SONGS FROM THE WOOD

This is one of my favorite recordings of all time. A MASTERPIECE of the highest caliber. I have ALL of Tull's recordings, and although some are heavier and edgier, no other comes close to capturing the essence of what Ian Anderson and "Tull" were all about.

Songs From the Wood IS Jethro Tull. IMO, this is the culmination of all of their previous releases. If I have ONE regret/complaint is that this should have been a double record set. It leaves me wanting MORE!

I first listened to SFTW when I was 13 years old and can remember exactly where I was and whom I was with during that fateful first listen. I listen to LOTS of different music, spanning from jazz, classical, prog(of all kinds) and this is certainly one of those "desert island" recordings that I would hate to part with. VERY FEW recordings can literally make me feel like I'm in a different place and time, but this one does that, EACH and EVERY time I listen to it.

I had the great fortune of seeing JT a few years back in a very small theater and took in the festivities from the first row. There were quite a few hardcore JT fans there and, without any doubt, the biggest ovations were prompted by the few pieces from SFTW. Ian smiled bright and wide whenever he saw the audience's reaction to 'Jack-in- the- Green' and Velvet Green. He and the band played those songs to perfection! By far, the highlights of the show.

If you are anti-acoustic music(ie. you ONLY listen to metal) then you probably will hate this. On the other hand, if you thirst for fine instrumentation and orchestration.......and most of all, unparalleled inventiveness, then pick this one up and chase it with some ALE!