April 1, 2025 • 22 mins
Tony Mantor welcomes rock legend Ian Anderson of Jethro Tull to discuss the band's remarkable 56-year journey and their ongoing musical evolution since forming in 1967.
• The real story behind the Jethro Tull band name: named after an 18th century agriculturist by a booking agent
• How several band members from Anderson's high school days eventually reunited in Jethro Tull between 1969-1972
• George Martin's influential advice to Anderson that he could produce his own records
• Anderson's preference for intimate theater venues over massive arenas despite their commercial success
• Reflections on iconic songs including Aqualung, Locomotive Breath, and Budapest
• Details about the new Jethro Tull album releasing March 7, 2023, after being written during summer 2023
• Anderson's philosophy of setting achievable goals rather than impossible expectations
• Current touring plans across Europe including Finland, Hungary, Slovakia, France, Germany, Austria, and Spain
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:14):
My career in the entertainment industry has
enabled me to work with adiverse range of talent.
Through my years of experience,I've recognized two essential
aspects.
Industry professionals, whetherfamous stars or
behind-the-scenes staff, havefascinating stories to tell.
Secondly, audiences are eagerto listen to these stories,
(00:36):
which offer a glimpse into theirlives and the evolution of
their life stories.
This podcast aims to sharethese narratives, providing
information on how they evolvedinto their chosen career.
We will delve into theirjourney to stardom, discuss
their struggles and successesand hear from people who helped
them achieve their goals.
Get ready for intriguingbehind-the-scenes stories and
(00:58):
insights into the fascinatingworld of entertainment.
World of entertainment.
Hi, I'm Tony Mantor.
Welcome to Almost LiveNashville.
Joining us today is Jethro Tull, a British rock band formed in
Blackpool in 1967.
Initially playing blues, rockand jazz fusion, the band soon
(01:19):
incorporated elements of Englishfolk music, hard rock and
classical music, forging asignature progressive rock sound
.
The group's founder, ianAnderson, is here with us today.
He has a fascinating storyabout the band, how they evolved
through the years, celebratingover 50 years and staying
relevant in the music sceneacross the world.
(01:40):
It's such a pleasure to havehim here with us.
Thanks for coming on the show.
Speaker 2 (01:45):
Oh, coming on, I see, yes, I'm coming on.
Yes, indeed, fire away, I'm allset to go.
Speaker 1 (01:50):
All right, I've always found it interesting with
band names.
I think yours is veryinteresting.
I know a lot of people thatused to think of the band Jethro
Tull.
They often thought that JethroTull was a real person and part
of the band.
As it turns out, he is a realperson, an 18th century British
agriculturist.
Can you expand on how that namecame to be?
Speaker 2 (02:12):
That is the association, but I'm not the
person who came up with the nameJethro Tull.
That was one of the bookers inour agency and he had studied
university.
He studied university Englishhistory, so he suggested this
name.
I hadn't covered that period ofhistory.
In my brief period of studyinghistory at grammar school.
(02:32):
I had no idea who it was.
I thought it was a name he madeup, but in fact it was of
course a real historicalcharacter.
And about two weeks after wehad the name Jethro Tull I found
out that we were named after adead guy who invented the seed
drill back in the 18th century.
So you know, it felt a littleuncomfortable.
But because we'd achieved alittle bit of recognition at
(02:54):
that point from our first coupleof appearances as Jethro Tull,
it was a bit too late to changethe name yet again.
So we decided we would stickwith it, and so we have all
these years.
Speaker 1 (03:06):
Yes, and it's worked well.
I understand that some of themembers actually went to high
school together.
Speaker 2 (03:13):
Two or three of the members.
There was John Evans, myselfand Geoffrey Hammond and Barry
Barlow who had met in Blackpoolbefore Jethro Tull's era, two or
three years before that, and wehad played together, not in a
professional group, just in a,you know, occasional Friday
night at the youth club or pubkind of a band.
And when I was then on my owndown in the south of England
(03:38):
playing with three other guysand we became Jethro Tull, I
kept in touch with the otherguys so that in 1969, john Evans
came to do some sessions withJethro Tull the Benefit album.
Jeffrey Hammond joined for theAqualung album in 1971.
And Barry Barlow joined forThick as a Brick in 1972.
(03:59):
We were reunited later on whenthere was a vacant position in
the band and then they stayed inthe band until the end of the
1970s.
Speaker 1 (04:10):
Now, with all the accolades that you have received
, the fans that follow you, themusic you've recorded and
released, it's been a tremendouscareer for you.
Is there anything that comes tomind and stands out to you that
seemingly changed the way thatyou looked at things and gave
you hope to pursue your musiccareer?
Speaker 2 (04:29):
The sudden transition from being unknown and unwanted
to being rich and famous.
It's a very gradual process andalthough it may have been
achieved over a period of aboutthree years, it was still a
gradual process that providedthe sense of the dawning of the
option of it being aprofessional career, probably
(04:50):
around 1970, 71.
