Author: Peter Podbrežnik
Artist: Jethro Tull
Label: EMI Records
Released: 1968
Rating: 3.5/5
“This Was” is the very first album by the legendary Jethro Tull. Back then, as singer, flautist and bandleader Ian Anderson stressed more than once, Jethro Tull were “a small blues band”. But an incredibly talented blues band, one that clearly had a taste for experimenting with folk rock, touches of jazz and classical music. “This Was” came out just as British “white” blues hit its peak, while progressive rock was still in its embryonic stage. Jethro Tull were only just hunting for their true musical direction, and most of the musical ideas were concentrated around two musicians battling for the role of bandleader. Their visions for the band’s future had already started to diverge sharply before this album even came out. While guitarist Mick Abrahams was a sworn bluesman who wouldn’t budge an inch, singer and flautist Ian Anderson was determined that the band had far greater potential in it than your average small blues outfit. As an excellent flautist and a lover of folklore, he was drawn above all to traditional British folk elements. Ian picked the album’s title precisely because he knew the band’s style at the time was only a passing phase and that the band would take entirely new paths as it grew, going well beyond the boundaries of the blues. The band’s management at the time, who smelled huge commercial potential in the blues version of the band, even campaigned for Abrahams to take over the vocals, while Anderson would give up not only singing but also the flute (and with it all the complex elements that set them apart from other blues bands) and be reduced to a mere rhythm guitarist. Luckily, Anderson’s extremely strong personality, loaded with enormous charisma, was decisive in making Jethro Tull into what we know today. The band couldn’t have two bosses, so Abrahams left and founded his own blues band, Blodwyn Pig, while Anderson became the band’s central musician and its soul. His flute playing, his singing, his vivid stage performances, his rants, his wild flute dance and his stage image as a “beggar” in a patched-up coat wrote the band into immortality. The band’s beginnings were written in experimental blues, where you can already admire and feel the talent of the individual musicians, Anderson above all.
“My Sunday Feeling”, despite its “prehistoric” nature, is one of the few tracks from the album that has survived in their live sets to this day, and they often like to open their shows with it. At its core it’s a lively blues rocker where you can immediately pick out Anderson’s unique vocals, his tasteful flute solos, Abrahams’ artful bluesy licks on guitar and the solid rhythm section of Clive Bunker on drums and Glenn Cornick on bass. Never mind that it reflects a version of the band we no longer know. The fact that Abrahams was a bluesman heart and soul, who wouldn’t budge an inch, comes through most of all on “Some Day the Sun Won’t Shine For You”, where his backing vocals mesh brilliantly with Anderson’s. This traditional blues number shows they had everything it takes to be a great blues band. Ian’s harmonica even gives it a slight whiff of country. “Beggar’s Farm”, which opens with Anderson’s playful flute, is one of the best compositions on the album, with outstanding flute solos from Ian weaving around Abrahams’ inventive riff and a vivid rhythm. In places, the mood is even a little eerie. It’s easy to see where the witty album cover comes from, showing the band members dressed up as old farmers surrounded by dogs. The band’s association with beggar and peasant themes (the members’ looks played a big part too, especially Anderson, who over the years picked up the nickname “tramp”) became their trademark over the years. “Move On Alone” is another traditional blues number, but it also contains some jazz elements, mostly thanks to the arrangements of special guest, composer and keyboardist David Palmer, and it’s completely one of a kind for the band. “Serenade To a Cuckoo”, with its many folk touches on flute, reflects the band’s later direction much more and is reportedly also the first piece on which Anderson learned to play the flute. At the same time, with its rhythm section it’s probably the most jazzy track the band ever made. “Dharma For One” is dominated by drummer Clive Bunker’s vivid psychedelic solos, which never get boring, mostly thanks to Cornick’s bass and Abrahams’ riffs. “It’s Breaking Me Up” is pure British blues, with an authentic “sleepy” blues rhythm that was hugely popular at the time. It’s honestly fun to hear Anderson as a traditional blues singer today. Abrahams gets to let loose again here on his guitar with real-deal blues solos. A totally atypical Tull composition, but interesting precisely for that reason. “Cat’s Squirrel” is a traditional blues number that mainly serves to showcase Abrahams’ outstanding talent, and he serves up his best solos on the album here. Without a doubt, he was one of the best blues guitarists of his day. “A Song For Jeffrey” is probably the best-known and most popular track on the album. It also has the most commercial undertone of all the songs here and is packed with both blues and folk rock elements, and of everything on the album it most authentically hints at where the band would head after Abrahams left. It has a humorous undertone, mainly thanks to Anderson’s “through the nose” singing style, which simply makes you laugh. His flute solos once again speak for themselves. Even though he improved quite a bit over the years, he already showed back then that he was the finest flautist among rock musicians. Incidentally, “A Song For Jeffrey” is the first of three songs by the band dedicated to Jeffrey Hammond, Anderson’s friend and future Tull bassist. “Round” is a one-minute closer on Ian’s flute.
The reissue includes three interesting bonus tracks. First is “One For John Gee”, an interesting jazz improvisation dedicated to the band’s manager at the time. The folk-leaning “Love Story” is the last Tull song Abrahams played on, which makes it especially interesting for fans of the band. “Christmas Song” is a traditional folk piece and the first of the Christmas folk songs that grew hugely popular in the band over the years.
“This Was”, even though it’s something of an anomaly in their album catalog today, presents Jethro Tull as one of the most creative blues bands of the time, when blues and psychedelic rock were fighting for supremacy in rock music. As already mentioned, after Abrahams’ departure the band turned to folk rock, became one of the most important and beloved progressive rock bands of the ’70s, and left almost all blues elements behind for good. Even though Jethro Tull only showed their true musical direction and full potential on the following albums, “This Was” is a thoroughly likable album of “progressive blues” that shines above all in its remarkable individuality. That makes it not only a singular oddity in the band’s catalog but in (blues) rock music in general.
Lineup
Ian Anderson – vocals, flute, harmonica, claghorn, piano
Mick Abrahams – guitar, 9-string guitar, backing vocals
Glenn Cornick – bass guitar
Clive Bunker – drums
Guest musician:
David Palmer – brass arrangement and conducting on “Move On Alone”
Production
Terry Ellis and Jethro Tull
Track List
1. My Sunday Feeling (3:42)
2. Some Day The Sun Won’t Shine For You (2:49)
3. Beggar’s Farm (4:20)
4. Move On Alone (1:59)
5. Serenade To A Cuckoo (6:11)
6. Dharma For One (4:16)
7. It’s Breaking Me Up (5:05)
8. Cat’s Squirrel (5:44)
9. A Song For Jeffrey (3:23)
10. Round (0:49)
Album length: 38:18
Bonus tracks on the reissue:
11.) One For John Gee (2:06)
12.) Love Story (3:06)
13.) Christmas Song (3:06)
