STAND UP

After the wrestling match between the band's original guitarist Mick Abrahams and Ian Anderson over musical direction, the winner as we all know was Ian Anderson who would from this album on steer JETHRO TULL into his own personal vision of band development leaving behind the full on blues rock and going more in a folk rock direction. This second album STAND UP is the transitional album that still retains a bunch of blues but the dominant sound here is in the folk realm. The original LP version opened up like a children's pop-up book and the whole band would stand up when you opened the album. Unfortunately my CD has no such accoutrements but it is remastered from the original recordings and even has a few bonus tracks.

This was one of my first TULL albums so I have a strong affection for this one, but despite that it holds up quite well in the melody department. This album may not be the album that rocks the most, is the most progressive, is the cleverest or any particular quality that makes it STAND UP and out amongst the future releases but it does offer one outstandingly beautiful song after another. Each track is the perfect blues rock and folk rock blend and this is the album where Ian Anderson's flute really starts to fit in with the song structure in a flawless way. His vocals are perfect for this kind of music. I really love every track on here but I particularly love the Bach turned TULL instrumental "Bouree," the space folk rockers "Back To The Family" and "Nothing Is Easy" and the lugubrious tone of "Look Into The Sun" where Ian seems to be lamenting the end of the hippie era and realization that the world is a more complicated affair where darkness abounds and sadness ensues. A great album and the first true TULL album after the debut oddball.