play it more than most. A workhorse album with staying power for me. I agree Dee's strings sound cloying. There's a loony quality I like about this one. A Passion Play (1973) - Used to be my favorite but has dropped. Benefit (1970) - Underrated - Sossity is a bit of a cringe. Aqualung (1971) - I used to like this a lot more, as the songs are consistently good but the production really lets it down. Stormwatch (1979) A (1980) - I really like this one despite the bad press. Too Old to Rock 'n' Roll: Too Young to Die! (1976) Stand Up (1969) - overrated. Below are albums I've heard and even still own but don't care about anymore. The Broadsword and the Beast (1982) Roots to Branches (1995) This Was (1968) Under Wraps (1984) Crest of a Knave (1987) Catfish Rising (1991) Rock Island (1989)
You boys always come up with something I never noticed. I'm listening to "She Said She Was A Dancer" from Crest Of The Knave and damn if it doesn't sound just like Dire Straits! Even the vocal sounds like Ian is channeling Mark Knopfler.
1. Songs from the Wood (1977) 2. Aqualung (1971) 3. Thick as a Brick (1972) 4. Heavy Horses (1978) (5). Living in the Past (1972) 5. Minstrel in the Gallery (1975) 6. Benefit (1970) 7. Stand Up (1969) 8. Stormwatch (1979) 9. A Passion Play (1973) 10. RokFlote (2023) 11. The JT Christmas Album (2003) (12). Nightcap (1993) 12. The Zealot Gene (2022) 13. The Broadsword and the Beast (1982) 14. War Child (1974) 15. Roots to Branches (1995) 16. Crest of a Knave (1987) 17. A (1980) 18. Rock Island (1989) 19. Too Old to Rock 'n' Roll: Too Young to Die (1976) 20. Catfish Rising (1991) 21. This Was (1968) 22. J-Tull Dot Com (1999) 23. Under Wraps (1984)
Heavy Horses . .. still just adore it. I remember I bought it as a kid and it was warped and they didn’t have another copy so I just played the warped copy for awhile 😂
I've never considered Tull to be prog. Saw them for the first time (out of 15) on Passion Play tour. 2nd concert I ever attended. Thick As A Brick, Songs From The Wood and Heavy Horses are my top 3 albums.
Possibility is the most underappreciated progish band of the era. They were so different from everybody else. Musically gifted, just a great band. I actually took flute lessons as a senior in high school, so i could be the next Ian Anderson. It didn’t happen🤣🤣
As always, an interesting discussion, with some surprises and good defenses. So much I could respond to, but to pick a random small point: Joe, you said that the (horribly titled) J-Tull Dot Com album was lacking "heavy riffs" - go back and check out Spiral and El Niño. I'm a shameless fanboy, and I do realize that I rank their albums higher than any sane person should. But I legitimately LOVE almost all their music, even the lesser stuff. 1 Songs From The Wood 5.0 2 A Passion Play 5.0 3 Minstrel In The Gallery 5.0 4 Thick As A Brick 5.0 5 Aqualung 5.0 6 The Secret Language Of Birds 4.5 7 Chateau D'Herouville 4.5 8 Stormwatch 4.5 9 War Child 4.5 10 Benefit 4.5 11 Roots To Branches 4.0 12 1981 Outtakes 4.0 13 RökFlöte 4.0 14 Broadsword And The Beast 4.0 15 Too Old To Rock 'n' Roll: Too Young To Die 4.0 16 Stand Up 4.0 17 Heavy Horses 4.0 18 J-Tull Dot Com 3.5 19 A 3.5 20 Rock Island 3.5 21 The Zealot Gene 3.5 22 Walk Into Light 3.5 23 This Was 3.5 24 Catfish Rising 3.5 25 Crest Of A Knave 3.5 26 Under Wraps 3.0 27 Homo Erraticus 3.0 28 Thick As A Brick 2 3.0 29 Rupi's Dance 3.0 30 Divinities: Twelve Dances With God 3.0 31 The Jethro Tull Christmas Album 2.5
Very interesting indeed.....I bought the first 5 albums in real time as they were released and have never heard any of their subsequent "works". THIS WAS already sounded slightly dated in 1968...too much "blues"...too much "jazzy flute"......STAND UP was a massive leap forward in every way and was along with the first 2 LED ZEP albums the best album of 1969.......I liked BENEFIT at the time...though with the "benefit"of passing time I think it is a lacklustre effort ....then AQUALUNG came along...WOW!!!....this was a real attention getter and I saw the band live in Sydney just after it came out....from memory the concert was basically the album played in its entirety and the hilarious stage routines were priceless!!......I am not a "prog" fan (though I LOVE KING CRIMSON and VAN DER GRAAF GENERATOR) but I was blown away by the masterwork THICK AS A BRICK....not a "party" album that is for sure,but possibly the most clever "pisstake" in rock history!!!
thanks guys for doin Tull.... great to hear your takes on Aqualung.... you didnt talk about the lyrics on Aqualung ...so I will toss in my two cents... they are really great.... there, I am done.... I totally agree with Joe ...I have always been bummed with how short a couple of the songs are on the album....
1. Thick as a Brick 2. A Passion Play 3. Songs from The Wood 4. Aqualung 5. Stand Up 6. Minstrel in the Gallery 7. Benefit 8. Heavy Horses And then everything else
Jethro Tull has been my favorite band since the late 70s when I bought one of their Best Of albums. I agree with a lot of your scoring (The Zealot Gene is indeed a terrible record and TBATB is indeed their best '80s album) although APP and HH are top 10 Tull albums.
I almost totally agree Jason - the Too Old to... title track is excellent as is "Pied Piper." But I would sooner add "Big Dipper" to that trio than the last track.
Thanks for tackling this discography. I get the feeling I am a bigger Tull fan than you are, but still there are a couple of parallels in our rankings. Here's my discography retrospective plus complete ranking (apart from RokFlote, which hadn't been released when I did the video). ua-cam.com/video/1zwMhfPMCjk/v-deo.html
I love aqualung and songs from the wood and broadsword and the beast. I need to check out minstrel in the gallery and a couple other albums. I also know songs from different albums and periods of their discography.
Funnily enough, I'm editing a podcast (The Algorhythms) episode where me and two friends are doing the Ranking Of Albums schtick (it was directly inspired by TLM). Your episode is a LOT shorter than mine (we tend to ramble more on the albums). It's also the longest discog we've done to date (although that'll soon be overtaken this summer by Beach Boys and Prince). Also, your lists are VERY different from all three of ours (not to mention I score out of 10). I'll put mine here and save my co-hosts lists for when I finish and upload the episode to Spotify and elsewhere. 1. Thick As A Brick (1972) [10/10; Gold Stars] 2. Minstrel In The Gallery (1975) [10/10] 3. Aqualung (1971) [10/10] 4. Heavy Horses (1978) [10/10] 5. A Passion Play (1973) [9.5/10] 6. Songs from the Wood (1977) [9.5/10] 7. Stormwatch (1979) [9/10] 8. Too Old To Rock 'n' Roll: Too Young To Die! (1976) [9/10] 9. Benefit (1970) [9/10] 10. Stand Up (1969) [9/10] 11. A (1980) [8.5/10] 12. Roots to Branches (1995) [8/10] 13. RökFlöte (2023) [8/10] 14. War Child (1974) [8/10] 15. Catfish Rising (1991) [7.5/10] 16. The Zealot Gene (2022) [7.5/10] 17. This Was (1968) [7/10] 18. J-Tull Dot Com (1999) [6.5/10] 19. The Jethro Tull Christmas Album (2003) [6/10] 20. Rock Island (1989) [6/10] 21. The Broadsword and the Beast (1982) [5/10] 22. Crest of a Knave (1987) [4.5/10] 23. Under Wraps (1984) [0/10]--I said "Fuck this" and left three tracks from the end, something I almost never do.
