Aqualung

iTunes Review

By 1971 Jethro Tull had established their serpentine instrumental passages and high and mighty lyrical projections as a trademark blend of acoustic and electric guitars, organ and flute, while they borrowed and dismantled disparate elements of jazz, blues, English folk and rock until it could only be Jethro Tull. With their fourth album, Aqualung, the group wrote the anthems necessary to cement their status on FM radio and send them into the arenas where Martin Barre’s electric guitar riffs could be simulated by air guitarists worldwide while Ian Anderson’s one-legged flute work presented more of a conceptual challenge. The title track, “Cross-Eyed Mary,” “Hymn 43” and “Locomotive Breath” form the album’s resilient core. “Mother Goose,” “Wond’ring Aloud” and the meandering “My God” reflect their pastoral side. Anderson moralizes throughout, unable to reconcile government and organized religion with the individual’s need for spiritual regeneration. The angry screed of “Wind Up” would become even more pronounced on the group’s next effort, the single-song complete album Thick as a Brick. This expanded version contains a few extras, including an interview with Ian Anderson.