Sunday 9 November 2014

Thick As A Brick Part One (Jethro Tull, 1972)

This is no doubt one of the greatest classic suites in prog rock history, so no long presentations will be necessary. That said, this Jethro Tull's epic deserves some reflections. Firstly, I like the humour - a very British one - this song features, from the story of the schoolboy Gerald Bostock (also known as "Little Milton") winning a poetry competition and being ignominiously disqualified, to the album package reproducing a local newspaper full of convinging still unlikely news more or less related to the band.

The funniest newspaper I've ever read...

But the music is the strongest point here, with one of the best blends of folk and rock I've ever listened to, especially in the first part of the masterpiece. The tempo changes, the returning themes, the enthralling rythms...all was made to build up a memorable piece of music. Ian Anderson and his bandmates succeeded in a very difficult task, as they welded epic and irony, melody and rythm, refinement and satire. I'm very grateful to them.

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