But at that point I stillthought if I have a year or two
or three being a professionalmusician, that would be great,
but if it doesn't work out, ifwe fall out of favor, then I had
the growing skills to become arecord producer or to work in
the music industry, because Ipaid attention to what was going
on around me in terms of recordcompany and management and
(05:12):
agency and so on.
So I did have an unawareness ofhow things worked.
I didn't just live in my littlebubble as a musician, which the
others tended to do.
Speaker 1 (05:22):
Yes, I know exactly what you mean.
I'm here in Nashville.
I've seen a lot of people comeand go, some stay in their
bubble and some expand.
I think that you probablyexpanded because you asked
questions, researched, learnedand evolved.
This leads me to wonder,thinking back, is there anyone
that gave you advice?
Speaker 2 (05:42):
that was just so spot on you, and he gave me some
good advice which was he'dobviously listened to the
(06:09):
Aqualung album and said look,whatever it is you were doing,
it seems to be working out.
So my suggestion is you don'treally need a record producer,
you can do it yourself.
Carry on doing what you'redoing.
That's not necessarily theanswer I was looking for.
Maybe in the back of my mindthere was some thought that
maybe George Martin would say,oh, I'll produce your next
record.
But he seemed to be trying togive me the confidence to carry
(06:33):
on as I was doing and so I did.
And it was not only a goodpiece of advice but it was a
confidence-building piece ofadvice and I appreciate his
confidence that he passed on tome.
I knew George on and off fromthen onwards until just before
he died, and he was a great manin the music history of the UK,
(06:55):
a real gentleman.
He was different to all theother people.
You know he wasn't a party guy,he didn't do drink and drugs.
He was just an upstandinggentleman, very polite, very
well spoken and a nice guy towork with or to sit and have a
glass of wine with.
Speaker 1 (07:10):
Yeah, I've heard that comment from several different
people.
You were performing in smallvenues, like many startup bands.
Do you have bumps in the road,like so many?
Do you survived them?
What was it like when you madethat next step to the big stage?
20,000, 25,000 people in frontof you?
How did that transition go foryou?
Speaker 2 (07:32):
They were often nights to forget, because it's
not my happy hunting ground tobe in big arenas or stadia or
whatever they might be.
I'm a theater guy.
I like playing to a couple ofthousand people in a comfortable
theater with nice seats andtoilets that work.
I think that happened in 1969,when we graduated from being in
the clubs from the year beforeour start-up year and in 1969 we
(07:55):
began to play in the UK at anyrate some nice theatres, and
that was my idea of havinggravitated towards some larger
audience in comfortablesurroundings, doing a concert as
opposed to doing a gig or doinga show with all the production
razzmatazz of playing in bigplaces with big lights and sound
(08:19):
systems and changing in smellylocker rooms at the back of the
Madison Square Gardens orwherever it might be.
So I didn't really enjoy that.
It didn't feel to me like theplace I wanted to be and I tried
to impress on our managerduring the early 70s that I just
didn't want to carry on doingthat and for a while he wouldn't
listen.
I think he took it as arejection because he wanted us
(08:42):
to be the biggest band on planetEarth and compete with Elton
John and Led Zeppelin and allthe other folks.
We had not a falling out but adisagreement.
He thought the sky is the limitand I thought 2,000 people is
the limit.
I was gradually able to, Ithink, persuade him.
We did carry on playing inarenas and places of that sort
(09:05):
into the end of the 1970s, butincreasingly with less frequency
.
These days, I think thelikelihood is if you see Jethro
Tull playing to a largeraudience, it's probably going to
be an outdoor venue in anancient Roman amphitheater on
the shores of the Mediterranean,somewhere that still has some
real character, somewhere reallynice.
(09:25):
It's not easy to get excitedabout sports arenas.
They don't seem to have a lotof ambience.
That appeals.
Speaker 1 (09:33):
Yeah, I can totally understand that.
There's definitely a nicefeeling about a small, intimate
venue with a couple thousandpeople.
You get to feel the crowd alittle bit more than you do when
you've got 25,000 people, whereyou can only sometimes see just
the front row.
Speaker 2 (09:49):
If you see the people in the front row, that is
because of course you've got thelights in your eyes and in the
old days when it was actuallyspotlights at the back of the
venue beaming down on you, youwere pretty much blind.
You couldn't really seeanything, because the lights are
right in your eyes and you'revaguely aware of somebody in the
front two rows and beyond thatyou don't really see anybody.
(10:11):
So sometimes you don't seeanybody at all.
With modern lighting where it'scoming from above and more
carefully directed from aboveand from the sides, then you do
see a little bit of the audiencehere and there.
Frankly it's not a pretty sightbecause these are a bunch of
old folks who shouldn't beallowed out of the house at
their age.
Speaker 1 (10:31):
Yeah, I understand that for sure.
You've done so many songs,you've done so many things.
Are there any songs that juststand out to you as your
favorites?