When Jethro Tull are at their best they are a great band, but I agree that they are very uneven. My top 5: 1. Minstrel in the Gallery 2. Thick as a Brick 3. Heavy Horses 4. Songs From the Wood 5. Aqualung
I'm not sure why people keep saying the story of "A Passion Play" is so hard to follow. It's pretty much a Pythonesque retelling of Dante. I got it the first time I heard it. Give yourself some literary legroom and you will as well!
Thank you for doing this. Between the two of you, I think you dissected the career very well. (By the way, the word "folk" - like the word "yolk" - has a silent L!)
You guys should do a QOTSA ranked. I don't love all their albums but I think they are probably the most vital rock band going. Productions are stellar and always interesting. I feel they put the same amount of intelligence that Jimmy Page put into Zeppelin.
@@TastesLikeMusic I'm surprised you guys haven't done an Alice Cooper ranked. His run from Love it to Death to Welcome to My Nightmare is one of the best. But there's certainly some pain to listen to most of his albums after that.
Jethro Tull was great from 69 to 73. Stand Up through Thick as a Brick plus all the singles collected on Living in the Past is amazing.
A Passion Play is one of the 3 greatest albums ever recorded along with Animals by Pink Floyd and Selling England By The Pound by Genesis. Benefit and TAAB are great also.
My history with Jethro Tull is a pretty odd one. I have been aware of them pretty well my entire life as my dad is a big fan and played them quite a bit when I was growing up. However, they were the first band I ever remember hating and it was from a very young age. My hatred of Jethro Tull was a running joke throughout my childhood and something I expected to always feel. However at some point in college I decided to listen to Aqualung for whatever reason and I was like "damn this is actually good". I remember calling my dad to tell him that I guess I didn't hate Jethro Tull anymore after all. Since then I didn't explore them all that much outside that album and a few others so I was pretty excited to finally do a full dive after such a long history. Some of these albums were like catching up with old friends as I heard them growing up but others I was less familiar with. I'm sure my list may be a little messed up for some super fans but I enjoyed this overall.
23) Rock Island - 2
22) Under Wraps - 2
21) The Zealot Gene - 2.5
20) Rokflote - 2.5
19) Catfish Rising - 2.5
18) This Was - 2.5
17) Roots to Branches - 3
16) J-Tull Dot Com - 3
15) Crest of a Knave -3
14) The Jethro Tull Christmas Album -3
13) A - 3
12) A Passion Play - 3.5
11) Too Old to Rock - 3.5
10) Stormwatch - 3.5
9) War Child 3.5
8) Minstrel in the Gallery - 3.5
7) Benefit - 4
6) The Broadsword and the Beast - 4
5) Stand Up - 4
4) Thick as a Brick - 4
3) Songs From the Wood - 4
2) Heavy Horses - 4
1) Aqualung - 4.5
#1 Stand Up (10)
#2 Thick as a Brick (10)
#3 Aqualung (10)
#4 Benefit (10)
#5 Songs From The Wood (9)
#6 Minstrel in The Gallery (9)
#7 War Child (8)
#8 A Passion Play (7)
#9 Heavy Horses (7)
#10 Stormwatch (6)
Yep I agree with your list except for passion play... I just could never connect with that album.
The classic Tull albums are great, and Steven Wilsons remixing magic makes them even better.
I'd have to agree despite my pet peeve of splitting the longer songs ("Thick As A Brick," "A Passion Play," and "Baker St. Muse") into multiple parts. Everything else? The definitive way to listen to 70s Tull.
23. Under Wraps (1984) 1.5/5
22. The Jethro Tull Christmas Album (2003) 2.5/5
21. J-Tull Dot Com (1999) 2.5/5
20. The Broadsword And The Beast (1982) 3/5
19. Rock Island (1989) 3/5
18. A (1980) 3/5
17. The Zealot Gene (2022) 3/5
16. This Was (1968) 3.5/5
15. Too Old To Rock 'N' Roll: Too Young To Die! (1976) 3.5/5
14. RökFlöte (2023) 3.5/5
13. Catfish Rising (1991) 3.5/5
12. Roots To Branches (1995) 3.5/5
11. War Child (1974) 4/5
10. Crest Of A Knave (1987) 4/5
9. Songs From The Wood (1977) 4/5
8. Stormwatch (1979) 4/5
7. A Passion Play (1973) 4.5/5
6. Stand Up (1969) 4.5/5
5. Heavy Horses (1978) 4.5/5
4. Benefit (1970) 4.5/5
3. Minstrel In The Gallery (1975) 4.5/5
2. Thick As A Brick (1972) 5/5
1. Aqualung (1971) 5/5
last half of side one on brick is the most beautiful music I've ever heard.
For me it's A Passion Play #1. Pretty indifferent to all the other albums now, except for Roots to Branches maybe. The song Home from Stormwatch brings up nostalgic feelings though.
Agreed. Jason doesn’t get it
Totally agree about Passion Play. I'd put it up there on the Mt Rushmore of "proggiest" prog albums with Relayer, Larks' Tongues in Aspic, and Wind & Wuthering.
Yes, that’s the problem
I wanted to love A Passion Play. I eventually do on side 2 getting past the hare who lost his spectacles
I like it better than Thick as a Brick-more consistent, better melodies.
I took a drink every time Joe said 'twee' in this video and now I'm hammered... 🥴
1. Thick as a Brick (1972) 5 stars (10)
2. Aqualung (1971) 5 stars (9.7)
3. Songs from the Wood (1977) 4.5 stars (9.2)
4. Broadsword and the Beast 4.5 stars (8.7)
5. Heavy Horses (1978) 4 stars (8.3)
6. Stand Up (1969) 4 stars (8)
7. Minstrel in the Gallery (1975) 4 stars (8)
8. War Child (1974) 4 stars (8)
9. A Passion Play (1973) 4 stars (8)
10. Crest of a Knave (1987) 4 stars (8)
11. Jethro Tull Christmas Album (2003) 4 stars (8)
12. Benefit (1970) 3.5 stars (7.8)
13. Stormwatch (1979) 3.5 stars (7.5)
14. Too Old to Rock n Roll : Too Young to Die! (1976) 3.5 stars (7)
15. Rock Island (1989) 3.5 stars (7)
16. A (1980) 3 stars (6.8)
17. J Tull Dot Com (1999) 3 stars (6.5)
18. This Was (1968) 3 stars (6.5)
19. Zealot Gene (2022) 3 stars (6.2)
20. Rockflote (2023) 2.5 stars (5.7)
21. Catfish Rising (1991) 2.5 stars (5.5)
22. Roots to Branches (1995) 2.5 stars (5)
23. Under Wraps (1984) 2 stars (4.5)
More broadsword love ! Fab :)
This was very tough ... literally!
