The late 1970’s was a time when the successful rock and roll bands were nurtured, pampered, and often times spoiled by the record companies who were making the bulk of the money on the bands’ popularity. It was a time when the Led Zeppelins and Rolling Stones of the world were flown in private jets and Van Halen wanted the brown M &Ms removed as per contractual agreement with the promoter.

It was also a time of the full length concept album. Some, like Yes’ double album with four total songs “Tales from Topographic Oceans”, Kiss’ 1981 release “The Elder” and, more recently, Judas Priest “Nostradamus” miss the mark while others like Jethro Tull’s “Thick as a Brick” become all time classic recordings.

The rock star as “artist” is a fine line to walk and when the artist’s vision does not capture the imagination of its audience the risk is becoming a parody of itself- an unintentional Spinal Tap moment.

Ian Anderson, however, intentionally created a parody of the concept album as art form and in the process Jethro Tull produced one of their greatest masterworks.

The original album cover art that folded out and read like an actual newspaper is still one of the greatest album packages ever produced for a rock and roll act.

Unbelievably Ian Anderson is still on the road and has played with various revamped Jethro Tull line ups throughout the years. His voice is not as resilient as it once was and the roar is now an amplified measured whisper at times. On the recent Thick as a Brick 2 tour, where they played both 1 and 2 in their entirety, the band interspersed a young actor singing many of the Ian Anderson vocal parts during the ambitious recreation of the Thick as a Brick musical saga.

The band has played highlights of the original “Thick as a Brick” album at Jethro Tull concerts I have attended in the past but it was only at the recent Westbury, Long Island show that I finally saw one of my favorite albums performed in its entirety; it was a fascinating performance by a great all-time artist that was well worth the wait.

Too Old to Rock ‘N’ Roll
Too Young to Die

GQ