John Mayall - The Turning Point - 1969 - Review

Songs: The Laws Must Change, Saw Mill Gulch Road, I´m Gonna Fight For You J.B., So Hard To Share, California, Thoughts About Roxanne, Room To Move.

Type of Music: British Blues

Comments:

Mick Taylor had just left for the Stones and John Mayall was left with Steve Thompson on Bass only. Instead of looking for new guitar players and drummers however, he invited two session musicians (Jon Mark & Johnny Almond) and went on tour.

One of these basically acoustic concerts was recorded on July 12, 1969 at the Fillmore East in New York City.

The record is a relaxing mix of blues and long jazzy grooves carried by Johnny´s Sax and Jon´s acoustic finger-style guitar. The album got extra airplay of course on account of the single Room to Move that was released in countries like The Netherlands and the United Kingdom. For once the single is indeed the best track on the album.

None of the other songs is bad as well. The only problem I have with the album is that all songs sound somewhat similar, caused by the stripped instrumentation and John´s slightly irritating voice.

I actually think that this might have been a great album if performed by a full band line up including electric guitar and drums. And with a better singer!!

Yeah, I know,  I´m going too far now. Because we wouldn´t be talking about a John Mayall album any longer. So let´s take The Turning Point for what it is. A pleasant relaxing jazzy blues album made by four performers that play together in a very natural way. And they couldn´t have had much time to rehearse!

Who should buy this Record: A Must For John Mayall and Jazz/Blues fans.  It´s not an Essential Rock Record however.   

Afterthought: You better look  for  the Re-Mastered version released in 2001. It has 3 bonus tracks, a/o the single Don´t Waste My Time.  

Score: ******* (7 out of 10)

Fleetwood Mac - Penguin (1973)

Songs: Remember Me, Bright Fire, Dissatisfied, (I´m a) Road Runner, The Derelict, Revelation, Did You Ever Love Me, Night Watch, Caught in the Rain.

Type of Music: Early Seventies Pop-Rock, sometimes served with a Prog-Rock Sauce courtesy Bob Welch.

Comments:

Danny Kirwan had left The Mac and was replaced by two vocalists what seemed unnecessary with Bob Welch and Christine McVie already on board. Dave Walker contributes with the country song The Derelict while Bob Weston gives us a superfluous version of the famous Road Runner that seems out of place here. He also wrote the instrumental filler Caught in the Rain. Neither Walker nor Weston would stay long in the band and that seems just fine to me.

After a few listens however the rest of the Album  grows on you. Christine´s Remember Me, Did You Ever Love Me (with Steve Nye on Steel-Drums) and Dissatisfied that sounds like an earlier version of Don't Stop are generic - but well written pop songs. And I´ve come to like some of the Bob Welch songs on this album, especially Revelation driven by the famous Fleetwood/McVie rhythm section and Night Watch that would have fitted well on any of the earlier Crosby/Stills/Nash albums.

This album really sounds close to Rumours and it now becomes clear why Stevie Nicks and Lindsay Buckingham would fit in so well in Fleetwood Mac. To sum it up, Penguin is simply a pleasant pop-rock album vastly underrated by both fans and critics alike.   

Who should buy this Record:  If you like Rumours, give this one a try. It might be a bit difficult to find.  

Rating: *******1/2 (7.5 out of 10)

Crosby Stills Nash & Young - Deja Vu

Songs: Carry On, Teach Your Children, Almost Cut My Hair, Helpless, Woodstock, Déjà Vu, Our House, 4+20, Country Girl, Everybody I Love You.

Type of Music: (Country)Rock /Folk 

Comments: 

This Album changed my musical views when it was released in 1970. Until that time I was mostly a Soul - and Motown kind of guy. My favourites were Otis Redding, Aretha Franklin, Wilson Pickett, Four Tops, Temptations etc.  Liked the Stones as well. But I can still clearly remember a rainy night in my hometown Rotterdam in the Netherlands  when a friend played Carry On for me. He drew my attention to the point in the song where the A Capella part of the chorus ends and the organ flows in. I thought then and still think now that it´s one of the great moments in Rock Music. And I was hooked forever. As a result , 42 years and thousands of records later, I´m writing a review of what must be one of my all time favourite Albums.

It´s different from the debut album. Neil Young joined CSN. This resulted in two things. Good songs and a lot of trouble. Captain Stills did not want to share his ship with Captain Young. Therefore most of the album was recorded in separate sessions. Strangely enough you don´t notice that at all when listening to the record. Especially Joni Mitchell´s Woodstock sounds as a great Group effort.