23-The Zealot Gene*
22-RokFlote*
21-J-Tull Dot Com*
20-Roots to Branches**
19-Rock Island**
18-Crest of a Knave**
17-Catfish Rising**
16-Christmas Album**1/2
15-Under Wraps***
14-Broadsword & the Beast***
13-Stormwatch***1/2
12-Heavy Horses****
11-A****
10-This Was****
9- (5*) The top 9 spots are reserved for all 9 studio album releases from Stand Up through Songs from the Wood. Every album from 1969 through 1977 are all 5* rock albums from my perspective, and are too close for me to rank. On any given day, my personal ranking for these can vary. I hold these albums in high regard, being born in the 50's and a Tull fan since my youth.
I have not purchased a Tull studio album in over 20 years, but I did listen to The Zealot Gene and RokFlote on several occasions, so I'm confident in my ranking of those.
I have ranked all these albums solely on musical enjoyment, and not recording quality or technical proficiency.👨🏻
Nice discussion and ranking. The top albums on my list are Aqualung, Songs Of The Wood, Thick As A Brick and Stormwatch. I have been thinking about why JT have never been one of my absolute favourite bands. I admire them as musicians and enjoy Ians flute playing but the music is kind of academic almost without soul and does not create so much feelings when I listen to them. And music for me is all about create some kind of feeling.
So Jethro Tull was one of my favorite bands in highschool/college and owned every vinyl from This Was to Heavy Horses. I was married in 1978 and funds for new music pretty much dried up. I know nothing about any LP's after Heavy Horses but looking at your lists that appears not to matter much. I always thought they would never outdo Aqualung but on May 4, 1973 their tour lead them to Evansville, IN, the Passion Play tour. Tull opened with Thick As A Brick and an hour and twenty minutes later "and now for our second song" played Cross Eyed Mary. TAAB live was absolutely mesmerizing and nothing has replaced it as #1.
Here is my admittedly abbreviated list:
1. Thick As A Brick - I never tire of listening in its entirety - Do you have the newspaper cover?
2. Aqualung
3. Songs From The Wood
4. Benefit
5. Stand Up
5A. Living In The Past
6. Heavy Horses
7. Minstrel In The Gallery
8. War Child
9. Too Old To Rock and Roll
10. This Was
11. Passion Play
12 - 23. Get your dart board out.
Thanks for ranking Tull. I know it takes time and you have to listen to some uninspiring music (Really don't mind if you sit this one out!). But there is some great music here. Great job
Now if I could interest you in Little Feat - at least the Lowell George era (1969-1979).
YES!>>>>>> Fat Man in the Bathtub, Willin', Time Loves A Hero, All That You Dream, etc. etc. Another band that will never be allowed in the overblown RRHOF.
Thanks for taking the time to do this and share. Of course I did not totally agree :-) but these things are totally subjective. I do appreciate you giving fair critique and reasoning behind yor rankings and score. So many just say here it cause I like it. So very well done.
I am a huge Tull fan and have been since the early 1970s. Agreed with most of your 16 - 23. Also, my cut off from most of thier best music is 1980. After that the overall direction of the band took a turn it never recovered from I believe. I do take exception the one Passion Play ranking in that low range (as will half the Tull fans while the other half will agree whole heartly). To each there own but some of the bands best music comes from that album. I get as an album it's not everyone's taste but it's still one of their better works. The rest is more personal preference I guess.
My top 10 would look more like below. Not as detailed as yours but I did provide a highlight or two of why. I honestly focused more on the songs I liked on the albums and the overall sound.:
10. War Child - Honestly this gets here on one song, Skating Away. The rest is OK but very repetitive. Bungle in the Jungle is a fun little song that I like more than most but Skating Away is to me a quinticential Tull song. I love the start and build up. It's a great song start to finish. Rest is decent but not stellar.
9. Too Old For Rock 'n' Roll: Too Young To Die - Title song is enough for me but then you add Chequred Flag and one of my unsung hero songs Quizz Kid. Seriously highlights John Glasscock, a very underrated bass player. I also really like Taxi Grab. Very top lineup for Tull.
8. Heavy Horses - The last of the best Tull IMO. The title song is very good. I also really liked One Brown Mouse and Moths which comes out as a nice surprise. But No Lullaby makes this album. It makes my top 5 Tull songs of all time. It's amazing to see live.
7. Benifit - I like most of the album but it's highlighted by Nothing to Say and one of my all time favorites Teacher. The whole album has a good Tull feel to it coming on the heels of Stand Up it's what you should expect.
6. Stand Up - Again for me there are few flaws here. Some stand out classics from this album - Nothing is Easy, Boureee, A New Day Yesterday and my favorite song on the album Fat Man. This was when Tull really started to find themselves. Even Jeffery is interesting if not my favorite.
5. Minstrel in the Gallery - This album has very few flaws. This starts the albums where I like most every song headlined by Baker St Muse. Again the title song is very good and I like the cheeky little ending with Grace.
4. Passion Play - A very polarizing album for sure. In fairness I hated this album for a long time, but msotly because I would only listen to parts. You really have to listen to this album in it's entirety. Because of that it should probably not be as high. But there are so many steller parts of this album that I just can't rank it any lower. Admittedly it can be a slog to get through the Story of the Hare at times but the reward of getting to The Business Office makes it all worth while. What a masterpiece the entire Act 3 is for me!
3. Songs from the Wood - This album is fire from the first notes of the title song to the last notes of Pibroch. I love every note of this album. The flow of the songs the arrangments, and general musicianship is astounding.
2. Thick as a Brick - I was hooked the first time I heard it. The lyrics are so silly but are matched to incredible music. One of the highlights of my musical youth. For me there is no flaw in this album. Even the silly story still flows and takes you on a musical journey that I can listen to over and over.
1. Aqualung - Should not have to say anyting here. Even if it's not your top album it's attributes are clear. This album put Jethro Tull on the map and for good reason. Locomotive Breath, Aqualung, Cross Eyed Mary are obvious to even non-tull fans. But then you have Hymn 43, My God and a very underrated Wonde'ring' Aloud. My God and Hymn 43 may be my top 2 Tull songs.
For what it's worth there is my top 10 with at least some reasoning. Thanks again for your ranking. Motovated me.
There are so many things you both say that I agree with and plenty I could disagree with at length, or at least challenge or attempt to qualify. But, I genuinely appreciate the fact you've even done a discography for a band that I think you both find a bit weird - face it, not everyone is going to be passionate to the point of certifiable about JT. Besides, I took up residence in the 'different folks, different strokes' camp long ago, so I'm going to focus solely on the positive things.
Joe, you are right about A and Broadsword, which are both really fun albums. The latter, like War Child, could have been an even better album if other material from the Broadsword sessions, released slowly over decades, had been put out at the time.
Jason, you are right about TOTRNR. 'Crazed Institution', which you didn't mention, is one of my all-time favourite JT songs. The fact that TOTRNR isn't in my top 10 doesn't mean I don't have huge affection for it. More excellent outtakes from War Child, in addition to those you mention, are 'Saturation', 'Good Godmother' 'Glory Row' and 'Tomorrow was Today'.
You're both right about MITG. And, Joe, my favourite moment here is hearing you enthuse so much about 'Cheap Day Return' - a perfect short story in song with not a wasted word - on Aqualung. Hearing this for the first time, Christmas night 1975, with my ear pressed to the speaker - played low so as not to disturb those in a post-gluttonous haze watching TV in the other room - was precisely the moment I fell in love with JT.
Oh and Thick as a Brick, which arrived by post just after my birthday at the start of summer 1976, is what passed for a multimedia event in those days. I still play it regularly. It's probably my favourite thing involving bricks that didn't require a mortgage. It’s maybe my favourite thing, full stop. Like I said, certifiable.
