Jethro Tull - Stand Up Review

The first bit of good news regarding this “collector’s edition” of Stand Up is that you don’t need it. The second bit of good news is that for the most part it already exists, albeit scattered throughout a handful of previously released material. If you already own all of those sets, chances are you are a serious Jethro Tull fan, in which case you’ve probably already acquired this latest installment. To cut through the haze, anyone who has been meaning to pick up this excellent album should know it was remastered earlier this decade (and includes the obligatory bonus tracks), so you can pick that baby up for about a third the cost.


Now to be fair, there is a lot of good “extra” material included in this edition, and only hardcore Tull fans will have all of it in their collections. Various box sets and compilations have featured these BBC sessions as well as the Carnegie Hall concert from 1970. If you already own Stand Up and are interested in hearing some vintage Tull from that era, as well as an extended interview with Ian Anderson, you could do worse. That interview, conducted earlier this year, is the real draw here for fans that already have everything.


All that being said, a question those unfamiliar or unimpressed with Jethro Tull might ask is: what does it matter? It matters because, all other considerations aside (deluxe packaging with original pop-up inside cover, liner notes from Ian Anderson, the first full and unedited version of “With You There To Help Me/By Kind Permission Of” from the Carnegie Hall show (wherein new pianist John Evan does his best Ludwig Van), 5.1 surround sound—but no footage—of the concert), Stand Up is a crucial album in many regards. In addition to serving as the first testament of the band Tull became, and would become, it endures as a meaningful document from what turned out to be a very transitional moment in rock history.So, if this somewhat superfluous new release affords the opportunity for a sustained reappraisal, all the better....full text Jethro Tull returned with their sophomore album less than a year after their debut and change was in the air.

Guitarist and co-leader Mick Abrahams had left the group due to creative differences with Ian Anderson. He envisioned more of a blues sound and Anderson wanted to take Tull in a different direction. His departure left Anderson firmly in control and he would go on to create one of the more unique sounds in rock history.

Tony Iommi would be a very short time replacement for Abrahams. His short term claim to fame with Jethro Tull was his appearance with the group on The Rolling Stones Rock and Roll Circus. His lasting claim to fame came as the guitarist for the legendary Black Sabbath.

His replacement would be Martin Barre who would appear on Stand Up and every other release to date and would become recognized as one of rock’s outstanding guitarists and the perfect foil for Anderson.

The album's art work is some of the most unique in history and would win several awards at the time. It had a gatefold cover and when you opened the album the members of the band would pop up as stand-up figures. Take that CD lovers. The album was reissued a number of times without this feature so you need to seek out the original release if you want to experience the true Stand Up cover art.

Stand Up finds the group beginning to move in a progressive rock direction as Anderson and Barre settled in to what would become a forty year and counting musical partnership. It may not have the conceptual cohesiveness of many of their later releases but the music comes together to form one of their stronger albums. It would be their commercial break through as it reached number one in England and earned gold status in The United States....full text ethro Tull's second album saw them move away from blues, with the exception of the opening track, towards a more diverse style. However, with the possible exception of "Bourée", there is little on this album that could really be considered ground breaking in any way. The big step forward on this album was Ian Anderson's song writing. The entire album is made up of Anderson compositions or arrangements, as was to become the norm, and most are of high quality. The style leaps from blues ("A New Day Yesterday") to Indian influenced ("Fat Man") to whistful ("Reasons for Waiting") to aggressive ("For a Thousand Mothers"). There is also more use made of accoustic instruments.

The highlight for most people will be "Bourée". This is one of the oft-played pieces by J.S.Bach with the melody played here on flute and given new life by the use of a skip-beat. The result is one of the most succesful arrangements of a classical piece for rock, mainly because the walking bassline already existed in the original version.

Of course, the other notable change for this album is the inclusion of Martin Barre to the post of guitarist. Martin Barre has always struck me as a serviceable, though rarely brilliant guitarist. He does, however, have a very good feel for the music of Ian Anderson and already on this album managed to become an integral part of Jethro Tull's style.

This album makes a significant advance in terms of quality for Jethro Tull and is often considered among their top six albums. It is a very good collection late sixties rock songs with a couple of accoustic and quirky pieces thrown in. A very worthwhile album, if not for the most part progressive....full text