They might not have been yourbig hits, yet, they just hold a
special place in your heart.
Speaker 2 (10:46):
Trying to pick one song out of 300, and whatever it
is, is not that easy.
There are songs that I findspecial, not because they've
necessarily been so successful,but because they represent the
essential elements of JethroTull musically, and so songs
Aqualung and Locomotive Breathare those that come to mind as
being iconic from that period,the early 70s and a little later
(11:09):
on, songs from the Wood andHeavy Horses or into the 80s,
maybe the song Budapest from theCrest of an Ave album.
And then there are a wholesprinkling of songs from up
until more recent times, fromrecent albums, which have a
sense for me of being reallyrelevant in today's world, not
just because they're two orthree years old, but because of
(11:31):
the subject material and thematurity of the band in playing
those today.
But you're trying to pick yourfavorite child or grandchild or
your favorite cat.
People have favorite footballteams, people have favorite
restaurants, but to say that youhave a favorite when it's
something much more deeplypersonal seems to therefore
(11:54):
exclude the others or demotethem to being second class,
which isn't really a fairappraisal.
Speaker 1 (12:00):
Yeah, I totally understand that.
I've got several friends thathave been in movies, tv shows,
well-known bands.
Then they take a look atthemselves and 50 years later,
they're still relevant.
They still have their fans.
They're still out there doingtheir performances.
Still relevant, they still havetheir fans.
They're still out there doingtheir performances.
You had your 50th anniversaryin what?
2017?
How does that feel to know that50 years later, you still have
(12:24):
that following, you still havethat sound that everyone still
loves?
Speaker 2 (12:28):
In some ways, you try and ignore the passage of time,
because it's a sharp reminderof the not the fact that you're
getting older, but the fact thatthe hourglass is beginning to
run out and that you have afinite period of time left to do
things that you enjoy, thingsthat are a challenge and things
that perhaps you haven't yet hadthe opportunity to do, places
to visit, things to see in theworld, as well as the music.
(12:52):
I don't dwell on the past.
I encounter my past almostdaily in some context that
reminds me of the fact that I'vebeen around for 56 years or
whatever it is.
So it's something that goes on,but I don't like to dwell on it
with either the triumphalfeeling that I'm some kind of a
musical Peter Pan who just goeson forever, which is ridiculous
(13:15):
or, on the other hand, to feeldespondent or down at heart
because I am in the twilight ofmy professional life.
That's inevitable, but I mighthave a year, might have two
years, I might have 10 years togo.
Who knows?
I suppose I can look around andsee some people who are a
little older than I am, who arestill active and performing.
(13:36):
Mick Jagger, obviously, is oneof those, but at the same time,
I encounter regularly people whoare either no longer with us or
people who no longer perform,who are my age or even younger.
It is potentially an area ofsadness and despondence, really,
if you dwell on it in terms ofwhat its implications are, but I
(13:57):
don't think about it too much.
It's just it pops its head uptwo or three times a day
typically.
I can't pretend that I am not77, even if I feel like I'm 37.
Speaker 1 (14:07):
Yeah, and that's a great thing that you're still
out there doing what you love todo.
As you said, there's a lot ofpeople that aren't An
interesting thing that you'dbrought up.
Is there anything that youhaven't done that you wish you
had and intend to do in thefuture?
Speaker 2 (14:26):
Probably there are things, but they're not things
so much in the world of music.
There are things that I feel Ihave left until relatively late
in life to become more involvedwith.
I'm a student of history, I'm astudent of the spiritual world
and world religions.
(14:46):
I'm a student of the morerewarding aspects of culture,
whether it's art or music, orthe movies or whatever it is.
I rather regret that I've nothad as much opportunity as I
felt I had to go and visitplaces where I could steep
myself in that local culture.
I was in Paris last week doingsome press and promo and I had
(15:09):
to be mindful of the fact that Iwas in a part of Paris that
I've not stayed in before.
And I did have an opportunityto go and visit a couple of
places in that area of Paris,which was very rewarding, even
though it was only for an hour.
And it reminds me of places inthat area of Paris, which was
very rewarding even though itwas only for an hour.
And it reminds me of the factthat, having played in so many
cities of the world over so manyyears, I know them.
But I don't know them becauseall I know is a hotel and the
(15:32):
streets nearby and an Indianrestaurant or a Japanese
restaurant or something thatcomes to mind connected with
that city.
But perhaps I haven't had anopportunity to go and visit the
tourist sites, for instance inRome.
I've been many times over theyears.
I've never really been as atourist, and I'm going to visit
Rome in a month or so to do thethings that tourists to Rome do.
(15:56):
So I shall visit the Vatican, Ishall visit the Colosseum and I
shall visit some other churchesand sites within Rome.
I've been to the Vatican Iplayed at the Vatican Christmas
concert three years ago and Ifeel connected to it.
But I've not seen it as atourist, I haven't seen it
through tourist eyes.
