Customer Reviews

Getting to This

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

 

 

If you're looking for a glib way to dismiss Blodwyn Pig then just say that they were the band formed by Mick Abrahams after he left Jethro Tull. If you want to discover a fine and much underrated group and a great album you;ll have to try a little harder.
Few people pretend that Jethro Tull's Ian Anderson was an easy man to work with in the band's early days, much the same could be said of Mick Abrahams. Both were struggling to be the frontman in what was one of the most exciting bands to come out of the British blues explosion of 1968.
Abrahams lost that power struggle, Anderson shaped Tull and Abrahams formed Blodwyn Pig.
The band was poised for great things. Abrahams is probably the most under-rated of the British guitarists of that generation. That Clapton has inspired adulation while Abrahams has largely been ignored is simply unjust.

But what really counts in the music industry is persistence. Blodwyn Pig split citing musical differences before they really managed to establish themselves as one of the great bands of the era.
Getting to this was the second and last LP before the split. In contrast to the earlier 'Ahead Rings Out' which set out to bludgeon its audience with driving blues riffs, the influence of Jack Lancaster's jazzy saxophone is much more strongly felt. It is a sometimes gentle and thoughtful, sometimes rocking fusion of jazz, rock and blues - but this is not jazz-rock in the tradition of the over flared and over funked American bands of the era.
Lancaster's San Francisco Sketches is an intelligent sound picture in the tradition of Miles Davs Sketches of Spain (rather than posey prog of the ELP Pictures at an Exhibition ilk)
Toys is again a thoughtful look back on childhood from Abrahams. To Rassman is a product of its times - a send up of the burgeoning Rastafarian culture of South London with Bob Marley its icon. Whether a piece of music that touches on race in this rather crude (though affectionate) way would see the light of day in this era of political correctness is doubtful. I wonder how the band see it 30 plus years on.
Pip Pyle and Andy Berg are a solid and sometimes inspired rhythm section. All in all Getting To This is a fine album. Whether Blodwyn Pig would have excelled in the same way as Tull at reinventing themselves at regular intervals and thus prolonging their career - who knows. Personalities went their separate ways long before the music lost its exuberance.
If you want a period piece that in many ways has still stayed fresh - jazz/blues/rock played with the kind of sharp witted grit only British bands seemed to know how ... get to this!
Habup, Jolph

Naturally I was thrilled when the two U.S. Blodywn Pig albums, AHEAD RINGS OUT (A&M SP 4210), and GETTING TO THIS (A&M SP 4243) were reissued on CD. The vocals and playing are as outstanding as I remember. But I'm giving the latter only 4 stars because "Meanie Mornay" has been deleted in favor of the throwaway "For Rassman." Included are "See My Way," "Summer Day" and "Walk on the Water," which appeared on the U.S. vinyl version of AHEAD RINGS OUT. Perhaps these CDs follow the U.K. versions of the albums, thus accounting for the confusion. I wouldn't mind the rearranging of tunes had the omission of one not occurred.

I remember hearing the pig for the first time about 1971 and just loving their music...." Getting to This " the second effort by the pig is outstanding and one big reason has to be Mick Abrahams! A first rate guitarist and fine vocalist. The music is a Blues Rock tour de force!
During the last several years I had longed to hear this fine band again and what a treat both fantastic albums are re-released by BGO.
I highly reccomend both " Ahead Rings Out " as well as " Getting To This " both are fabulous and it is hard to believe one man has as much talent as does Mick Abrahams !
Be sure [...] to see Mick's latest doings and pick up a copy of " This Is " by the Mick Abrahams This Was Band....It is absolutely first rate and if you enjoyed the first Tull album " This Was " you will be knocked out by Micks new version...top flight rock guitar in spades!
So Get " Getting To This " and see what real talent sounds like!

I recently listened to this record (yes, the original vinyl LP) for the first time in many years. In that time, I must have really acquired the taste, because this is one fine piece of work that I had neglected. Guitarist Mick Abrahams has a distinct, personal take on the blues, which can be quirky, but always original, and with an edge. While Pig's music draws from authentic blues roots, Mick infuses it with the vitality of real rock-n-roll, and a touch of jazz.

The songs are built on catchy guitar/woodwind riffs, with plenty of nice solos from Mick and reed man / violinist Jack Lancaster, and Ron Berg on drums and Andy Pyle on bass lay down driving grooves. It's a bit of an eclectic bag, with tunes like "Toys" and "San Francisco Beach Sketches" providing a mellow contrast to the mostly smokin' tracks. Only the so-so vocals keep me from giving this 5 stars.

despite the chopping and altering of these albums it may very well be worth picking this cd up for the phenomenal see my way alone. it's probably blodwyn pig's finest moment and a delight to listen to over and over. variations on nainos is also splendid. its a bluesy, spacy cut with excellent work from sax player jack lancaster in particular throughout the track ending with some captain beefheart type vocals. i always loved guitarist mick abrahams voice more than ian andersons when both were in jethro tull : its harder to get sick of mick's voice. fans of jethro tull, traffic, and similar bands should enjoy this group. some of this lp is dull however and the 4 star rating is a bit of a gift from me. i suggest that to avert the confusion surrounding what track belongs with what album that all tracks by this band, including any rarities, live cuts etc. be put out as perhaps a 2cd set or something.

Blodwyn Pig's first album, "A Head Rings Out", is a near must-have for fans of late 60's Blues-Jazz. Mick Abrams, an original member of Jethro Tull, put together a musically astonishing band. But, by the time they put out "Getting To This", gravitational force was pulling them apart. Musically, this album is all over the place, and only a few songs are "Keepers". The two songs from the previous album that are included highlight this in an almost cruel way.

A great mix of Jazz/rock. Mick Abrahams formally from Jethro Tull leads this cd into a great mix of hard rock,and a jazzy beat.

You'll more than likely enjoy this too.To me they are very similar,I am not old enough to remember which songs belong on which lp.All I know is that I heard great things about this band so I got their cds and I'm glad I did.The jazz styles they incorporate don't bother me that much.At least they didn't show off alot like other bands of the period did.

After original Jethro Tull guitarist Mick Abrahams left Jethro Tull following their debut LP, he formed Blodwyn Pig which seems almost like his answer to Tull. BP also features a flute guy, Jack Lancaster who doubles on sax. Music is a typical mediocre bluesey/jazzy prog mish mosh of this area that doesn't leave much of an impression(file with mid to late period Family) in comparisson to the heavyweights of the day (Crimson,Tull,Yes,Gentle Giant,etc.)I understand that their 1st album "A Head Rings Out" is supposed to be superior, but I've never actually heard it.One reviewer calls this "American jazz ?". They were a British group.

Both of Blodwyn Pigs CD's are American jazz at its finest. If you are a jazz fan or just a fan of great music, you will be glad to add this to your collection.