As a whole, Déjà Vu sounds more dark and serious than the flower (folk)rock of the debut album. They grew up very quick indeed.

Some songs like Graham´s Teach your Children and Our House and David's Almost cut my Hair sound a bit dated as well now. And most of the songs on the album have been overplayed by Classic Rock and MOR Radio Stations. Nevertheless these songs are among the best that Graham and David ever wrote, together with the dreamy Déjà Vu.

And the same goes for Stephen´s contributions. His acoustic 4+20 is simply a great little song and Carry On is in the Top 10 of my favourite Classic Rock Songs.

Neil´s songs are good but pale a bit in comparison to the rest. I thoroughly enjoy the first half of Country Girl but it deserves a better final part. But Helpless, although not bad really, and Everybody I love You are just a bit below par. Not by much though.

Déjà Vu is an essential Rock album and a musical statement of the Woodstock generation. What a pity that Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young  separated shortly afterwards. They would re-group from time to time but would never be able to reach the level they display on this here record.    

Rating: ********* ( out of 10)

David Crosby - King Biscuit Flower Hour (Live)

Songs:  Tracks in the Dust, Guinnevere, Compass, In My Dreams, Drive My Car, Lady of the Harbor, Oh Yes I Can, Monkey and the Underdog, Delta, Déjà Vu, Night Time for the Generals, Wooden Ships, Almost Cut My Hair, Long Time Gone.

Type of Music:  Folk/Rock   

Comments:

The King Biscuit Flower Hour was a famous One Hour Live Show that went on Air on hundreds of Rock Radio stations in the U.S.A. No Musical Style was too outrageous. Literally from the Beach Boys to Motörhead. The Show was first broad casted in 1973. Special Guests were Blood Sweat & Tears and Bruce Springsteen. The show ran until deep in the nineties. There are some 16.000 reels of concert tape and some of the best have been released on CD. Just to name a few: Humble Pie, Deep Purple, Greg Lake, America, Canned Heat, 10CC, Steve Forbert,Greg Kihn, John Sebastian, Romantics and…….David Crosby. One of the main characteristics of the series is the awesome sound quality. It´s really like you were there and during the acoustic set it´s almost if David is singing directly to you. Excellent!!! 

David was promoting his Oh Yes I Can album at the time. The performance in question was recorded on April 8, 1989 at the Tower Theatre in Philadelphia. For David it was his return to stage after 10 years of drugs and alcohol addiction. On this specific night David and the band performed extremely tight and convincing.

The Concert is divided in an acoustic part consisting of the first four songs with just David and his acoustic guitar, followed by the electric set. 

David and the band play songs from his above mentioned solo record as well as older work from the Crosby Stills & Nash Albums.

Most songs from Oh Yes I Can sound much more inspired than the versions on the studio album with the possible exception of Monkey and the Underdog. The CSN material sounds good but I do miss Stephen´s guitar and Graham´s harmony vocals from time to time. It does give us the chance however to hear the songs performed David´s way. Sometimes that means that he´s deviating a bit too much from the original musical lines. But that´s my only tiny bit of criticism on an otherwise splendid performance. 

Rating: ******** (8 out of 10)

Late For The Sky - Jackson Browne (1974)

Songs: Late for the Sky, Fountain of Sorrow, Farther On, The Late Show, The Road and The Sky, For a Dancer, Walking Slow, Before the Deluge.

Comments:

Jackson Browne is a very serious guy. He does not write about The Lovely Linda or Valentine Day. On this, his third album his lyrics are about Death, Lost Identity, Relationships and Environmental Doom. His lyrics are very personal and are often compared to those of Bob Dylan in the sense that both stretched the limit of lyrics way beyond She Loves You (Yeah Yeah) and I Want To Hold Your Hand.

I´m not an expert on Jackson´s lyrics so I can´t confirm nor deny the above mentioned comparison. Musically however, the best work of Jackson and Bob are worlds apart. Bob´s music of the sixties and early seventies was mostly surprising, usually innovative and hardly ever boring.

Jackson´s Music is not. On Late for the Sky the music and vocals are professional. However, the album is never surprising , let alone innovative and often slightly boring.