23. Under Wraps
22. Rock Island
21. j-tull dot com
20. RökFlöte
19. Catfish Rising
18. The Zealot Gene
17. The Christmas Album
16. This Was
15. Crest of a Knave
14. Roots to Branches
13. Too Old to Rock ’n’ Roll: Too Young to Die
12. Broadsword and the Beast
11. Stormwatch
10. War Child
9. A
8. Heavy Horses
7. Stand Up
6. Songs from the Wood
5. Minstrel in the Gallery
4. Benefit
3. A Passion Play
2. Aqualung
1. Thick as a Brick
🥰
1) A Passion Play (5)
2) Aqualung (5)
3) Songs From The Wood (4.5)
4) Benefit (4.5)
5) Thick As A Brick (4.5)
6) Heavy Horses (4)
7) Stormwatch (4)
8) Stand Up (4)
9) War Child (3.5)
10) Minstrel In The Gallery (3.5)
11) Broadsword (3.5)
12) This Was (3.5)
13) A (3.0)
14) Too Old to Rock n Roll (3.0)
15) Catfish Rising (3.0)
16) Roots to Branches (3.0)
17) Crest of a Knave (2.5)
18) Under Wraps (2.5)
19) J-Tull Dot Com (2.5)
20) Christmas Album (2.5)
21) Rock Island (2.0)
22) Zealot Gene (2.0)
23) RokFlote (2.0)
If Living In The Past was able to be included, it would be top 5 for sure. Maybe as high as #3.
I agree that Living in the Past would be and should be.
Genuinely so happy to see 'Minstrel' so high on both lists. Such an underrated album.
1. Thick As A Brick
2. Stand Up
3. Songs From The Wood
4. A Passion Play
5. Aqualung
6. Heavy Horses
7. Benefit
8. Minstrel In The Gallery
9. Stormwatch
10. War Child
11. This Was
12. Too Old For Rock n' Roll
Maybe is because I come from a different background musically speaking, but I like 80's Tull a lot. That mix of the classic Jethro Tull sound with synths and 80's production works quite well for me. It has a lot of textures.
Thank you very much. I think you've done justice to their catalogue, even though my overall ratings as a long time fan are higher.
My list:
1. Songs from the Wood (5)
2. Heavy Horses (5)
3. Thick as a Brick (5)
4. Minstrel in the Gallery (5)
5. Stormwatch (4,5)
6. Stand Up (4,5)
7. The Broadsword and the Beast (4,5)
8. Benefit (4,5)
9. Aqualung (4,5)
10. A Passion Play (4)
11. Warchild (3,5)
12. Crest of a Knave (3,5)
13. A (3,5)
14. Too Old to Rock and Roll (3,5)
15. This Was (3)
16. Under Wraps (3)
17. Catfish Rising (3)
18. Roots to Branches (2,5)
19. Christmas Album (2,5)
20. Zealot Gene (2,5)
21. J-Tull Dot Com (2,5)
22. Rock Island (2,5)
23. Rökflöte (2,5)
1. Aqualung (1971) 5
2. Benefit (1970) 5
3. Thick as a Brick (1972) 5
4. Stand Up (1969) 4.5
5. A Passion Play (1973) 4.5
6. Minstrel in the Gallery (1975) 4
7. Songs From the Wood (1977) 4
8. Heavy Horses (1978) 4
9. This Was (1968) 4
10. Stormwatch (1979) 3.5
11. Roots to Branches (1995) 3.5
12. War Child (1974) 3
13. A (1980) 3
14. Too Old For Rock 'n' Roll: Too Young To Die (1976) 3
15. The Broadsword and the Beast (1982) 3
16. Crest of a Knave (1987) 3
17. The Jethro Tull Christmas Album (2003) 3
18. Rock Island (1989) 2.5
19. J-Tull Dot Com (1999) 2.5
20. The Zealot Gene (2022) 2.5
21. RökFlöte (2023) 2.5
22. Catfish Rising (1991) 2
23. Under Wraps (1984) 1.5
CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER:
4 0 This Was (1968)
4.5 Stand Up (1969)
5.0 Benefit (1970)
5.0 Aqualung (1971)
5.0 Thick as a Brick (1972)
4.5 A Passion Play (1973)
3.0 War Child (1974)
4.0 Minstrel in the Gallery (1975)
3.0 Too Old For Rock 'n' Roll: Too Young To Die (1976)
4.0 Songs From the Wood (1977)
4.0 Heavy Horses (1978)
3.5 Stormwatch (1979)
3.0 A (1980)
3.0 The Broadsword and the Beast (1982)
1.5 Under Wraps (1984)
3.0 Crest of a Knave (1987)
2.5 Rock Island (1989)
2.0 Catfish Rising (1991)
3.5 Roots to Branches (1995)
2.5 J-Tull Dot Com (1999)
3.0 The Jethro Tull Christmas Album (2003)
2.5 The Zealot Gene (2022)
2.5 RökFlöte (2023)
If you told me Jethro Tull invented defying categorization I'd believe you. Are they blues rock? Folk rock? Hard rock? Prog? Pop? Well, yes. Led by the Laird of Strathaird, Ian Anderson (one of the most underappreciated composers in rock), Jethro Tull blazed an eclectic trail across multiple eras of music. Too unique and consistent to be pigeonholed as only a product of the 1970s, this is timeless music in the most literal sense- many of these songs feel like they'd have been hits during the Middle Ages.
This Was (1968) is remarkably sophisticated for a debut. It tackles everything from blues ("A Song For Jeffrey") to psychedelic rock ("Cat's Squirrel") and even borders on jazz in places ("Dharma For One," "Serenade to a Cuckoo"). But it's their sophomore effort that establishes Tull as a major artist.
Stand Up (1969) cements their signature flute-heavy sound and expands their range into classical music ("Bourée," "Reasons For Waiting"). Ian Anderson has cited "Nothing is Easy" as a creative catalyst that served as something of a mission statement for the group. (The deluxe reissue of Stand Up gets to 5 stars for including the seminal singles "Living in the Past" and "Sweet Dream.")
Benefit (1970) incorporates prog elements ("To Cry You a Song," "Nothing to Say," "Inside") and qualifies as a perfect album in my book. If they hadn't left out "The Witch's Promise" I'd have ranked it Tull's #1 album overall.
Ian Anderson insists their 1971 mega-LP, Aqualung, is not a concept album. But it's so effective at combining stark snapshots of the human condition with denunciations of religious hypocrisy you'd be forgiven for thinking otherwise. "Cross-Eyed Mary" and "Locomotive Breath" are the most flammable materials here, along with the title track.
Ian Anderson was so amused with people calling Aqualung a "concept album" that he set out, in jest, to make the *ultimate* prog rock concept album (and arguably succeeded) with Thick as a Brick (1972). A single continuous composition split across two album sides, 'Brick' is so relentlessly creative it's hard to believe they were basically making it up on the fly in the studio.
Things take a theatrical turn on A Passion Play (1974), the Tull LP that's typically the hardest nut to crack for the uninitiated. I'll concede the music can be pretty dense at times, but repeated listens are greatly rewarded.
War Child followed in '74, and though it's not without its moments- "Bungle in the Jungle," "Skating Away," "Back-Door Angels"- I find it rather spotty. The band gets back to rockin' hard on 1975's Minstrel in the Gallery, which might he their most underrated LP. The title track and "Black Satin Dancer" compete with anything in Tull's catalogue.
