I had the opportunity to see Ian Anderson performing his Rock Opera, “Jethro Tull” in San Jose last weekend, courtesy of two good friends. Due to their travels prevent them from going, a third friend now had two seats to fill. Not being certain it would be to attend due to prior commitments, I passed. But as the date approaches and the fates aligned, I reached out and coordinating going after all. And best of all, my daughter would likely accompany us.
I played a bit of his music for her in the days beforehand, and although she expressed less than zero interest in the music in any fashion whatsoever, she insisted on going. I offered to help her coordinate a sleepover at a friend's home or some other evening outing, but she wanted to be with me. Weird music or not.
We arrived after grabbing what was supposed to have been a quick bit at Panda Express that went south when the Teriyaki Chicken ran short. We parked, walked to the City National Civic Auditorium, got seated, and she went to work on some snacks we’d brought in. Meanwhile my friend and I riffed. He mentioned something about the Cubs winning and I replied “Oh? I don’t follow Hockey”. We laughed about how the name of the venue was “City National” and that it could be neither or both at the same time. And how adding “Center” would have further extended the contradiction of terms. Later we’d comment on and laugh about how Ian Anderson had become a dead-ringer for James Lipton of “In the Actors Studio” fame.
The show was amazing – it was a multimedia event with the theme of the origin of the band’s name. “Jethro Tull” was the 17th-century founder of the seed mill, and Ian had used it to weave a story intermixing the history of that individual with current global issues surrounding violence, environmental changes, and politics. Honestly, had I not done some research before going, much would have been lost to me. But the musicianship was what I came for and it was so worth the effort.
It was Holly that introduced Tull to me. Holly was my high school/early 20's girlfriend and a substantial influence in my youth, in more ways than I have time to write about. Although with Tull, she brought Fleetwood Mac and Van Halen into view as well as several others. She got me listening outside of the narrow focus I'd had so far. She and her sister loved Tull’s music, and I grew to as well.
Aqualung was a masterpiece and rightly so, and a recording I’ve returned to over and over again through the years, growing to appreciate it each time for some new aspects I’d previously itsoverlooked. It’s iconic in the realm of 70’s classic rock, but it’s so very much more. Equally essential, in my view, is “Thick as a Brick”, a single operatic piece in its own right, rich with a fusion of classic and prog-rock melodies. There were many other albums and releases before and following, but those two are my own personal favorites, flanked closely by “A Case of Tull” wherein the band is joined by the London Symphony Orchestra in an incredible collection of classic Tull songs with a symphonic spin.
Now, some almost 40 years later, I actually got to see him live.
The show featured songs from his 40+ years of recording, fitting into the themes and context of the show’s “Opera” theme. It opened with "Heavy Horses" and they went right into “Wind Up”, one of two tracks from Aqualung that helped express my own views on religion throughout my 20’s. “Aqualung” followed and the performances of all were just jaw-dropping. As I have become prone to do, i closed my eyes and just listened, overwhelmed that what I was hearing was being performed then and there and not in some studio. The 1st set closed with “Songs From the Wood”. The second set featured favorites like “Living in the Past”, “Jack-in-the-Green” and “Cheap Day Return" amongst numerous that were less familiar but all enjoyable. The close was a thunderous rendition of “Locomotive Breath”.
My daughter was JUST as amazing. She sat quietly and patiently through the two sets without a single complaint. Although I let her use my iPhone a bit here/there to entertain herself, that was limited, and something I think is best not done at all in hindsight. The exposure to art of this nature is good. I do hope she’ll grow a sense of interest in music of all kinds over time. She rode out the evening with grace and style.
After having had the chance to see and hear the performance herself, she gave it 3 on a scale of 1-10. Me, I’d go up 5 more, easily. But this is her old man’s music, not hers.:-)