Maybe American Teenagers with suicidal tendencies found relieve in Jackson´s Lyrics or mercifully dozed off with Late for the Sky as Background Music. But I tell you, when I want to hear good old mainstream country rock, I prefer The Eagles Greatest Hits. Not that serious and intellectual but far more catchy!

By the way, did you know that Jackson wrote Take it Easy? Just listen to The Road and the Sky and you will recognise the similarity. And if you ever wondered where Bob Seger got the inspiration for Against the Wind, have a close listen to Before the Deluge.

Don´t get me wrong, this is not really a bad album with the exception of Walking Slow. It just does not seem to make contact. It´s there in the background and I can hear it but that´s it. There´s one big exception to the rule and that´s Fountain of Sorrow, a nice flowing song not unlike Lying Eyes. By far the best song on the album, on a distance followed by the title track. But these two songs are easily found on any Greatest Hits Compilation. 

Type of Music: Country-Rock

Rating: ******* (Out of 10)

James Taylor - James Taylor - Review

Songs: Don´t Talk Now, Something´s Wrong, Knocking ´Round The Zoo, Sunshine Sunshine, Taking It In, Something In The Way She Moves, Carolina In My Mind, Brighten Your Night With My Day, Night Owl, Rainy Day Man, Circle Around The Sun, The Blues Is Just A Bad Dream.

Best Song:  Carolina In My Mind

Type of Music: Soft Rock/Folk

Comments:

Most people think that James Taylor popped up out of nowhere in 1970 with his album Sweet Baby James and the Hit Single Fire And Rain. T´is not so. James was born in 1948 in Boston, Massachusetts. Around 1964 he played in a band called The Fabulous Corsairs. After that Danny Kortchmar asked him to play in his band that was called The Flying Machine. They released one single namely Night Owl/Brighten Your Night With My Day. In 1968, James went to England and met producer Peter Asher (The Peter from Peter & Gordon). Together they went to see Paul McCartney and as a result James Taylor was the first artist to sign for Apple Records.

After some long hours in the Think Tank, the resulting album was simply called James Taylor. Peter Asher thought it a good idea to add some brass. He also provided most of the Baroque style links between the songs. Especially the first six tracks are thus glued together and form a suite based on Taylor´s personal experiences including his short stay in a mental institution, here referred to as The Zoo. It is well-known that James has had a serious heroin problem throughout his career. 

Despite the above, this album sounds quite confident. James knows how to write a nice soft-rock song or two. Other artists seem to think so as well. It´s obvious where George Harrison got his inspiration for Something. And Bonnie Raitt would make Rainy Day Man her song on her album Streetlights. James himself would re-record some songs later on in the seventies and would even hit the charts with Carolina In My Mind.

James Taylor is a pleasant combination of folk, soft-rock, blues and country, craftily produced by Peter Asher. Another perfect album for a rainy Sunday morning. Unfortunately, not all songs are as good as Don´t Talk Now, Something, Carolina In My Mind and The Blues Is Just A Bad Dream. As always, there´s quite some filler as well. Not really bad but somewhat boring.

Still, a very confident first album from an artist that would go on to dominate the Soft-Rock Scene in the early Seventies.

Who should buy this Record: Everyone who enjoys pleasant Soft-Rock. It is not an Essential James Taylor Album though.

Score: ******** (8 out of 10)

Bryan Ferry - Mamouna (1994) - Review

Songs: Don´t Want to Know, N.Y.C., Your Painted Smile, Mamouna, The Only Face, The 39 Steps, Which Way to Turn, Wildcat Days, Gemini Moon, Chain Reaction.    

Type of Music: Sophisticated Lounge Music  

Comments:

If you like Bryan Ferry for his work with Roxy Music and adore songs like Virginia Plain or Love is the Drug, do not, repeat do not, buy this record. You will bore yourself to death. However if you love to lay on your couch dreaming away on the sound of Avalon  or Slave to Love you might want to try this one out. The only problem is that none of the songs on Mamouna, all written by Brian, come close to the quality of those two songs. Most of them just pass by like a light breeze on a hot summer night. It´s actually a Lounge Record. Well produced and recorded with  excellent musicians such as old buddies Brian Eno, Phil Manzanera and Andy MacKay. Special Guest is Nile Rodgers playing rhythm guitar on a/o N.Y.C.

Best songs are the opener Don´t Want to Know , a slightly up-beat song in the style of Don´t Stop the Dance and the beautiful ballad Your Painted Smile.

With Mamouna Brian succeeded in creating a sophisticated night-club atmosphere. Unfortunately the songs do not quite match the quality of the atmosphere.