I go back-and-forth on whether Songs From the Wood (1977) or Heavy Horses (1978) is the best album of their so-called "folk rock trilogy" (which includes 1979's Stormwatch). It was following Stormwatch that John Evans (keys), Barriemore Barlow (drums), and Dee Palmer (keys & arrangements) were dismissed from the band, which, for a lot of people, marks the end of Tull's classic period.
Indeed, the very next album, A (1980), was originally meant to be an Ian Anderson solo album. It embraces the prevailing sounds of the new decade, complete with synths and processed vocals. Luckily, its best cuts ("And Further On," "Black Sunday") make the sonic shift more palatable than expected.
The Broadsword and the Beast (1982) continues the 1980s production values and Ian rediscovers his gift for melody on "Broadsword" and "Slow Marching Band." 1987's Crest of a Knave features a late career classic ("Farm on the Freeway") but gets demoted for the common (and valid) complaint that it sounds way too much like Dire Straits. I think their Middle-Eastern flavored LP from 1995, Roots to Branches, is a grower that qualifies as something of a return to form.
On the grand scale of bands I slightly penalize Jethro Tull for being more of a one-man dictatorship than a true band of equals (although their longtime guitar player, Martin Barre, deserves special mention for being the second biggest contributor to the Tull discography). Nevertheless, Jethro Tull is a borderline top 50 artist for me in the pop/rock realm. I've been listening to them since I was a kid because I have an older brother who likes them better than he likes Led Zeppelin, and played them more often. I wouldn't personally put Tull ahead of Zeppelin, but I think it's a close call, and that says a lot.
MY RATING SYSTEM:
5.0 = major classic (consistently great *and* stratospheric highs)
4.5 = minor classic (consistently great *or* stratospheric highs, but not both)
4.0 = great (a clear majority is worth revisiting and it's one of the best things for this artist/style)
3.5 = seriously good (at least half is worth revisiting)
3.0 = nominally good (less than half is worth revisiting)
2.5 = fair (competent but uninspired, not worth revisiting)
2.0 = poor (difficult listen)
1.5 = awful (can't finish it)
1.0 = historically awful (musical apocalypse)
▪︎ "Consistently" does not mean "flawlessly." I allow for a few duds if the rest of the songs are good enough. "Stratospheric highs" refer to albums that feature iconic songs or have an iconic sound. (Albums I consider to be "perfect" can also reach 5 stars, even without containing legendary songs or being highly influential.)
▪︎ I don't go below 1 star because once I'm in the realm of the truly terrible, I don't care to differentiate anymore.
▪︎ Anything I rate 3.5 stars or better is an album I'm enthusiastic about and would likely revisit at some point.
Very well-done Whammy! Interesting that you go back and forth on Songs from the Wood and Heavy Horses as to which is best. I went ahead and called it a tie! (my song rating average to both comes out to 4.19). Interesting that you put A above Broadsword (like I did); just about everyone else on the discord server put Broadsword (way) ahead. Other than that, I think "Farm on the Freeway" is just OK. Great commentary! Cheers mate! Hope you are doing well.
I gotta disagree about Under Wraps. The quality of songwriting on there is leaps and bounds over the two newest albums. All 3 albums have bad production, in different ways. A tune like "Paparazzi" will stick in your head for days, though.
@@Cpayne301.5 doesn't mean irredeemable, It just means as a whole I can't finish listening to it. The production definitely plays a role. I've always been slightly averse to albums by '70s acts who adopted '80s production. It also factors into why I don't have A or Broadsword & the Beast rated higher.
@@AbbeyRoadkill1 What choice was there production-wise though? I can't image them doing anything that sounds like, say, Stormwatch in 1984. Or 1982.
Also, your rating system says 1.5 is awful, which sounds a lot like an irredeemable record to me. If I can't finish an album, I'd say it's irredeemable!
@@Cpayne30 The blessing of an artist like Tull is that they're always changing, often with the times. But the flip side of that is that there eventually comes a time in every artist's journey when those changes start being a mismatch with their songwriting style. For me, that occurs in the '80s with respect to Tull. But your point is taken. No doubt resisting '80s production would've been hard for them, if not impossible. Everybody was doing it.
This Was..... was the second album I ever bought and I still love it
My prayers have been heard!!!! 👍
Everything up to (and including) Broadsword is pretty stellar.
Don’t forget, the compilation Living In The Past and the 20 Years box set are essential additions to the core catalogue if you haven’t scooped up all the deluxe editions.
Great effort guys. Clearly Aqualung the pick of the bunch. Great to see Jason put Heavy Horses up so high as I really love this album. I remember in high school my English teacher bringing in the cassette of Heavy Horses and playing it to the class for maybe no other reason than he truly loved it. Looking back now he was a pretty cool teacher.
Love that you guys are doing Tull. I am a massive fan (They are in my top 10 bands of all time) so my ratings are super biased, but I generally agreed with your placement of their albums. Great Job!
ALBUM RANKING:
1. Aqualung (1971) - ★★★★★ (10)
2. Songs From the Wood (1977) - ★★★★★ (10)
3. Thick as a Brick (1972) - ★★★★★ (10)
4. Minstrel in the Gallery (1975) - ★★★★★ (9.9)
5. Heavy Horses (1978) - ★★★★★ (9.9)
6. Benefit (1970) - ★★★★★ (9.8)
7. Stand Up (1969) - ★★★★★ (9.8)
8. A Passion Play (1973) - ★★★★★ (9.8)
9. Stormwatch (1979) - ★★★★★ (9.6)
10. The Broadsword and the Beast (1982) - ★★★★★ (9.6)
11. A (1980) - ★★★★★ (9.5)
12. War Child (1974) - ★★★★★ (9.5)
13. Crest of a Knave (1987) - ★★★★½ (9.2)
14. Too Old to Rock 'n' Roll: Too Young to Die! (1976) - ★★★★½ (8.9)
15. This Was (1968) - ★★★★½ (8.8)
16. Roots to Branches (1995) - ★★★★½ (8.6)
17. The Jethro Tull Christmas Album (2003) - ★★★★½ (8.6)
18. The Zealot Gene (2022) - ★★★★ (7.9)
19. RökFlöte (2023) - ★★★★ (7.8)
20. J-Tull Dot Com (1999) - ★★★★ (7.7)
21. Rock Island (1989) - ★★★★ (7.6)
22. Catfish Rising (1991) - ★★★★ (7.6)
23. Under Wraps (1984) - ★★★★ (7.5)
RATING SCALE:
★★★★★ (9.5 - 10): Amazing
★★★★½ (8.5 - 9.4): Great
★★★★ (7.5 - 8.4): Very Good
★★★½ (6.5 - 7.4): Good
★★★ (5.5 - 6.4): Decent
★★½ (4.5 - 5.4): Mediocre
★★ (3.5 - 4.4): Bad
★½ (2.5 - 3.4): Very Bad
★ (1.5 - 2.4): Awful
½ (0 - 1.4): Terrible
Wow you're definitely a Tull fan. I am as well but I'd move Stand up and Benefit up for me. A passion play, not a favorite?
As always, thanks for doing these. And thanks to the commenters for doing their own as well. Gives me something to go straight to and check out.
Thanks for doing Tull Week.
First thing I pack when I am preparing to get shipwrecked on a desert island: Heavy Horses.
Yes! The man of the people strikes again! The Broadsword and the Beast at number four… Whoot Whoot!! This was the first Jethro Tull album l ever purchased - on vinyl - way back in 1982. This was my entry point into the wacky worlds and unusual realms of IA and JT.
