THICK AS A BRICK

I suppose if it hadn't been the early-70's, I might have seen this one coming. Following the commercial success of Aqualung, one expected more of the same, perhaps done bigger and better. Instead we got Thick As a Brick, Jethro Tull's greatest achievement. Give them credit: this was a huge risk, and somehow it managed to reach #1 in the U.S. (though something tells me many of those who bought it never sat through the album start to finish!).

Given that it consists of essentially one long song, it's difficult to review; one can't easily point out this or that great song. So let's just say the band had never so masterfully blended acoustic and electric, fast and slow, loud and soft. The keyboards were for the first time fully integrated and a are driving force in the music. The themes and melodies that drift in and out of each 'section' are some of Tull's most beautiful. The segues between the sections are generally seamless. Thirty five years later, I still enjoy sitting down and listening to TAAB in its entirety.

I can generally find some fault with any Tull release, but TAAB is five-star all the way, not just because it's Tull's finest moment, but because it fits comfortably and rightfully on the shelf with all the other great prog albums of the era, or any era.