Who should buy this Record:   A Must only for Die Hard Bryan Ferry Fans. Pick it up if you can find it cheap.

Rating: ******* (7 out of 10)

Black = Good Songs

Green = Great Songs

Red = Could Be Better

Neil Young - After the Gold Rush (1970) - Review

Songs: Tell Me Why, After the Gold Rush, Only Love Can Break Your Heart, Southern Man, Till the Morning Comes, Oh Lonesome Me, Don´t Let It Bring You Down, Birds, When You dance (I Can Really Love), I Believe In You, Cripple Creek Ferry.

Type of Music: Early Seventies Folk/Country/Hippie Rock

After having recorded Deja Vu with colleagues Crosby, Stills & Nash, Neil Young went back to the studio to record his third solo Album “ After the Gold Rush “. Many people complain about Neil´s whiny out of tune voice here as well as the sloppy playing. Well in my opinion these are Neil´s Trade-Marks. I know his guitar playing and singing are not the best in the world from a technical point of view but it´s his style and it´s unique.

After the Gold Rush is certainly one of his better efforts. Neil wrote 10 of the 11 songs on the Album while he renders a nice version of Don Gibson´s country classic Oh Lonesome Me. Two of Neil´s compositions namely the tender Till The Morning Comes and the playful Cripple Creek Ferry are simply too short and leave the listener slightly unsatisfied and wanting for more. But the remaining eight songs are all classic Neil Young. His backing band Crazy Horse shines on the strong Country Rocker When You Dance and the anti-racism inspired Southern Man. Obviously, this song was not well received in Dixieland and four years later Lynyrd Skynyrd replied with “ Sweet Home Alabama”. There are also beautiful ballads like Tell Me Why, Only Love Can Break Your Heart  and Birds.

A very powerful album that should be part of anybody´s collection of Rock Music despite the extensive air-play that most of the music on the album gets on Classic Rock Radio. It´s also a pity that the Sound-Quality of the regular CD leaves a lot to desire. Look for the Remastered Version instead.

Who should buy this Record: Everybody.

Rating: ********* (9 out of 10)

Black = Good Songs

Green = Great Songs

Red = Could Be Better

Graham Nash - Wild Tales - Review

Songs: Wild Tales, Hey You (Looking at the Moon), Prison Song, You´ll Never Be the Same, And So It Goes, Grave Concern, Oh Camil (The Winter Soldier), I Miss You, On the Line, Another Sleep Song.

Type of Music: Early Seventies Country/Folk/Pop

Comments:

Graham´s forgotten album. And that´s a Shame!  Wild Tales was recorded in 1973 with the help from buddies David Crosby and Joni Mitchell and some members of Neil Young´s  “ Harvest “  band. It´s almost a country album with some pop and folk thrown in for good measure. All songs were written by Graham and usually his voice fits the songs well like in the heartfelt I Miss You. But just try to imagine what Bob Dylan or Leonard Cohen could have done with the anti War Song Oh Camil (The Winter Soldier) or say the Eagles with You´ll Never Be The Same. The Album is rather short and there´s some filler but after all those years it´s still one of the albums that regularly returns to my CD Player. My favourite songs include the country-pop of Hey You (Looking at the Moon), Prison Song that deals with the differences in the legal systems of the various states in the Union and And so it goes.

The Album missed a Hit-single like “ Chicago” on “ Songs for Beginners” and was overlooked. Sometimes life just isn´t fair! 

Rating: ******** (8 out of 10)

Black = Good Songs

Green = Great Songs

Red = Could Be Better

Who should buy this Record: Anyone who likes the sound of Crosby, Stills & Nash in songs like Teach your Children or Our House should buy this one. May be hard to find though! 

Led Zeppelin - Houses of the Holy - Review

Songs: The Song Remains the Same, The Rain Song, Over the Hills and Far Away, The Crunge, Dancing Days, D'yer Maker, No Quarter, The Ocean.