Where you have a chance to stopand stand still and look around
(16:18):
, that requires a certaincreation of space in your life.
But if you're there doing a joband you're getting herded
around because it's your turn tomeet the Pope, then you don't
really have the luxury ofstopping to look around you.
That's something.
I don't regret, because I stillhave some time left to do those
things, and particularly in myrelatively hometown of London.
(16:39):
There are just so many thingsto go and see, places to visit,
and sometimes there are placesthat I have been to but I've
just not had the time to reallytake them in and that I want to
do before it's too late and theywon't let me get on the train
without a minder in case I getlost or fall under a bus or
something.
Speaker 1 (17:00):
Yeah, I know a lot of people think because you've
traveled the world, you've seeneverything.
Unfortunately, most times youget in the night before sound
check the next day.
Going on to perform that night,then leaving to your next
destination the very nextmorning, doesn't give you any
time for sightseeing, that's forsure.
Now, changing gears, I thinkyou're releasing a new album
(17:23):
soon, is that right?
Speaker 2 (17:24):
The new album comes out on the 7th of March and that
was the product of June andJuly and August of last year,
when I took most of the summeroff to work on a new album and
get it completed in time to meetnot a deadline, but the
earliest possible release datethat Sony Records could provide
(17:45):
us with.
And if you'd asked me this timelast year, I didn't have
anything in mind.
I thought maybe I'll do anotherrecord.
We'll see what happens.
As it approached the summer,after the first lot of concert
tours in 2024, I began to feelthat urge to indulge in that
creative process again when thetime was right.
(18:07):
And the time was right sometimeat the end of May when I
started to write the lyrics forsongs.
It all clicked into place atthe time.
But if you ask me now, at thebeginning of February, what are
my plans for another album, Idon't have any.
I have no plans at all.
But if you ask me again in sixmonths' time, perhaps I will
have the glimmer of hope.
(18:27):
Who knows?
Speaker 1 (18:28):
What's the direction you took with this album, this
coming out in March?
Any surprises, or pretty muchwhat you'd expect from Jethro
Tull.
Speaker 2 (18:38):
I think it embodies the elements that Jethro Tull
are known for being aprogressive rock band, even
being a folk rock band.
Those elements are enshrined inthe music and the musical style
.
But whilst it doesn't recreatethe musical elements of past
albums, there's still a lot ofcontinuity there.
So I think that for me as amusician, it's good to observe
(19:01):
the general feeling of thatcontinuity and I think for the
fans of Jethro Tull and previousrecords they will hear that and
feel that when they listen toit.
I say I think they will.
I can't possibly know becauseeverybody's different and it may
be that it falls on relativelydeaf ears.
On the other hand, they may bejumping for joy and anxiously
(19:22):
calling their friends around tocome and listen to the new
Jethro Tull album on vinyl.
Who knows?
Speaker 1 (19:27):
Yeah, that'd be nice.
I think you still have a lot ofpeople out there that love your
music.
Do you have an extensiveconcert tour coming up for the
remainder of the year?
Speaker 2 (19:37):
I don't play as many shows as I did pre-COVID time.
Currently there are about 50concerts in the schedule.
I'm sure there'll be a few moreadded and we're already into
booking in 2026.
We have a couple of toursbooked in 2026 already.
So things go on In terms of notnext week, the week after I go
(19:57):
off to Italy to do some concerts, and then in March we rehearse
because there's a big change inthe set list with a lot of other
material that we haven't playedfor a long time, plus two songs
from the new album.
So we need to have a day ofmusical rehearsals followed by a
day of technical rehearsals andget all that into shape, ready
to do the tours that kick off inApril when we travel to Finland
(20:20):
and then Budapest and Slovakiaand Paris and Germany and
Austria and Spain.
And I do currently have somefree time in the summer months.
Again, we have some shows, butwe're not playing every week.
June, for example, is currentlywe have no concerts scheduled
at all.
So that might be a time to sitdown and think about some new
(20:41):
project, whatever that mightturn out to be.
Speaker 1 (20:44):
Yeah, I totally understand that.
I look at new projects exactlythe same way.
It's been great to talk withyou, great conversation.
I'm just so happy that you'redoing well, new music coming out
for your fans.
I think you've got everythingto be proud of.
Speaker 2 (21:01):
I tend not to live in a world of superlatives, so
when you say it's been great totalk to me, I'd be perfectly
happy if you said it's beenquite nice to talk to you, it's
been okay to talk to you.
I think setting your sights inall ways at a more modest level
is probably good for the soul,because things become more
achievable.
If you set your goalsimpossibly high, you're likely
(21:21):
to be met with some degree ofdisappointment, and I think
that's what I felt when I was ayoung man was that I should set
my sights on achievable goalsrather than pie-in-the-sky goals
.
And then sometimes youranticipation your goals actually
not only do you achieve, butyou surprise yourself because
you did rather better than that,and that's a great feeling when
(21:43):
you surpass your modest goals.