After hearing Ian Anderson promoting the Broadside elpee on an old, syndicated, live call in radio show called Rockline - look it up - l bought this slab of wax as a wee lad. (Okay, perhaps I was more of an impressionable young teen.) At any rate, I’ve loved it for the last 42 years, and even shelled out for the deluxe box set last year… though l have yet to unearth all of the treasures contained within. It’s quite voluminous, cantankerous and extravagant; much like Ian himself!
Martin Barre’s guitar work is excellent throughout the entire Beast album, especially his solos on the magnificent “Seal Driver,” tucked away at the end of the record. As I’m typing this, the lines are running through my head. And Peter-John Vettese’s keyboard work on the whole platter is 🔥fire 🔥 to me, too! Obvs, l have a very soft spot The Broadsword and the Beast, but l don’t give a flying fish! It sits in the upper echelon of Jethro Tull albums to me as well.
Keep up the groovy work, you kooky kats!
Cheers from The Big Apple. 🍎
Rock Out, Prog On and Pogo!
Your pal and mine,
~ The Delicious, Delectable Davey Cretin from CRETIN CLASSICS.
PS: Please pardon my odd prose, l worked two different eight hours shifts on Friday and now desperately (seeking Susan!) need to sleep all day on SaturDAyVE! Boom! 🤯
🎵”Beastie!”🎵
I finally caught up to that album some years ago and it does hold up. Like it a lot. Flying Colors, the Clasp, Beastie …. great stuff about more everyday experiences
That box that just came out is great and it has a show from the broadsword tour which will bring back memories if your brain is fried like mine :)
@@gregdale1066 The Monster Edition is indeed monstrously good. Been playing it to death since September. TBATB could have been a great double album back in 1982, as War Child could have been in 1974. Some of IA's decisions about what to put out, and what to lock in the vault for years, decades even, are truly puzzling.
I was playing freshman football in the fall of 1973. We were riding the bus home from another loss and one of my teammates recited "The Hare Who Lost His Spectacles" from A Passion Play to me. I tried not to crack up too much because it was a pretty somber atmosphere in the bus. Fast forward about 45 years, and A Passion Play got a good workout on my headphones at work. One great tight melody after another. It made the time go by fast, along with the Todd solo album, Tales from Topographic Oceans, and Foxtrot. Man there was a lot of good prog rock in the early and mid 70s.
1. Aqualung
2. Stormwatch
3. Songs from the Wood
4. Thick as a Brick
5. Heavy Horses
6. Benefit
7. This Was
8. War Child
9. Too Old to Rock 'n' Roll: Too Young to Die!
10. Minstrel in the Gallery
11. The Broadsword and the Beast
12. Stand Up
13. A Passion Play
14. A
Martin Barre should be on any Top 100 Guitarists List of All Time!
Easily
Ehhhh….probably wouldn’t make mine. Not that he’s not great, there’s just a lot of great guitarists. -Jason
He'd be on my list, but in the lower rungs (like around the 80-100 range). There's a lot of great guitarists I'd put above him.
That said, I think his contributions to Tull are underrated (especially in the 70s). And that as much as I liked The Zealot Gene and Rokflote for what they are, Martin's presence is sorely missed.
I think his creativity puts him there.
thanks for taking the time. Just have to say I love RokFlote. A most cohesive concept album with tons o Tullish hooks. i would put it in the high center.
I can't wait to watch this video after work!! Love this band! My 10th fave band of all-time! Thick as a Brick is in my top 10 fave albums of all-time. Prog is my fave genre and that album is one of it's definitive statements! Masterpiece!
I love that you Both educate yourself with the history of the Bands, the times and what went on during each specific Album Productions , the whole backround….
And don’t get me started about the ways you are describing the sound and feel of each Album! (Seriously, don’t - my English isn’t good enough ;)
I agree with Aqualung too. For me the icing on the cake on 'Locomotive Breath' is John Evan's piano introduction: it starts grave and classical (Rachmaninov influences) and morphs into wistful blues and then upbeat boogie-woogie. Genius!
Deep dive discographies are still your best content (I miss Listography)…I wish you focused more on this than tier lists. Still appreciate you though.
hear hear
Tier lists take an hour to make. A Listography like Jethro Takes at least 15 to even listen to (if you don’t do any repeats) 2+ to record and probably 8-10 to edit… just in case you were wondering why we don’t do as many. - Joe
@@TastesLikeMusic Which makes it absolutely insane that y'all did this on a weekly basis.
How about some more Fantasy Set List Drafts like you did for Rush? But not for Tull though. Skip Tull.
Regarding the sound of The Zealot Gene, it was very much a COVID album. Ian recorded his parts, sent them to the other guys, and they added their parts at home. Who knows what kind of equipment they has access to.
The Flute 🪈 Is A Heavy Metal Instrument.
Good list. However, I'd give Stand Up a 5.
Concerning the production shortcomings you guys often mention: Did you ever listen to the series of remixes and remasters of most albums that were released as Media books, with Steven Wilson and others on the desk?
Went up to Broadsword and called it a day.
1) Aqualung - ★★★★½ (9.0)
2) Thick as a Brick - ★★★★ (8.5)
3) Minstrel in the Gallery - ★★★★ (8.0)
4) Songs from the Wood - ★★★★ (8.0)
- Life Is a Long Song - ★★★★ (8.0)
5) Benefit - ★★★½ (7.5)
6) War Child - ★★★½ (7.5)
7) Heavy Horses - ★★★½ (7.0)
8) The Broadsword and the Beast - ★★★½ (7.0)
9) Stormwatcher - ★★★½ (7.0)
10) Too Old to Rock 'n' Roll: Too Young to Die - ★★★½ (7.0)
11) Stand Up - ★★★½ (7.0)
12) This Was - ★★★ (6.5)
13) A Passion Play - ★★★ (6.5)
14) A - ★★★ (6.0)
Of the Albums I've Heard:
1. Stand Up (1969) - 5
2. Aqualung (1971) 5
3. Benefit (1970) 4.5
4. Minstrel in the Gallery (1975) 4.5
5. Thick as a Brick (1972) 4
6. This Was (1968) 4
7. Songs from the Wood (1977) 3.5
As close to my list as I've seen
Great video guys! I had a similar experience with Minstrel in the Gallery. I picked it up in the mid 90s in a charity shop, wasn't expecting a great deal actually as I'd never heard it mentioned. Played it and went back to it over and over; what a great album!
I believe it’s their finest album.
That's gotta be the 1st time I see someone putting "Too Old to Rock 'n' Roll" in their Top 10.
I would put it there too. Very melodic album.
Great band, great discography, one of the all-time great rock bands, Prog or otherwise. Out of all their albums, really only one I would call bad and one that's just ok. All the rest are at least good, with a solid 8 legitimately great, and 3 that are among the best ever. So, here is my list (FYI, I did not include the Christmas album, but I did include Living in the Past, because when it came out the songs were mostly all new in the US even though released earlier in the UK).