Review:

End 1972/Begin 1973 the band discussed the plans for their new (fifth) Album. I feel they might have entertained a.o. the following thoughts: First of all, their Album IV had been a huge success so it would be wise to maintain a similar structure. On the other hand the band had grown as song writers, musicians and producers and was eager to try new roads. And thirdly, I think they just wanted to make a fun album. As a result, Houses of the Holy was launched on March 28, 1973. It is the first album of the band with only original material. It features lots of layered guitar riffs but is mostly driven by the rhythm section of the band. The lyrics are more mature and the album is extremely diverse with Rock, Prog-Rock, Folk, Reggae, Funk, Blues and Doo-Wop. And above all, it's got a Feel Good atmosphere. If I would have a point of criticism, it would be the way Robert Plant's voice is produced. Because in all honesty he sounds like a nervous chipmunk from time to time. I don't know why this was done as Live Albums show that Robert could master the songs in a normal matter. But then again, nothing is perfect isn't it!

The Album starts off with the fast, furious, thundering The Song Remains the Same, followed without pause by the beautiful, moody and almost acoustic The Rain Song. Robert sounds great here for most of the time. It's one of my favorite Led songs. It is followed by the driving rocker Over the Hills and Far Away that is another good example of the bands trade mark songs that combine acoustic beauty with Power Rock. The Crunge is a highly funky and funny James Brown pastiche and it shows the band from their most easy going and fun side. Dancing Days is one of their Classic Hard Rockers with a nice slide guitar and synthesizers. It's almost impossible to sit still while listening to this song. A lot of people have issues with D'yer Maker (Jamaica) but to me it's just a happy reggae ditty. Quite inoffensive really. Great drums by the way. It is followed by my personal all time favorite Led song, the jazzy, bluesy No Quarters. It's a so called Nordic epic about Viking warriors and the death and fear they brought wherever they roamed. It sounds very realistic and the combination of Jimmy's spooky riff, John Paul's icy keyboards and Robert's depressive vocals literally make me shiver every time I hear the song. This is pure Rock Heaven for me! I would have wished the album to stop after No Quarter but we still get The Ocean that seems a bit out of place. It's not bad as such and it swings in a sufficient way, but I don't know. Maybe it should have been programmed between Over the Hills and Far Away and The Crunge. 

So, while Houses of the Holy is not the band's best album in my opinion, it has a very high entertainment value and it gets lots of spins on my CD player, if only for No Quarter!

Rating: ********* (9 out of 10)

Black = Good Songs

Green = Great Songs

Red = Could Be Better

Who should buy this Record:  Everybody!!  Led Zeppelin’s Most Fun Album and one of the Classic Rock Albums of All Time. 

   

Pink Floyd - Meddle - Review

Songs: One Of These Days, A Pillow Of Winds, Fearless, San Tropez, Seamus, Echoes.

Type of Music: Psychedelic Rock with touches of Folk, Jazz and Blues.    

Comments:

Let me start by saying that I love this Album. It relaxes me completely. It's lounge music produced in 1971 when nobody had ever heard of that musical concept. And then to think that the band had no real ideas when they went to the studio(s) from time to time between concerts for their Atom Heart Mother Tour. They just experienced with basic ideas and sound effects. Amazing! 

Without any doubt this is the Floyd´s most consistent Album thus far. Gone is the orchestra from Atom Heart Mother. This is the Pink Floyd that would go on and make Dark Side Of The Moon and other top-class Albums. Listen carefully and you will hear the musical ideas for Shine On You Crazy Diamond developing. Meddle is almost a combination of Atom Heart Mother and More. It has the same structure as Atom Heart Mother with a couple of songs on side 1 and an extensive suite on side 2 and it has the same great atmosphere as More. Actually, Meddle sounds like the soundtrack of a film that unfortunately was never made. 

But the difference lay in the quality of the songs. First of all they fit together very well. You will remember that More included two hard rock songs that were completely out of place on that album. That´s not the case here. It's a very fluent album. And secondly the band is maturing rapidly, both in writing songs and playing their instruments. Listen to the guitar solos in Echoes and you'll know what I mean! 

The album opens with the song everybody knows: One of these Days with its pounding rhythm of organ, (bass)guitars and drums. One of these days I'm going to cut you into little pieces sounds like a follow up to Eugene be careful with that axe.
It´s followed by the gentle love ballad A Pillow of Winds. This could easily have been written by Paul Simon & Art Garfunkel. A simple but very nice melody and a beautiful (acoustic) guitar line. 
Then we have the intriguing Fearless that sounds like a lot of the songs the Floyd would do later in their career. It contains parts of You Never Walk Alone, sung by Liverpool Supporters. A lot of people believe this inclusion to be unnecessary but I think it strengthens the meaning of the song. And sound effects are an important part of the band's music.
San Tropez is a jazzy shuffle about a lazy day in that famous beach resort in Southern France. It is followed by a traditional blues pastiche called Seamus. Seamus is Steve Marriott´s (Small Faces) dog and he makes his debut here. These two songs form a nice contrast with the more serious sound of One Of These Days and Echoes. And while they are different, they don't break the flow of the album.

