Customer Reviews

Jethro Tull: A History of the Band, 1968-2001

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I suppose if one knows nothing about Tull, this comprehensive overview could be very useful. If, however, you're a fan and already know the basic history, there is much less here than one might want. First, much is recycled from other sources. Second, the desciptions of the albums are far too subjective. Descriptive analysis of the music would have been worthwhile, but Nollen's opinions (and even worse, recycled reviews from Rolling Stone and the like) are unnecessary. Does anyone really care whether or not Nollen likes a particular album? A true history of the band, something that would detail the creation of the various songs, their instrumentation and studio techniques, how they relate to Ian Anderson's life, the details of their tours with descriptions of the staging, etc., i.e., something that does for Tull what "The Last Gang In Town" did for The Clash has, sadly, yet to be written.

If you don't know a thing about Tull, you'll be lost in the first few pages. If you know a little, you'll still be lost in the first few pages. Even if you know a bunch about Tull, this thing becomes a tedious, plodding through the mind of an avid fan, all too eager to wave his back-stage pass in your face. I do hope one day someone will write a real biography on Tull; indeed, one of the great rock bands to emerge from the 60's. Perhaps Mr Anderson could get someone like Peter Guralnick or David Ritz to do a real biography. Until then, don't waste your money on this. You'll get much the same information by investing in one of the box sets (plus, you'll get something to listen to).

This book is the first I've read on Jethro Tull. I found it to be very interesting. It is more of a reference guide than the "good curl-up" Ian Anderson describes it as in his forward. The chapters are divided by album and subsequent tour, including Anderson's solo projects. I was drawn into the book by Nollen's preface and his brilliant short essay on the overall music of Tull. Nollen was an ordinary Tull fan from Iowa who was elevated to the privileged class of fans who have met and befriended the band members, particularly Dave Pegg. He received the cooperation of Pegg, Glenn Cornick, Doane Perry and the one-legged flautist himself to write this book which really adds to its credibility. It is very scholarly and well-organized. The footnotes reveal that much of this information was garnered from old reviews, the Tull fanzine A New Day, etc., which may result in less new information for the long-time Tull fanatic. I agree with another reviewer who stated that this book reads like a college Masters thesis.

What I enjoyed the most from this book are the analyses of some of the lyrics to Tull's songs. I have a greater appreciation for "Aqualung" after reading this book. I also finally understand what is meant by "One white duck on your wall." I wish there was more of these lyric explanations as the descriptions of the sound of the songs (and I know, from writing reviews for Amazon how difficult it is to describe music in words) become rather tedious. I often skimmed over some of these descriptions, particularly concerning some of the later albums I have not heard as such words cannot bring music to life. For the most part, this is a very glowing, often sycophantic account. I love Jethro Tull, they are one of my all-time favorite bands, but some of Nollen's praise is a little much: "the band rollicked into one of the most incredible performances ever heard by a rock audience" (151), "Barrie Barlow...executes some of the most astounding snare drum rolls in the history of rock" (147). What is frustrating is Nollen's tendency to start an interesting story and then cut it off abruptly with an unrelated quotation. Glenn Cornick's statements about being fired are cut off by an Anderson quote about breaking even financially on an American tour (62). A story about Martin Barre and Dave Pegg having a knife pulled on them when they were trying to retrieve a stolen jacket ends abruptly with a Pegg quote on Barre's passion for leather (217). The many long quotations, especially towards the end of the book, make for very tedious reading at times. Still, this book is very impressive work and very valuable to the Tull fan.

For the casual fan, Nollen does a admirable job of chronicling Tull's history and impact on the rock music scene and
manages to get first hand accountings of Tull events from
such band members as Glenn Cornick, Dave Pegg and even Ian Anderson himself. However, after reading Nollen's book, more serious fans are apt to feel somewhat unsatisfied. For many,
the mid-to-late 70's is clearly Tull's halcyon period in terms
of creativity and popularity, and the lineup of Anderson, Barre,
Barlow, Hammond, Evans (& later, Glascock) remains Tull's strongest. It was during this period that Tull established and
then solidified it's position as one of the world's top groups
and produced (to many minds) it's most far-reaching works.
And while Anderson was clearly the guiding force behind the
band during this period, it's also clear that Barre, Evans et al,
contributed enormously to the group's sound, success and appeal.

However, with the exception of material recycled from "A New Day," (the Tull fanzine) and other sources already familiar to
Tull devotees, Nollen provides nothing new from these key band members. I've no doubt that Evans, Barlow and other former members of the group of their own story to tell, but aside from recycled snippets from other sources, we don't get it. More's the pity.

We *do* get input from Dave Pegg...(the author's glee at being a friend of Pegg's is something that bleeds from almost every page of the book). However, I had a nagging feeling that Pegg was
pulling his punches...glossing over his prickly relations with Anderson's in order to maintain courtesy. Such "rising above" tactics may be admirable, but ultimately provides few insights to the behind-the-scene group dynamic that carried the band to the top and proved ultimately responsible for it's creative demise. (Which to many ears, took place following the Broadsword album.)