Speaker 1 (21:46):
It sure is.
So once again, I reallyappreciate you taking the time
to come on and talk with us.
Speaker 2 (21:54):
Good to talk to you and take care, and hopefully we
will see you again sometime soon.
Yes, indeed.
Speaker 1 (22:10):
Thanks for joining us today.
We hope you enjoyed the show.
This has been a Tony Mantourproduction.
For more information, contactmedia at plateau music dot com.
My career in the entertainment industry has
enabled me to work with adiverse range of talent.
Through my years of experience,I've recognized two essential
aspects.
Industry professionals, whetherfamous stars or
behind-the-scenes staff, havefascinating stories to tell.
Secondly, audiences are eagerto listen to these stories,
(00:36):
which offer a glimpse into theirlives and the evolution of
their life stories.
This podcast aims to sharethese narratives, providing
information on how they evolvedinto their chosen career.
We will delve into theirjourney to stardom, discuss
their struggles and successesand hear from people who helped
them achieve their goals.
Get ready for intriguingbehind-the-scenes stories and
(00:58):
insights into the fascinatingworld of entertainment.
World of entertainment.
Hi, I'm Tony Mantor.
Welcome to Almost LiveNashville.
Joining us today is Jethro Tull, a British rock band formed in
Blackpool in 1967.
Initially playing blues, rockand jazz fusion, the band soon
(01:19):
incorporated elements of Englishfolk music, hard rock and
classical music, forging asignature progressive rock sound
.
The group's founder, ianAnderson, is here with us today.
He has a fascinating storyabout the band, how they evolved
through the years, celebratingover 50 years and staying
relevant in the music sceneacross the world.
(01:40):
It's such a pleasure to havehim here with us.
Thanks for coming on the show.
Speaker 2 (01:45):
Oh, coming on, I see, yes, I'm coming on.
Yes, indeed, fire away, I'm allset to go.
Speaker 1 (01:50):
All right, I've always found it interesting with
band names.
I think yours is veryinteresting.
I know a lot of people thatused to think of the band Jethro
Tull.
They often thought that JethroTull was a real person and part
of the band.
As it turns out, he is a realperson, an 18th century British
agriculturist.
Can you expand on how that namecame to be?
Speaker 2 (02:12):
That is the association, but I'm not the
person who came up with the nameJethro Tull.
That was one of the bookers inour agency and he had studied
university.
He studied university Englishhistory, so he suggested this
name.
I hadn't covered that period ofhistory.
In my brief period of studyinghistory at grammar school.
(02:32):
I had no idea who it was.
I thought it was a name he madeup, but in fact it was of
course a real historicalcharacter.
And about two weeks after wehad the name Jethro Tull I found
out that we were named after adead guy who invented the seed
drill back in the 18th century.
So you know, it felt a littleuncomfortable.
But because we'd achieved alittle bit of recognition at
(02:54):
that point from our first coupleof appearances as Jethro Tull,
it was a bit too late to changethe name yet again.
So we decided we would stickwith it, and so we have all
these years.
Speaker 1 (03:06):
Yes, and it's worked well.
I understand that some of themembers actually went to high
school together.
Speaker 2 (03:13):
Two or three of the members.
There was John Evans, myselfand Geoffrey Hammond and Barry
Barlow who had met in Blackpoolbefore Jethro Tull's era, two or
three years before that, and wehad played together, not in a
professional group, just in a,you know, occasional Friday
night at the youth club or pubkind of a band.
And when I was then on my owndown in the south of England
(03:38):
playing with three other guysand we became Jethro Tull, I
kept in touch with the otherguys so that in 1969, john Evans
came to do some sessions withJethro Tull the Benefit album.
Jeffrey Hammond joined for theAqualung album in 1971.
And Barry Barlow joined forThick as a Brick in 1972.
(03:59):
We were reunited later on whenthere was a vacant position in
the band and then they stayed inthe band until the end of the
1970s.
Speaker 1 (04:10):
Now, with all the accolades that you have received
, the fans that follow you, themusic you've recorded and
released, it's been a tremendouscareer for you.
Is there anything that comes tomind and stands out to you that
seemingly changed the way thatyou looked at things and gave
you hope to pursue your musiccareer?
Speaker 2 (04:29):
The sudden transition from being unknown and unwanted
to being rich and famous.
It's a very gradual process andalthough it may have been
achieved over a period of aboutthree years, it was still a
gradual process that providedthe sense of the dawning of the
option of it being aprofessional career, probably
(04:50):
around 1970, 71.
But at that point I stillthought if I have a year or two
or three being a professionalmusician, that would be great,
but if it doesn't work out, ifwe fall out of favor, then I had
the growing skills to become arecord producer or to work in
the music industry, because Ipaid attention to what was going
on around me in terms of recordcompany and management and
(05:12):
agency and so on.
So I did have an unawareness ofhow things worked.
I didn't just live in my littlebubble as a musician, which the
others tended to do.