#23. Under Wraps (1984) 2.0
#22. Rock Island (1989) 2.5
#21. J-Tull Dot Com (1999) 3.0
#20. The Zealot Gene (2022) 3.0
#19. RokFlute (2023) 3.0
#18. Catfish Rising (1991) 3.0
#17. Crest of a Knave (1987) 3.0
#16. Roots to Branches (1995) 3.0
#15. This Was (1968) 3.0
#14. Benefit (1970) 3.5
#13. Broadsword and The Beast (1982) 3.5
#12. Too Old To Rock n Roll, Too Young To Die (1976) 3.5
#11. A (1980) 3.5
#10. Stormwatch (1979) 3.5
#9. Stand Up (1969) 3.5
#8. War Child (1974) 4.0
#7. Heavy Horses (1978)4.0
#6. Minstrel in the Gallery (1975) 4.5
#5. A Passion Play (1973) 4.5
#4. Living in the Past (1972) 4.5
#3. Songs From the Wood (1977) 5.0
#2. Aqualung (1971) 5.0
#1. Thick As A Brick (1972) 5.0
Great review of the catalog guys. Some great insights and commentary on a band that frustrates me for the wide swings in consistency in their catalog..
lol you guys sound so enthused... I kid i know its just your standard delivery. A great Catalog regardless, one of my all time fave bands. Hard to rank for me, but I agree once in the 90s things take a turn, and totally agree about the production of the last 2.
Aqualung is the masterpiece but Stand Up is a close #2 for me. Every song is good. They sound great. The folk- rock songs predate LZ III and it comes in a very cool gatefold jacket.
Nice to see this ranking. I wasn't too bothered about Jethro Tull "in the day" but have been won over by them in recent years
Can't argue with Aqualung, 5 star album. Also big fan of Stand Up(also 5 stars) and Minstrel in the gallery.
I think Thick as a Brick may eventually get there as well, but needs a few more listenings. Stormwatchalso a good 4 star album
Interesting! I’ve never taken a dive past the hits with them. I may have to.
Nice list! I would love to see you folks do a list on Gordon Lightfoot or Laura Nyro soon! I know Joe’s a fan of Nyro!
Keep up the good work! Love your vids!
Great job gentlemen really enjoyed this one!
Great ep. You handled them great . They will continue to grow on you. Joe bonus points for the broadsword love ..
jethro tull is a deep band. albums i hated (too old too rock n roll, warchild) later became my favorites. theres a lot to discover over the years of listening. i actually hated this band for years, until i rediscovered songs from the wood while living in britain, and they really grew on me. martin barre is probably the most underrated guitarist of all time
I included Living in the past. Yes its technically a compolation but its not a best of. 3 sides are almost all stand-alone non album singles and B sides predating Aqualung. These songs are some of their best songs. Any would have on Stand Up or Benefit.
Steven Wilson Remix of the Aqualung album is fantastic! Completely brings it to life through the speakers
Tull was one of my favorite 70s prog rock groups. but I have to admit I did not subject myself to the groups 80s and beyond albums.
Love the cool effects on "Play in Time."
i like to old to rock and roll too young to die , way to go jason
🤠 Aw, cool! Looking forward to this, y'all. Saw'em in 1979. They were like a prog Monty Python.
...with flute.
Thanks for doing this one. I have a lot of history with this band and saw them once in the 90s post Anderson's voice loss - the band were good but it was disappointing. Anderson has turned into a bit of an old reactionary and I lost interest in anything new from him/them since Roots to Branches. I've based this ranking on how likely I am to play these records after listening to them for most of my life.
Songs from the Wood (1977) - This is one of the earliest albums I purchased for myself in 1977 and still like it as much as did back then.
Minstrel in the Gallery (1975) - One that gets better with age and holds up very well. It was an album that took some time to gel with me.
Heavy Horses (1978)
Thick as a Brick (1972)
War Child (1974) - Way too high of course but after so many years I still choose to play it more than most. A workhorse album with staying power for me. I agree Dee's strings sound cloying. There's a loony quality I like about this one.
A Passion Play (1973) - Used to be my favorite but has dropped.
Benefit (1970) - Underrated - Sossity is a bit of a cringe.
Aqualung (1971) - I used to like this a lot more, as the songs are consistently good but the production really lets it down.
Stormwatch (1979)
A (1980) - I really like this one despite the bad press.
Too Old to Rock 'n' Roll: Too Young to Die! (1976)
Stand Up (1969) - overrated.
Below are albums I've heard and even still own but don't care about anymore.
The Broadsword and the Beast (1982)
Roots to Branches (1995)
This Was (1968)
Under Wraps (1984)
Crest of a Knave (1987)
Catfish Rising (1991)
Rock Island (1989)
You boys always come up with something I never noticed. I'm listening to "She Said She Was A Dancer" from Crest Of The Knave and damn if it doesn't sound just like Dire Straits! Even the vocal sounds like Ian is channeling Mark Knopfler.
1. Songs from the Wood (1977)
2. Aqualung (1971)
3. Thick as a Brick (1972)
4. Heavy Horses (1978)
(5). Living in the Past (1972)
5. Minstrel in the Gallery (1975)
6. Benefit (1970)
7. Stand Up (1969)
8. Stormwatch (1979)
9. A Passion Play (1973)
10. RokFlote (2023)
11. The JT Christmas Album (2003)
(12). Nightcap (1993)
12. The Zealot Gene (2022)
13. The Broadsword and the Beast (1982)
14. War Child (1974)
15. Roots to Branches (1995)
16. Crest of a Knave (1987)
17. A (1980)
18. Rock Island (1989)
19. Too Old to Rock 'n' Roll: Too Young to Die (1976)
20. Catfish Rising (1991)
21. This Was (1968)
22. J-Tull Dot Com (1999)
23. Under Wraps (1984)
Heavy Horses . .. still just adore it. I remember I bought it as a kid and it was warped and they didn’t have another copy so I just played the warped copy for awhile 😂
Benefit deserves more praise. I urge you to revisit it.
Yes. It rewards, reveals and endures. Excellent album.
Great stuff as usual.
Would a Uriah heep ranking be possible.
Tks👍
Only recently converted to Songs from the Wood. Sublime stuff.
I've never considered Tull to be prog. Saw them for the first time (out of 15) on Passion Play tour. 2nd concert I ever attended. Thick As A Brick, Songs From The Wood and Heavy Horses are my top 3 albums.
Thick as Brick, A Passion Play, and Minstrel in the Gallery are definitely prog albums. Everything else is just prog adjacent
@@TastesLikeMusic I'm curious as to where Living In The Past album would be on your list.
Possibility is the most underappreciated progish band of the era. They were so different from everybody else. Musically gifted, just a great band. I actually took flute lessons as a senior in high school, so i could be the next Ian Anderson. It didn’t happen🤣🤣
As always, an interesting discussion, with some surprises and good defenses. So much I could respond to, but to pick a random small point: Joe, you said that the (horribly titled) J-Tull Dot Com album was lacking "heavy riffs" - go back and check out Spiral and El Niño.
I'm a shameless fanboy, and I do realize that I rank their albums higher than any sane person should. But I legitimately LOVE almost all their music, even the lesser stuff.