And, to finish off Meddle, we get Echoes, a suite that occupied the whole of Side 2 of the original vinyl record.  It has everything that makes Pink Floyd such a great band. The main theme is very strong. And it´s still rather pure and not too clearly influenced by commercial drivers. Just close your eyes for 23 minutes and imagine yourself somewhere on the bottom of the ocean studying whales. Or reading one of my album or whisky Reviews.. Or whatever you feel like doing at the bottom of the ocean. I know that a lot of Albums and Sound Tracks about the sea have similar passages and maybe some are even better or more precise. But I don't care! Just enjoy Meddle, another great Pink Floyd Album that will make you feel so much better after having listened to it after one of your stress filled days.

Rating: ********* (9 out of 10)

Black = Good Songs

Green = Great Songs

Red = Could Be Better

Who should buy this Record:  Everybody. This is an Essential Pink Floyd Album.

Jethro Tull - Aqualung - Review

Songs: Aqualung, Cross Eyed Mary, Cheap Day Return, Mother Goose, Wond'ring Aloud, Up To Me, My God, Hymn 43, Slipstream, Locomotive Breath, Wind Up.

Type of Music: (Hard) Rock with bits and pieces of Folk.

Comments:

There is no Classic Rock Fan that can´t hum the opening riff from Aqualung´s title track! The Album became Jethro Tull´s biggest commercial success and most acknowledged effort. This despite the controversial theme and lyrics of the album that deal with the distinction between religion and God. Ian Anderson is quite clear in stating that organised religion interferes with the divine relationship between God and men. Ian uses the figure of Aqualung ( a beggar with a bad cough – hence the name) to tell us his story.

I´m not sure if Aqualung is the Tull´s best Album but it is certainly one of their best efforts. And that´s because most of the songs here are excellent. They have even survived years and years of daily air-play on Classic Rock Stations all over the world. And that says something about the timeless quality. Many people thought at the time that it was a Concept Album but Ian has stated quite clearly that it's "just" a bunch of good songs. There is however an acoustic touch to the Album that the band would investigate more further on down the road.

The best song on the album must be Locomotive Breath, the perfect Rock Song about bad luck. The piano and the guitar get the train moving and once on its way, it won´t stop going, no way it would slow down! Many artists have recorded songs that seek to imitate the movement of trains but Ian beats them all.

Also excellent is the title track. Actually there are three different moods in this song reflecting our friend Aqualung´s state of mind. And both Cross Eyed Mary and Mother Goose display that near perfect inter-play between guitar and flute that is so characteristic for the best of Jethro Tull´s work.

Up to Me, My God and Hymn 43 have strong and recognisable riffs as well but the songs themselves are less memorable. And there are three short acoustic interludes (Cheap Day Return, Wond´ring Aloud, Slipstream) that are nice but quite uneventful actually,maybe with the exception of Wond'ring. Ian knows how to play the acoustic guitar although he would abuse it sometimes later in the Tull´s career.

The only slight let-down is the album closer Wind Up. Here Ian gets a bit too preachy for my taste. That´s also the case in My God but there the instrumental parts of guitar and flute provide a necessary counter balance.

And there´s one other flaw. The sound quality of the re-mastered album is still relatively poor and lifeless. It misses the warmth of the original vinyl record. In the interview that is added as one of the bonus tracks, Ian explains that the band was never happy with the sound of the Island studios. Apparently Jethro Tull was the first band to record an important Album there, together with Led Zeppelin.  

The other bonus tracks include alternate versions of Song for Jeffrey, Fat Man and Bouree as well as a slightly better version of Wind Up and, finally,  Lick Your Fingers Clean that would later be released on the Warchild album, be it in a somewhat different version.

Conclusion:

Despite some small flaws, Aqualung is one of the great Jethro Tull Albums and should be part of every Classic Rock Collection.

Who should buy this Record: Everybody.

Bonus Tracks: Lick Your Fingers Clean, Wind Up (Quad Version), Excerpts from the Ian Anderson Interview (1996), Song for Jeffrey, Fat Man, Bouree.

Rating: ********* (9 out of 10)

Black = Good Songs

Green = Great Songs

Red = Could Be Better