Speaker 1 (05:22):
Yes, I know exactly what you mean.
I'm here in Nashville.
I've seen a lot of people comeand go, some stay in their
bubble and some expand.
I think that you probablyexpanded because you asked
questions, researched, learnedand evolved.
This leads me to wonder,thinking back, is there anyone
that gave you advice?
Speaker 2 (05:42):
that was just so spot on you, and he gave me some
good advice which was he'dobviously listened to the
(06:09):
Aqualung album and said look,whatever it is you were doing,
it seems to be working out.
So my suggestion is you don'treally need a record producer,
you can do it yourself.
Carry on doing what you'redoing.
That's not necessarily theanswer I was looking for.
Maybe in the back of my mindthere was some thought that
maybe George Martin would say,oh, I'll produce your next
record.
But he seemed to be trying togive me the confidence to carry
(06:33):
on as I was doing and so I did.
And it was not only a goodpiece of advice but it was a
confidence-building piece ofadvice and I appreciate his
confidence that he passed on tome.
I knew George on and off fromthen onwards until just before
he died, and he was a great manin the music history of the UK,
(06:55):
a real gentleman.
He was different to all theother people.
You know he wasn't a party guy,he didn't do drink and drugs.
He was just an upstandinggentleman, very polite, very
well spoken and a nice guy towork with or to sit and have a
glass of wine with.
Speaker 1 (07:10):
Yeah, I've heard that comment from several different
people.
You were performing in smallvenues, like many startup bands.
Do you have bumps in the road,like so many?
Do you survived them?
What was it like when you madethat next step to the big stage?
20,000, 25,000 people in frontof you?
How did that transition go foryou?
Speaker 2 (07:32):
They were often nights to forget, because it's
not my happy hunting ground tobe in big arenas or stadia or
whatever they might be.
I'm a theater guy.
I like playing to a couple ofthousand people in a comfortable
theater with nice seats andtoilets that work.
I think that happened in 1969,when we graduated from being in
the clubs from the year beforeour start-up year and in 1969 we
(07:55):
began to play in the UK at anyrate some nice theatres, and
that was my idea of havinggravitated towards some larger
audience in comfortablesurroundings, doing a concert as
opposed to doing a gig or doinga show with all the production
razzmatazz of playing in bigplaces with big lights and sound
(08:19):
systems and changing in smellylocker rooms at the back of the
Madison Square Gardens orwherever it might be.
So I didn't really enjoy that.
It didn't feel to me like theplace I wanted to be and I tried
to impress on our managerduring the early 70s that I just
didn't want to carry on doingthat and for a while he wouldn't
listen.
I think he took it as arejection because he wanted us
(08:42):
to be the biggest band on planetEarth and compete with Elton
John and Led Zeppelin and allthe other folks.
We had not a falling out but adisagreement.
He thought the sky is the limitand I thought 2,000 people is
the limit.
I was gradually able to, Ithink, persuade him.
We did carry on playing inarenas and places of that sort
(09:05):
into the end of the 1970s, butincreasingly with less frequency
.
These days, I think thelikelihood is if you see Jethro
Tull playing to a largeraudience, it's probably going to
be an outdoor venue in anancient Roman amphitheater on
the shores of the Mediterranean,somewhere that still has some
real character, somewhere reallynice.
(09:25):
It's not easy to get excitedabout sports arenas.
They don't seem to have a lotof ambience.
That appeals.
Speaker 1 (09:33):
Yeah, I can totally understand that.
There's definitely a nicefeeling about a small, intimate
venue with a couple thousandpeople.
You get to feel the crowd alittle bit more than you do when
you've got 25,000 people, whereyou can only sometimes see just
the front row.
Speaker 2 (09:49):
If you see the people in the front row, that is
because of course you've got thelights in your eyes and in the
old days when it was actuallyspotlights at the back of the
venue beaming down on you, youwere pretty much blind.
You couldn't really seeanything, because the lights are
right in your eyes and you'revaguely aware of somebody in the
front two rows and beyond thatyou don't really see anybody.
(10:11):
So sometimes you don't seeanybody at all.
With modern lighting where it'scoming from above and more
carefully directed from aboveand from the sides, then you do
see a little bit of the audiencehere and there.
Frankly it's not a pretty sightbecause these are a bunch of
old folks who shouldn't beallowed out of the house at
their age.
Speaker 1 (10:31):
Yeah, I understand that for sure.
You've done so many songs,you've done so many things.
Are there any songs that juststand out to you as your
favorites?
They might not have been yourbig hits, yet, they just hold a
special place in your heart.
Speaker 2 (10:46):
Trying to pick one song out of 300, and whatever it
is, is not that easy.
There are songs that I findspecial, not because they've
necessarily been so successful,but because they represent the
essential elements of JethroTull musically, and so songs
Aqualung and Locomotive Breathare those that come to mind as
being iconic from that period,the early 70s and a little later
(11:09):
on, songs from the Wood andHeavy Horses or into the 80s,
maybe the song Budapest from theCrest of an Ave album.