So, from this quarter, it's a qualified "hats off" to Nollen
for a good try. However, I'm still waiting for the definitive
Tull bio. Someday when the world gets 'round to realizing that
Ian Anderson is one of the true musical giants of the 20th
century, we'll get the 'warts and all' bio I'm waiting for.

One last note. All publications from McFarland are overpriced
and this one is no exception.

Gary Parker

I have met Ian Anderson, and those readers who are expecting more than what is delivered in Scott Nollen's JETHRO TULL: A HISTORY OF THE BAND, 1968-2001, think again: You're not going to get it. Mr. Anderson is a very private individual and his music speaks for itself. Don't expect him to sit down and explain every minute detail about his music and the inner workings of the band! Scott Nollen has been as close an anyone ever will be to this elusive band and there are many moments of true gold in this book. I've been a Tull fan for 25 years, and this book gave me as much pleasure as I could expect, except from a great Tull album itself. Highly recommended!

This book delivers exactly what it says it will: a history of Jethro Tull. Most books on rock bands written by fans are pretty bad, but this one isn't. It's not a great work of literature, but it is the best history of the band I've seen, and the most thorough.

The book starts with a personal "Preface" that emphasizes Nollen's personal connections with the band, especially with David Pegg. This get tiring after a bit, and doesn't add much to the book as a whole other than giving Nollen some street cred. After this, he turns to a brief history of Ian Anderson and how the band came together in the 1960s.

Most of the book is a chronological discussion of every album and tour. Sometimes he emphasizes a blow-by-blow discussion of songs on an album, and sometimes he makes more general claims about the album's goals, distinctiveness, and quality. Obviously, that's easier to do with more thematic albums, especially those of the 1970s. This very long chapter eventually becomes tiring even for the dedicated fan, however, since it discusses 31 albums one after the other.

Nollen emphasizes the music, which is hard to convey well in print. As several reviewers have pointed out, it would be interesting to spend more time with the lyrics, which lend themselves better to the printed page.

Nollen also rates each album for quality with one to five stars, though he only uses the range from 2.5 to 5. He gets the rank orders more or less right, though he likes Tull's work before Aqualung and since "Stormwatch" more than I do. Even there, we pretty much agree on the rank order - - "Crest of a Knave" is better than "Rock Island," for example.

I would have liked to see some higher-level organization here, grouping albums together. One part would discuss "This Was," "Standup," and Benefit"; the next, "Aqualung" through "Minstrel in the Gallery," and so forth. Tull's music falls so naturally into periods, and it seems a shame not to follow those periods in a history of the band.

Better organization would also tend to emphasize the contributions of the band to (progressive) rock. The music from the 1970s has had the most impact, though as Nollen notes, the band has remained creative since then. I would also be interested to read about how Tull has influenced other artists.

Overall, I think this is an essential book for the Tull fan, and the person who eventually writes the definitive history of the band will be thankful for having this book as reference. On the other hand, I don't think that people who are approaching Tull's music for the first time would get much out of it. The lack of higher-level organization makes it hard for a person who is familiar with one group of albums to understand what Tull is doing in a different, unfamiliar group of albums.

This book takes a no nonsense, chronological approach to telling the Tull story. Each album and track is handled in order of release, with tour info and other items of interest, such as band comings and goings (and they have had many!). I like this approach, personally, because the music tells the story for me anyway. If you are a casual fan and feel like digging a little deeper beyond the Classic Rock hits, there is something for you. You may even find yourself buying the reissues due out this year. Rabid Tull fans will enjoy reading what a fellow fan has to say.

Jethro Tull has always been one of the most original and innovative rock and roll bands, blending countless types of music, and they continue to perform all over the world. Scott Nollen's book provides the most thorough history of the band, plus a first-hand touch with his years of knowing and hanging out with the band. A good combination of history, critical reviews and survey of the musical development of the band over their first 33 years of non-stop recording and touring. And the foreword by Ian Anderson and afterword by Dave Pegg give the book a nice personal touch.

Jethro Tull is an unusual and informative history of the rock band formed by Ian Anderson in 1968. Jethro Tull is written by an acquaintance of several of its members and includes a chronology of all the band's recordings and tours, as well as the author's critiques and the band's own opinions of its albums. While costly for a standard paperwork, Jethro Tull is a treasure trove of detail will delight the avid fan.

Being a fan of Jethro Tull since 1970, I thought I knew a lot about the band -- until reading this book. Scott Nollen offers great insight into their records, tours, and backstage antics. The book also offers a rare glimpse into Ian Anderson's childhood and early development in Scotland. But, a real highlight for me is the inside story from band members, including Ian Anderson, Glenn Cornick, and David Pegg. Why did Glenn Cornick, Mick Abrahams, and Clive Bunker leave the band? How did their music evolve from blues, Celtic, folk, jazz, rock, to heavy metal? It's all there. And, after all, Ian Anderson gives this "excellent book" a hearty endorsement in its preface. So, it must be pretty close to the mark. It's an excellent read!