BENEFIT

This is JETHRO TULL's third album and the first where we can hear that classic TULL sound. The previous album "Stand Up" for me was a mixed bag, it was almost like Ian wanted to experiment with all these different musical influences he had in his life and it shows in the final result. I would call that a transition album. "Benefit" is darker and harder and I think it helped that John Evans came on board to play keyboards leaving Barre to concentrate on solos and riffs.

"With You There To Help Me" opens with flute that seems to echo as acoustic guitar then vocals come in. It kicks in before the chorus. Man the flute that follows is haunting. I really like the guitar 3 minutes in and later with the flute before 4 minutes. "Nothing To Say" just sounds so good with the guitar,bass and drums leading the way before the vocals arrive. That electric guitar sounds pretty amazing to me. Good song. "Alive And Well And Living In" opens with piano as lighter than usual vocals come in with flute and drums. Electric guitar makes some noise. Some good contrasts here.

"Son" has some attitude both with the vocals and the guitar. A lighter section before 1 1/2 minutes then it kicks back in after 2 minutes. I like the way it ends. "For Michael Collins, Jeffrey And Me" opens with acoustic guitar and reserved vocals, then piano joins in. It gets fuller after a minute as contrasts continue. "To Cry You A Song" builds until the vocals come in. Some nice guitar in this one. I like it ! "A Time For Everything ?" features flute, raw guitar and vocals. Piano comes and goes. "Inside" is such a great song. It's Ian's vocals and flute that make this so special. "Play In Time" is a cool track that's fairly aggressive. "Sossity, Your'e A Woman" opens with acoustic guitar and organ. Vocals join in this dark and melancholic song.

I like this album a lot. Oh and my version has "Teacher" as a bonus track, it was on the original UK version and was recorded a few weeks before the other songs on the album.