AQUALUNG

Prog-rock? Classic-rock? Does it matter? With "Aqualung, Jethro Tull does plenty to please fans of both, with driving, energetic rock tunes intermixed with thoughtful and ambitious compositions.

The title track opens with an irresistable and legendary guitar riff, starting off one of the all-time great classic rock FM standards. A great guitar solo, chorus, intriguing lyrics, and dynamics all make this the winning track on the album, but things are almost as good in the follow up "Cross Eyed Mary", which features some great flute by Anderson. The middle of the album shifts gears considerably, giving us a series of folksy ballads highlighting the groups acoustic playing and sensativity. Anderson's vocals on these tracks are great, as is the organic feel to the performances and songwriting. The prog returns with the organ and mellotron heavy "My God"-- also featuring excellent flute solos. The closing tracks, the jamming "Locomotive Breath" and passionate "Wind-Up", are a winning pair, putting a nice close on an enjoyable album.

My only complaint is that the material book-ended by the excellent start and close of Aqualung feel very rushed, almost to the point of being incomplete. While overall these songs are quite good, they are practically a teaser to what the band is really capable of.

While not ambitious or powerful enough to warrant 5-star status in my book, Aqualung's style does a lot to charm the listener into a wide range of moods, and definitely earns its place in any rock lover's library.

Songwriting: 4 Instrumental Performances: 4 Lyrics/Vocals: 4 Style/Emotion/Replay: 5