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Living in the Past

Jethro Tull - Living in the Past Audio CD

A fair review of the Jethro Tull "Living in the Past" Audio CD. Please note that the below review is the views of the authors, and authors only. You can get a complete list of all Jethro Tull reviews here, or go back to the Jethro Tull tabs.

Band: Jethro Tull
Title: Living in the Past
Rating:

Release Date: 1999-09-14
Media: Audio CD

Tracks: 1: Song for Jeffrey 2: Love Story 3: Christmas Song 4: Living in the Past 5: Driving Song 6: Sweet Dream 7: Singing All Day 8: Witch's Promise 9: Inside 10: Alive and Well and Living In 11: Just Trying to Be 12: By Kind Permission Of 13: Dharma for One 14: Wond'ring Again 15: Hymn 43 16: Life is a Long Song 17: Up the 'Pool 18: Dr. Bogenbroom 19: For Later 20: Nursie

A music such as Prospero may have heard...
. . floating in the air, while sequestered on his isle. From the first selection, Song for Jeffrey, all the way through to the last, this double LP was the Most Favored Album in the Christmas season of 1972. That said, why should anyone obtain such an artifact at this late date?

This may well be one of the best collections of one of the best forms that British Blues-Folk-Prog-Rock ever took, by perhaps the best group of musicians, led by guiding light and founder Ian Anderson. This release, as always, leaves off "Bouree" and "Teacher", whilest including "Inside", which I swear was not on my vinyl copy. I wore the eight-track out.

Ian Anderson's Voice, lyricism, and musicianship are unparallelled in rock history, he who cranelike played flute on one foot. What a performer, and what a band. John Evans, the keyboardist, gets room to stretch out through classical and jazzy live performance at Carnegie(By kind permission of), and the entire band shows us its stuff at the same venue in "Dharma for One". I had never heard Erik Satie, Debussy, and Mozart so well entwined.

Songs such as "Sweet Dreams" and "Witch's Promise" are something like songtrack items for that precise moment in history, if you were alive then. They also are absolutely unlike anything you have ever heard by anyone else, played better, and played towards a seeming purpose--forceful music. "Singing All Day" and "Alive and Well And Living In" are mood pieces that also serve as templates for us early seventies post-hippies, our thinking, our manner, the aural scenery of our lives. Tinged slightly psychedelic, always, like some folk song, hymn, or piece of classical music you have heard somewhere, and then on to something more.

Martin Barre was at this time a new member, and his guitar chops stretch out great in "Bogenbroom" and "Hymn 43", which was taken from Aqualung. AT the time, you see, people didn't know quite what to think of this insanely great blues-based rock riffer, and why would they put live stuff, outtaken songs, and hits from other albums all on the same record?

Well, it's a sampler. Yummy. Probably one of the greatest albums of all time, since the dissolution of the Beatles, Clapton's heroin and alcohol addiction, Hendrix vomit/death, and the Stones decision to record in a muggy basement in a French villa Keith owned. (I am speaking of what was happening at that time)

You absolutely can't go wrong buying this, but you should go ahead, genuflect to the mighty power of capitalism, and buy Benefit and Stand Up. Then cut your own original Living in the Past Mix with itunes, and just sit and LISTEN>>>>Man!!!.

I'M STILL LIVING THERE!
I find that I really enjoy it. This is Jethro Tulls lost compilation album from the early seventies. The only thing is that I have the original vinyl version, which trumps this CD version in coolness a hundred times over. However if you are new to Tull (early Tull, like 66-71 we're talking here) and are looking for a good sampler of entirely early stuff, this is the way to go.

The vinyl version, besides having some of the coolest packaging I've ever seen, with a hard cover bound ten page photo album, also has more songs than this version. Really though, they are mainly tracks from Aqualung. . . I noticed that there is an import version that contains Locomotive Breath, but no Hymn 43. This version contains HYMN 43, which is a little bit more rockin' in my book, but no L-Breath. What can ya do?
The Real highlights anyway are the two live tracks from Carnegie Hall, BY KIND PERMISSION OF and DHARMA FOR ONE. These two songs take up a whole album side on my vinyl, and usually when it finds its way on the table, doesn't get moved or even flipped for long periods of time. Excellent Tull.
Other great songs like SONG FOR JEFFREY, CHRISTMAS SONG, NURSIE, the title track etc. Its all pretty good.
Unfortunately some key songs are missing like BOUREE (???) so I need to deduct a star. BUT, again, a cool mix, and a record that I listen to very often. . . . SHOULD BE REMASTERED AND REPACKAGED!!!!

Also check out some of their early albums, they are easily Jethro Tulls finest (THIS WAS, BENEFIT, and STAND UP).
.

Quitcher Bitchin!

The original intention of this album was to compile all (or most) of the non-lp singles; the rest is gravy, including the 1970 Carnegie Hall live recordings, of which the rest of the concert are available on the 2nd Tull box set. If you are lucky enough to find this on cd, GRAB IT!

Those who complain that tracks are left off neglect to say that these are album tracks previously released.

Have the various powers that be dropped the ball on this release? Definitely! Just feel lucky if you find ANY version of LITP on cd.

Eclectic Collection of Early Tull
While some reviewers advise that you need not buy Tull's earliest recordings if you have "Living in the Past", I have all those recordings as well and do not believe this CD replaces them. This album fills in holes in Jethro Tull's early music, including tracks not a part of their earlier albums, and commercially adding more music at a time Tull was riding high on the success of 1971s "Aqualung". Further, "Teacher" and "Bouree" were left off the CD due to time constraints (the CD is near the limit at over 75 minutes long). Both "Teacher" and "Bouree" are worth having, and there is other music on the earlier CDs worth having as well.

This CD offers a range of music, from hard rockers to mellow folk and Tull's signature renaissance-flavored folk and rock. "Living in the Past" offers a jazz-like piece with Ian Anderson's flute prominently displaced. It was the range of music Tull played that has always made Tull hard to fit into a particular genre. While they are often classified as hard rock because of songs like "Teacher" and "Sweet Dreams", as well as most of "Aqualung" and "War Child", Tull more likely fits into a genre of their own as they play music of all types, and they seem to do so in a pattern of their own.

Like the true artists that they are, Jethro Tull created music as they felt moved to create. The result is creative and interesting music, often satirical, nearly always at least good. It may be tempting to think that in retrospect that some of the music on this CD indicated that Jethro Tull was moving in a harder rock direction. Possibly. However, as music from CDs such as "Minstrel in the Gallery" and "Songs from the Wood" indicates, Tull's style has always been eclectic, with hard rock being only one of their numerous styles.

This collection is a great introduction to a group that refuses standard classification, and has only been recognized as one of music's greats in the last few years. While this CD is now hard to find, I recommend this CD highly if you can find it, and you've liked what you've heard of Jethro Tull's non-commercial music.

Halfway House

When Tull was good they were--dare I say it?--magical. While I enjoy this CD, I have to say the reconfiguration done when converting it from LP to CD was a terrible hatchet job. The first 11 tracks on this CD, along with "Wond'ring Again" and "Hymn 43" deliver that kind of magic. But the live tracks are ponderous, and I can't believe no one at Chrysalis considered dumping them to leave "Teacher" and the masterful "Bouree" on instead. If something needed to be cut to fit the LP on CD, it sure shouldn't have been Jethro Tulls best-ever recording.

Still, this is a CD worth owning. Tull was unique, totally British and always more focused on making great music than many of their contemporaries.

You can see a complete list of all Jethro Tull discography, or go back to the Jethro Tull tabs. There is also a good guide on how to read guitar tabs here.