Ian Anderson reveals his favourite Jethro Tull song - Far Out Magazine

(Credits: Will Ireland)

Tue 24 December 2024 12:30, UK

When you speak to the average layperson about Jethro Tull, they will likely know them as being that one band with the flute. While this isn’t wrong, it is an unfair assessment, as to label them as such makes it sound like the flute is a gimmick and like their music is one-dimensional, but nothing could be further from the truth.

Their sound is completely versatile. Throughout the decades that they have made music, they have dabbled in a range of different genres. While they are praised as a prog rock band responsible for some epic numbers, there is a lot more to them than that. Every time they released a new album, it felt like what they would make was completely unpredictable.

Within their music, they have made LPs that touch upon prog, jazz, blues, world music and even electronic rock. They are unpredictable, which adds to their beauty, as every album sees them flaunt their musical muscles and deliver something truly exceptional.

This versatility does mean that having a favourite Jethro Tull song and album is incredibly difficult. When you compare albums that are decades apart, they sound as though they could come from two completely different bands. It also means that if you are new to Jethro Tull, it can be difficult to get into them and listen to the right songs.

Nobody knows Jethro Tull better than Ian Anderson does. He is the mastermind behind a number of their different songs and artistic movements, so there is no one better to turn to when you need recommendations. He put together a list of some of his favourite songs by the band, and on it are some classics and some of their more underground numbers.

One song, which feels fitting given the time of year, was the track ‘A Christmas Song’, marking the first time Anderson had written anything independently. Granted, later, more effects were added, including a string quartet and sleigh bells, but when it came to the writing and recording process, this track represents a relatively lonely affair.

“It was really just me in the studio with a mandolin,” Anderson said. “A string quartet was dubbed on later, as were sleigh bells. This was the first time I’d ventured into the studio totally alone. I bought the mandolin in a pawn shop in Denmark, where Tull had just played. We were on our way back home by ferry; we had to go that way because guitarist Mick Abrahams refused to fly.”

It probably won’t surprise fans to see the song ‘Aqualung’ on this list, either. It’s arguably their most popular album, and Anderson cites the title track as one of the greatest numbers Jethro Tull has ever released. It’s not just the quality of the song itself but the message embedded within it, centring around homelessness and economic inequality.

“It’s really about observing people and learning from what they do and how they behave,” he noted. “The lyrical idea came from a photo my first wife, Jennie Franks, took of homeless people south of the River Thames when she was a student. In fact, she helped to write the lyrics for the song.”

“I believe the sentiments of the song are as obvious now as they were in 1971 because the issue of homeless people hasn’t gone away,” Anderson continued. “You still see them everywhere. In the 1950s and ’60s, we called them tramps, but they were harmless. Now, as so many are on the streets due to drug problems or sexual exploitation, it has become, if anything, more worrying. All of which makes ‘Aqualung’ so relevant.”

There are a number of other songs which Anderson cites as the band’s best, all of which are listed below.