And then there are a wholesprinkling of songs from up
until more recent times, fromrecent albums, which have a
sense for me of being reallyrelevant in today's world, not
just because they're two orthree years old, but because of
(11:31):
the subject material and thematurity of the band in playing
those today.
But you're trying to pick yourfavorite child or grandchild or
your favorite cat.
People have favorite footballteams, people have favorite
restaurants, but to say that youhave a favorite when it's
something much more deeplypersonal seems to therefore
(11:54):
exclude the others or demotethem to being second class,
which isn't really a fairappraisal.
Speaker 1 (12:00):
Yeah, I totally understand that.
I've got several friends thathave been in movies, tv shows,
well-known bands.
Then they take a look atthemselves and 50 years later,
they're still relevant.
They still have their fans.
They're still out there doingtheir performances.
Still relevant, they still havetheir fans.
They're still out there doingtheir performances.
You had your 50th anniversaryin what?
2017?
How does that feel to know that50 years later, you still have
(12:24):
that following, you still havethat sound that everyone still
loves?
Speaker 2 (12:28):
In some ways, you try and ignore the passage of time,
because it's a sharp reminderof the not the fact that you're
getting older, but the fact thatthe hourglass is beginning to
run out and that you have afinite period of time left to do
things that you enjoy, thingsthat are a challenge and things
that perhaps you haven't yet hadthe opportunity to do, places
to visit, things to see in theworld, as well as the music.
(12:52):
I don't dwell on the past.
I encounter my past almostdaily in some context that
reminds me of the fact that I'vebeen around for 56 years or
whatever it is.
So it's something that goes on,but I don't like to dwell on it
with either the triumphalfeeling that I'm some kind of a
musical Peter Pan who just goeson forever, which is ridiculous
(13:15):
or, on the other hand, to feeldespondent or down at heart
because I am in the twilight ofmy professional life.
That's inevitable, but I mighthave a year, might have two
years, I might have 10 years togo.
Who knows?
I suppose I can look around andsee some people who are a
little older than I am, who arestill active and performing.
(13:36):
Mick Jagger, obviously, is oneof those, but at the same time,
I encounter regularly people whoare either no longer with us or
people who no longer perform,who are my age or even younger.
It is potentially an area ofsadness and despondence, really,
if you dwell on it in terms ofwhat its implications are, but I
(13:57):
don't think about it too much.
It's just it pops its head uptwo or three times a day
typically.
I can't pretend that I am not77, even if I feel like I'm 37.
Speaker 1 (14:07):
Yeah, and that's a great thing that you're still
out there doing what you love todo.
As you said, there's a lot ofpeople that aren't An
interesting thing that you'dbrought up.
Is there anything that youhaven't done that you wish you
had and intend to do in thefuture?
Speaker 2 (14:26):
Probably there are things, but they're not things
so much in the world of music.
There are things that I feel Ihave left until relatively late
in life to become more involvedwith.
I'm a student of history, I'm astudent of the spiritual world
and world religions.
(14:46):
I'm a student of the morerewarding aspects of culture,
whether it's art or music, orthe movies or whatever it is.
I rather regret that I've nothad as much opportunity as I
felt I had to go and visitplaces where I could steep
myself in that local culture.
I was in Paris last week doingsome press and promo and I had
(15:09):
to be mindful of the fact that Iwas in a part of Paris that
I've not stayed in before.
And I did have an opportunityto go and visit a couple of
places in that area of Paris,which was very rewarding, even
though it was only for an hour.
And it reminds me of places inthat area of Paris, which was
very rewarding even though itwas only for an hour.
And it reminds me of the factthat, having played in so many
cities of the world over so manyyears, I know them.
But I don't know them becauseall I know is a hotel and the
(15:32):
streets nearby and an Indianrestaurant or a Japanese
restaurant or something thatcomes to mind connected with
that city.
But perhaps I haven't had anopportunity to go and visit the
tourist sites, for instance inRome.
I've been many times over theyears.
I've never really been as atourist, and I'm going to visit
Rome in a month or so to do thethings that tourists to Rome do.
(15:56):
So I shall visit the Vatican, Ishall visit the Colosseum and I
shall visit some other churchesand sites within Rome.
I've been to the Vatican Iplayed at the Vatican Christmas
concert three years ago and Ifeel connected to it.
But I've not seen it as atourist, I haven't seen it
through tourist eyes.
Where you have a chance to stopand stand still and look around
(16:18):
, that requires a certaincreation of space in your life.
But if you're there doing a joband you're getting herded
around because it's your turn tomeet the Pope, then you don't
really have the luxury ofstopping to look around you.
That's something.
I don't regret, because I stillhave some time left to do those
things, and particularly in myrelatively hometown of London.