1 Songs From The Wood 5.0
2 A Passion Play 5.0
3 Minstrel In The Gallery 5.0
4 Thick As A Brick 5.0
5 Aqualung 5.0
6 The Secret Language Of Birds 4.5
7 Chateau D'Herouville 4.5
8 Stormwatch 4.5
9 War Child 4.5
10 Benefit 4.5
11 Roots To Branches 4.0
12 1981 Outtakes 4.0
13 RökFlöte 4.0
14 Broadsword And The Beast 4.0
15 Too Old To Rock 'n' Roll: Too Young To Die 4.0
16 Stand Up 4.0
17 Heavy Horses 4.0
18 J-Tull Dot Com 3.5
19 A 3.5
20 Rock Island 3.5
21 The Zealot Gene 3.5
22 Walk Into Light 3.5
23 This Was 3.5
24 Catfish Rising 3.5
25 Crest Of A Knave 3.5
26 Under Wraps 3.0
27 Homo Erraticus 3.0
28 Thick As A Brick 2 3.0
29 Rupi's Dance 3.0
30 Divinities: Twelve Dances With God 3.0
31 The Jethro Tull Christmas Album 2.5
Very interesting indeed.....I bought the first 5 albums in real time as they were released and have never heard any of their subsequent "works". THIS WAS already sounded slightly dated in 1968...too much "blues"...too much "jazzy flute"......STAND UP was a massive leap forward in every way and was along with the first 2 LED ZEP albums the best album of 1969.......I liked BENEFIT at the time...though with the "benefit"of passing time I think it is a lacklustre effort ....then AQUALUNG came along...WOW!!!....this was a real attention getter and I saw the band live in Sydney just after it came out....from memory the concert was basically the album played in its entirety and the hilarious stage routines were priceless!!......I am not a "prog" fan (though I LOVE KING CRIMSON and VAN DER GRAAF GENERATOR) but I was blown away by the masterwork THICK AS A BRICK....not a "party" album that is for sure,but possibly the most clever "pisstake" in rock history!!!
Ahhh, someone who is much less THICK THAN A BRICK!
it was a fun listo , tho i dont have it ranked as high as alot of people
i just found alot of the albums inconsistent
I always though Warchild and Passion Play had a Fellini vibe. i wonder what Ian was choking on in Black Satin Dancer.
thanks guys for doin Tull.... great to hear your takes on Aqualung.... you didnt talk about the lyrics on Aqualung ...so I will toss in my two cents... they are really great.... there, I am done....
I totally agree with Joe ...I have always been bummed with how short a couple of the songs are on the album....
I can't stand most prog but early Jethro Tull rocks!
I tend to like a lot of their songs as opposed to albums tbh.
Aqualong obviously is very strong though..
Any chance of a Damned list guys?
1. Thick as a Brick
2. A Passion Play
3. Songs from The Wood
4. Aqualung
5. Stand Up
6. Minstrel in the Gallery
7. Benefit
8. Heavy Horses
And then everything else
Excellent A Passion Play commentary Joe, thank you! 🥳
Jethro Tull has been my favorite band since the late 70s when I bought one of their Best Of albums. I agree with a lot of your scoring (The Zealot Gene is indeed a terrible record and TBATB is indeed their best '80s album) although APP and HH are top 10 Tull albums.
My three top three albums: 1. Songs from the wood, 2. Broadsword and the beast, 3. Aqualung
I almost totally agree Jason - the Too Old to... title track is excellent as is "Pied Piper." But I would sooner add "Big Dipper" to that trio than the last track.
Thanks for tackling this discography. I get the feeling I am a bigger Tull fan than you are, but still there are a couple of parallels in our rankings.
Here's my discography retrospective plus complete ranking (apart from RokFlote, which hadn't been released when I did the video).
ua-cam.com/video/1zwMhfPMCjk/v-deo.html
I love aqualung and songs from the wood and broadsword and the beast. I need to check out minstrel in the gallery and a couple other albums. I also know songs from different albums and periods of their discography.
I honestly thought Jason would have more appreciation for the weirdness of A Passion Play. The instrumentation is phenomenal.
They did some great singles.
Joe really nailed the whole ‘Tull’ thing here.
With you Jason Too old to rock n roll is a classic, in my top 3
Believe every album since 1968 has charted in the uk , not to shabby ,even there latest 2 have got into the top 20 .
You both picked Aqualung as your favorite album, and I don't disagree, but neither of you mentioned Windup. As a last song ,it is awesome.
Excellent review wonderful band
I'm not crazy about Jobson on A. We've got some mid and sub-mid songs here. But I do think "Protect and Survive" and "4 WD (Low Ratio)" are excellent.
My #1 is Minstrel In The Gallery.
Me too!
A fine pick if I do say so myself. - Joe
Funnily enough, I'm editing a podcast (The Algorhythms) episode where me and two friends are doing the Ranking Of Albums schtick (it was directly inspired by TLM). Your episode is a LOT shorter than mine (we tend to ramble more on the albums). It's also the longest discog we've done to date (although that'll soon be overtaken this summer by Beach Boys and Prince).
Also, your lists are VERY different from all three of ours (not to mention I score out of 10). I'll put mine here and save my co-hosts lists for when I finish and upload the episode to Spotify and elsewhere.
1. Thick As A Brick (1972) [10/10; Gold Stars]
2. Minstrel In The Gallery (1975) [10/10]
3. Aqualung (1971) [10/10]
4. Heavy Horses (1978) [10/10]
5. A Passion Play (1973) [9.5/10]
6. Songs from the Wood (1977) [9.5/10]
7. Stormwatch (1979) [9/10]
8. Too Old To Rock 'n' Roll: Too Young To Die! (1976) [9/10]
9. Benefit (1970) [9/10]
10. Stand Up (1969) [9/10]
11. A (1980) [8.5/10]
12. Roots to Branches (1995) [8/10]
13. RökFlöte (2023) [8/10]
14. War Child (1974) [8/10]
15. Catfish Rising (1991) [7.5/10]
16. The Zealot Gene (2022) [7.5/10]
17. This Was (1968) [7/10]
18. J-Tull Dot Com (1999) [6.5/10]
19. The Jethro Tull Christmas Album (2003) [6/10]
20. Rock Island (1989) [6/10]
21. The Broadsword and the Beast (1982) [5/10]
22. Crest of a Knave (1987) [4.5/10]
23. Under Wraps (1984) [0/10]--I said "Fuck this" and left three tracks from the end, something I almost never do.
Broadsword robbed!!!!! - Joe
When Jethro Tull are at their best they are a great band, but I agree that they are very uneven. My top 5:
1. Minstrel in the Gallery
2. Thick as a Brick
3. Heavy Horses
4. Songs From the Wood
5. Aqualung
The Steven Wilson Stereo Remix for Aqualung album sounds so much better in my opinion. For anyone looking for a better mix
Minstrel in the gallery is my favorite....one white duck an underrated song....
I couldnt do this,because it would be too depressing to slog thru all those post seventies albums. My fav. Is Stand Up.
1- Thick as a Brick, 2- Stand Up 3- Aqualung 4- Benefit 5- A Passion Play ....
I'm not sure why people keep saying the story of "A Passion Play" is so hard to follow. It's pretty much a Pythonesque retelling of Dante. I got it the first time I heard it. Give yourself some literary legroom and you will as well!
Thank you for doing this. Between the two of you, I think you dissected the career very well. (By the way, the word "folk" - like the word "yolk" - has a silent L!)
You guys should do a QOTSA ranked. I don't love all their albums but I think they are probably the most vital rock band going. Productions are stellar and always interesting. I feel they put the same amount of intelligence that Jimmy Page put into Zeppelin.
They’re my favorite modern band probably. - Joe
Queens kicks some serious ass. They are overdue for a TLM week.
@@TastesLikeMusic Totally agreed. And have been since their first record.
I’m all in for QOTSA! Go ahead, Joe! 👍
@@TastesLikeMusic I'm surprised you guys haven't done an Alice Cooper ranked. His run from Love it to Death to Welcome to My Nightmare is one of the best. But there's certainly some pain to listen to most of his albums after that.
I prefer Heavy Horses to Songs From The Wood tbh