Jethro Tull The Rock Opera Manchester
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Category: Progressive Music Lounges
Forum Name: Live Performance Reviews
Forum Description: Performance Reviews by Members
URL: http://www.progarchives.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=104043
Printed Date: May 04 2024 at 16:34
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Topic: Jethro Tull The Rock Opera Manchester
Posted By: bonnietiler
Subject: Jethro Tull The Rock Opera Manchester
Date Posted: September 15 2015 at 05:15
| Hmmm... well... yes I was there and stayed until the end which was an achievement not done by all.. What to say well if you don't know the plot then a huge part of this performance is clearly pre-recorded 3 backing singers who actually do most of the singing are projected from a kind of 6th Form back cloth. They sing very well and complete all the vocals that are no longer available to Ian Anderson his vocal is more like the Rex Harrison (My Fair Lady)sing/speak variety these days. He is energetic though whilst the remainder of his new band remain static throughout the 2 hours or so. The performance was absolutely note perfect whilst the back cloth is in view and operating. Andersons flute playing metronomically correct. The drummer managed the whole set without one bead of sweat appearing on his clothing, he appears to adopt the low energy/big sound approach. I just don't know exactly how much of a "Live" performance I watched to be honest and if Tull come out and say they performed everything on the night well I'll believe them, but it had the play over a backing track Top of the Pops type appearance to these old jaundiced eyes...and I go back to my first gig being Free Trade Hall Manchester January 1971 Black Sabbath/Curved Air/Freedom so I've seen one or 2. They played or joined along with all the favourites which might loosely be applied to the Jethro Tull (real character) bloke although he is transposed to a modern day genetic scientist trying to feed the world. When they played Locomotive breath the backcloth was noticeable by its absence and some seriously clunky notes were audible.. probably just a coincidence? When the encore was played I could clearly hear the organ (backcloth back now) although the keyboard player hadn't yet arrived. It was without question a brilliant performance of all the classics (as long as you don't mind projected pre recorded vocalist doing most of the singing) without any doubt at all and I'm certain that the band played it all...I'm just unsure of exactly when? My 4th time of seeing Tull by the way |
Replies:
Posted By: Gully Foyle
Date Posted: September 15 2015 at 11:18
| just stop Ian... |
Posted By: GKR
Date Posted: September 15 2015 at 11:51
Well, Gully, we already agreed with sometyhing like that in the Jethro Tull thread... but I bought my ticket for the Jethro Tull Opera in a blink od an eye, anymway  ------------- - From each according to his ability, to each according to his need. |
Posted By: The Dark Elf
Date Posted: September 15 2015 at 16:45
Agreed. Really don't mind if I sit this one out. ------------- ...a vigorous circular motion hitherto unknown to the people of this area, but destined to take the place of the mud shark in your mythology... |
Gully Foyle wrote:Posted By: charles_ryder
Date Posted: September 20 2015 at 12:39
  Yesterday in Saint-Petersburg, Russia. Ian and Co. plays Rock Opera. The best show in my life. Ian is God, really. ------------- om mani padme hum |
Posted By: Intruder
Date Posted: September 25 2015 at 10:35
|
The Tull have been dead to me since "A" or maybe Stormwatch. The Tull have failed to be interesting to me since Heavy Horses. The Tull hasn't put out a classic in my book since Stand Up. Never was a Tull fan but have seen them three times back in the '80s and most fans at the time thought that they had run their course even then. Can't imagine Tull in the teens. ------------- I like to feel the suspense when you're certain you know I am there..... |
Posted By: GKR
Date Posted: September 29 2015 at 06:24
|
Hey, guys, Ian posted on facebook this text, exactly about the thing of him singing live or dont. Take your conclusions: A brief message on the subject of the live show. A few silly, unobservant people have concluded rashly that the new "Jethro Tull Rock Opera" show is either all prerecorded vocals or, at best, that I am singing only about 30% of the words. This is utter tosh. The show was constructed from the beginning to allow about a third of the performance to be the domain of the pre-recorded video guests - whether singing solo in-character lines or duets with me. I have done a count of all lines of lyrics, song by song, that I sing - both the total of the whole show and the actual songs minus the recitatives (the introductory short links between the actual songs). The analysis is as follows: With recits there are 589 lines of lyrics in the whole show and I sing in 395 of the lines in total or 67%. Without recits there are exactly 500 lines and I sing 364 or 73% of the lines of the actual songs. Average 70%. Just as I intended it to be from the initial concept. That’s a lot more lines of lyrics than I sing during in a 1 hour festival set, singing the whole concert myself and about the same amount I would sing in a 1 hr 30 min festival best-of show. Remember that in Jethro Tull best-of shows there are usually at least two instrumentals plus songs with long instrumental passages, so I think it’s fair to point out that I am actually singing about the same amount as I usually do in the context of the big picture over the many years. This show, has many more sung songs and much less instrumental music anyway. There are, of course, some of the Rock Opera songs where the lines sung by me are duets as opposed to solo but you get the drift. Perhaps audience members are watching the guests on the video screen (understandable since Ryan and Unnur are young and attractive) rather than me standing in front singing and playing live but that's what the guests are there for: to add to the entertainment value and sing in character as per the story. Sorry to be pedantic but just for the record, it’s nice to paint the accurate picture for the fans. The lyric pages on our website could be a bit misleading as I tried to reflect the parts (color-coded) that the virtual guests sing whereas, in fact, many of those colour-coded parts are duets with me. However, I had to simplify to show what their contributions are. Looking on the bright side, if it appears to some folk that my contributions as a vocalist are prerecorded, then I must be doing a half-way decent job of singing it live! Trust me - if you see me with my mouth open and bulging eyes - it's real! Oh - and so is the flute..... ------------- - From each according to his ability, to each according to his need. |