(16:39):
There are just so many thingsto go and see, places to visit,
and sometimes there are placesthat I have been to but I've
just not had the time to reallytake them in and that I want to
do before it's too late and theywon't let me get on the train
without a minder in case I getlost or fall under a bus or
something.
Speaker 1 (17:00):
Yeah, I know a lot of people think because you've
traveled the world, you've seeneverything.
Unfortunately, most times youget in the night before sound
check the next day.
Going on to perform that night,then leaving to your next
destination the very nextmorning, doesn't give you any
time for sightseeing, that's forsure.
Now, changing gears, I thinkyou're releasing a new album
(17:23):
soon, is that right?
Speaker 2 (17:24):
The new album comes out on the 7th of March and that
was the product of June andJuly and August of last year,
when I took most of the summeroff to work on a new album and
get it completed in time to meetnot a deadline, but the
earliest possible release datethat Sony Records could provide
(17:45):
us with.
And if you'd asked me this timelast year, I didn't have
anything in mind.
I thought maybe I'll do anotherrecord.
We'll see what happens.
As it approached the summer,after the first lot of concert
tours in 2024, I began to feelthat urge to indulge in that
creative process again when thetime was right.
(18:07):
And the time was right sometimeat the end of May when I
started to write the lyrics forsongs.
It all clicked into place atthe time.
But if you ask me now, at thebeginning of February, what are
my plans for another album, Idon't have any.
I have no plans at all.
But if you ask me again in sixmonths' time, perhaps I will
have the glimmer of hope.
(18:27):
Who knows?
Speaker 1 (18:28):
What's the direction you took with this album, this
coming out in March?
Any surprises, or pretty muchwhat you'd expect from Jethro
Tull.
Speaker 2 (18:38):
I think it embodies the elements that Jethro Tull
are known for being aprogressive rock band, even
being a folk rock band.
Those elements are enshrined inthe music and the musical style
.
But whilst it doesn't recreatethe musical elements of past
albums, there's still a lot ofcontinuity there.
So I think that for me as amusician, it's good to observe
(19:01):
the general feeling of thatcontinuity and I think for the
fans of Jethro Tull and previousrecords they will hear that and
feel that when they listen toit.
I say I think they will.
I can't possibly know becauseeverybody's different and it may
be that it falls on relativelydeaf ears.
On the other hand, they may bejumping for joy and anxiously
(19:22):
calling their friends around tocome and listen to the new
Jethro Tull album on vinyl.
Who knows?
Speaker 1 (19:27):
Yeah, that'd be nice.
I think you still have a lot ofpeople out there that love your
music.
Do you have an extensiveconcert tour coming up for the
remainder of the year?
Speaker 2 (19:37):
I don't play as many shows as I did pre-COVID time.
Currently there are about 50concerts in the schedule.
I'm sure there'll be a few moreadded and we're already into
booking in 2026.
We have a couple of toursbooked in 2026 already.
So things go on In terms of notnext week, the week after I go
(19:57):
off to Italy to do some concerts, and then in March we rehearse
because there's a big change inthe set list with a lot of other
material that we haven't playedfor a long time, plus two songs
from the new album.
So we need to have a day ofmusical rehearsals followed by a
day of technical rehearsals andget all that into shape, ready
to do the tours that kick off inApril when we travel to Finland
(20:20):
and then Budapest and Slovakiaand Paris and Germany and
Austria and Spain.
And I do currently have somefree time in the summer months.
Again, we have some shows, butwe're not playing every week.
June, for example, is currentlywe have no concerts scheduled
at all.
So that might be a time to sitdown and think about some new
(20:41):
project, whatever that mightturn out to be.
Speaker 1 (20:44):
Yeah, I totally understand that.
I look at new projects exactlythe same way.
It's been great to talk withyou, great conversation.
I'm just so happy that you'redoing well, new music coming out
for your fans.
I think you've got everythingto be proud of.
Speaker 2 (21:01):
I tend not to live in a world of superlatives, so
when you say it's been great totalk to me, I'd be perfectly
happy if you said it's beenquite nice to talk to you, it's
been okay to talk to you.
I think setting your sights inall ways at a more modest level
is probably good for the soul,because things become more
achievable.
If you set your goalsimpossibly high, you're likely
(21:21):
to be met with some degree ofdisappointment, and I think
that's what I felt when I was ayoung man was that I should set
my sights on achievable goalsrather than pie-in-the-sky goals
.
And then sometimes youranticipation your goals actually
not only do you achieve, butyou surprise yourself because
you did rather better than that,and that's a great feeling when
(21:43):
you surpass your modest goals.
Speaker 1 (21:46):
It sure is.
So once again, I reallyappreciate you taking the time
to come on and talk with us.
Speaker 2 (21:54):
Good to talk to you and take care, and hopefully we
will see you again sometime soon.
Yes, indeed.
Speaker 1 (22:10):
Thanks for joining us today.
We hope you enjoyed the show.
This has been a Tony Mantourproduction.
For more information, contactmedia at plateau music dot com.
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