Customer Reviews

To Cry You A Song (A Tribute To Jethro Tull)

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

While I wouldn't especially recommend this album to a non-Tull fan, it is a very solid set of tributes which should delight most Tull fans. The covers mainly focus on the 1968-1971 period - not unexpected since three of the contributors are Mick Abrahams, Glenn Cornick and Clive Bunker, the other three original members of Tull. Luminaries like Keith Emerson, Phil Manzanera, Dave Pegg and John Wetton also contribute.

The liner note feature comments from many of the artists regarding who they are and their remarks about Ian Anderson and Jethro Tull, which sometimes makes for interesting reading.

The standout track is a superlative rendition of "Minstrel in the Gallery". Although I'm unfamiliar with Robert Berry, his arrangement and performance is outstanding, putting a new and slightly Celtic spin on the guitar-heavy classic while also giving it a stronger beat.

Renditions of "Aqualung" and "Teacher" toe the line of the originals fairly closely, although Magellan's little additions to the former work quite nicely. Roy Harper's minimalist "songwriter's confessional" spin on "Up the 'Pool" is unexpected and works quite nicely. Mick Abrahams lets his guitar go on one of Tull's earliest popular tracks, "Cat's Squirrel". And Emerson joins Abrahams, Bunker and Cornick on an instrumental version of "Living in the Past".

The album closes out with a quirky but somehow touching cover of "Life is a Long Song" by Dave Pegg and his son Matt.

Your mileage may vary, but I'm willing to bet that fans of early-era Tull won't regret having this one in their collections.

OK, my qualifications for reviewing this cd. I've been a rabid Jethro Tull fanatic since 1971, and have seen them live every year since 1973, (Passion Play). I don't want a cookie, but just so you know I'm far from a casual Tull fan.
I would highly recommend this cd if you are a hardcore fan. Some songs are re arrainged more than others.
1) About the same and Excellent!:
-Aqualung: Some minor teaking, more like the live version, and extremely well done.
-Nothing is Easy: Updated and excellent
-Teacher: The same. Not crazy about the vocalist, but extremely well -Mother Goose: A face lift is given to Mother Goose, with an interesting time change which changes it, but not in a bad way.
-Minstrel in the Gallery has been re arrainged, but is extremely well done. Very interesting treatment.
-Locomotive Breath is also somewhat tweaked, but only the beginning. You don't want to screw with a classic too much, and they didn't.
- Cat's Squirrel: Re done by the original members. If you like the song, you should love this version.

The not so hot:
-Cry You a Song: Musically it is outstanding, but the second half screamed by Glenn Hughes, (Deep Purple), and takes away from the mood of this song.
Up the Pool & Life's a Long Song are not done well at all. Dave Pegg sings Life's a Long Song, so I would have expected a much more spirited effort, and better performance.
I love that Clive Bunker, Mick Abrahams, Dave Pegg & Glen Cornick are part of this tribute. Other immortals include Keith Emerson, John Wetton Wetton & Ian McDonald.
I think you'll really appreciate this Tribute. It's not Jethro Tull of course, but a cool spin on the songs. All in all a 4-5.

This album is pleasantly surprising. For the most part, the album catches the spirit of Tull, and no wonder, as there are four former members of the band guesting here. Not a single note for note renditon, and each song is lovingly reworked in the idiom of the guest artist while keeping the flavor of the composition.

Musically, the playing is inspired and no quibles to the musicianship. My only quibble is with Glen Hughes singing on "To Cry You a Song." The producers needed to get at least one more take, IMO.

Highlights are Aqualung, Up the 'Pool, Teacher, and Lifes a Long Song.

Liner notes are thorough and interesting anecdotes are given as to the person's exposure to Tull and/or Ian Anderson.

If you like Tull and are open minded, you will enjoy this disc as I do.

This is a wonderful collection of Jethro Tull's music, all penned by Ian Anderson, who unfortunately does not appear on this disc. However, the good news is that three of Tull's original line-up do (Mick Abrahams, Glenn Cornick and Clive Bunker) and if you add artistes like Keith Emerson, Glenn Hughes, Roy Harper, Dave Pegg, Phil Manzera, John Wetton (the list goes on!), you have some idea of the talent on display here. This disc is a must for any Tull fan - it's a real treat. The musicianship is excellent, the arrangements work well and the songs cover a good deal of Tull material (from 'A New Day Yesterday', through 'Teacher' and 'Cat's Squrrel', to 'Minstrel in the Gallery'). If you are not so familiar with Jethro Tull's music, then this would be a good place to start. Some of the songs here are almost as good as the originals, but not quite! Jethro Tull have long been one of Britain's, indeed the world's, favourite bands. This album is a high quality homage to their talents, and the genius that is Ian Anderson.

To me, anyway, the highlights on the album are the songs in which artists used different and interesting approaches to familiar material (Up the Pool, Life's a Long Song are standouts). The others range from competent covers to well-rendered tributes (Mother Goose is one). Worth getting if you're a fan of the band. You won't be disappointed.

There are numerous standouts on this album, but my favorite is "Aqualung". Ian Anderson's flute is replaced by a superb lead guitar to great effect. Vocals are superb as well. The entire album came as a real pleasant surprise. It is among the best tribute albums I have heard.

Love this Tribute CD. Magna Carta has put together another great group of musicians for this cover CD. The artist could of dug deeper into Tull's catalog though. The instrumentalist are exceptional. The vocalist is what seems to be the biggest factor in whether you like it or not. I do but takes some getting used to, especially Wolfstone's version of "Teacher". A little too laid back for me. Emerson's "Living in the Past" is a relaxed take and well done. Aqualung,Nothing is Easy and Locomotive Breath rock out. Tempest using a violin along with flute fits nicely. Dave Pegg's take on "Life's a Long Song" is the weakest link. Glenn Hughes pushes the vocals a little too much, reminiscent of "California Jam" era Deep Purple doing "Burn". Magellan and Lief Sorbye do fantastic jobs on their songs. I'm rating this a 5 even though its a 4 but to counter the reviewer of 1 star, which is not deserving. Checkout the artist own work and bands. Long live Prog!

This is a good album for a die hard Tull fan only. If you love Tull and hate to see other bands trying to copy their material, you will hate this album. Other than that you should love this album! It is also a very good way to get ideas for other bands that you might like. Bands like Tempest and Magellan which appear on this album have many good songs of their own and this album should serve as a good intoduction to those other bands.

One album consistently on my top ten list is Aqualung but as we all know the recording quality is abysmal. If you listen to Tull you probably also know Genesis(stay with me). Could you possibly improve the fidelity of their recordings? Enter Magna Carta records and their remake of Genesis favorites SUPPER'S READY by an assortment of contemporary artists(including Annie Halsam of Renaisance fame covering Ripples). Sound Awful? Just the opposite. Many of the covers are better than the originals both musically and in production values. If you have the audio system for it you'll hear ground shaking dynamics rivaling a live Genesis concert. I cannot recomend SUPPER'S READY highly enough. When I learned the same company had a Tull collection I was ravenous. Unfortunately this attempt could not have been worse. The entire collection is covered by a plastic lounge singer that crushes the soul of the music worse than a Bill Murray parody. The ragged angst, empathy, pain and rage of Ian Anderson aren't even in this guys dictionary. Doubling the insult is the instrumentalists are quite good and production quality is competent if not the sublime level of SUPPERS READY. With the right vocalist (Joe Cocker maybe?)this could have been the good stuff. Instead it poisons your mind with what could have been.