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Rating: There comes a point in every artist's career when their repertoire literally risks playing out of their ears. Undoubtedly, it is difficult to please both the general fans, who ultimately always want the classic four or five hits (people who get excited over Aqualung, Thick as A Brick, Boureé, and Living In The Past) and the more ardent fans, who expect the proverbial "nuggets" and "gems" scattered here and there in the vast repertoire, if not even the more "new" material, given that the aforementioned classics have already been well assimilated for quite some time.
Fact is, for the reasons mentioned above, Jethro Tull embarked on a world tour that was different from the usual ones, partly due to the pressure from the public demanding a Jethro conversion to the "Unplugged" trend launched in the early '90s by MTV, which was a way of reinterpreting their repertoires live in an acoustic style. And that's what they did. This fact implied a strong change in 1992, not only from the point of view of the arrangements but also in the lineup, albeit temporarily. The keyboardist Andy Giddings, who had recently joined Jethro Tull during the recordings of "Catfish Rising" (1991), was kindly invited to stay home for the duration of the tour, while drummer Doane Perry requested a break to attend to his extra-Tullian business. Thus, Dave Mattacks, who had been the drummer for Fairport Convention introduced by then-bassist Dave Pegg, was engaged behind the drums. Gerry Conway, the drummer from the time of "Broadsword And The Beast," also made a few fleeting appearances during the tour.
Live recordings resulted in an album titled "A Little Light Music," named after the 1992 acoustic tour, itself taken from a song in the previous album "Catfish Rising": specifically, it is the track Rocks On The Road (Now how about a little light music / to take it all away). It truly will be a little light music.
Even the first recorded dates were discarded due to the excessive nervousness of the entire band about the project: which says a lot for those who boast a solid live experience like Jethro Tull. Thus, the disc contains tracks recorded in London, Dortmund, Frankfurt, Mannheim, Munich, Berlin, Prague, Zurich, Ankara, Jerusalem, Caesarea, Graz, and in Athens, where Greek singer George Dalaras joined as a guest for a (useless) version of John Barleycorn and one of Ruby Tuesday, the latter cover fortunately not included in the disc.
The use of the semi-acoustic in Nursie and its arrangement, the choice of pieces like From A Dead Beat To An Old Greaser, leave a bit of a bitter taste. The sound of David Pegg's acoustic bass is unusual and provides a quirky touch to the pieces, not to mention Ian Anderson's voice, which struggles with the new volumes; speaking of which, his declining vocal phase began after the recordings of "Under Wraps," though still quite acceptable (the final blow came when he fell off the stage and nearly died of thrombosis, which affected his vocal situation up to the present day). There are, however, some really splendid interpretations, such as the instrumental version of the acoustic gem Under Wraps #2, as well as the excellent Life Is A Long Song and A Christmas Song. Ian Anderson's presentations, too, are epic, as he jokingly takes on Martin Barre and David Pegg. Yet, on the whole, it seems that the sound is indeed very scant at some points, besides the general redundancy of some arrangements (the blues rehash of Look Into The Sun rather than the intro of Too Old To Rock'n'Roll Too Young To Die, to name a couple).
In short, I frankly don't think I would have gone home very satisfied if I had gone to see a concert from this tour, even though many fans didn't mind this phase at all. I'm not saying one would go back disgusted or disappointed, because the level of the show is certainly always excellent, but neither would one jump for joy over the new change.
Perhaps such a project would be far more suited for Jethro Tull today, given that Ian Anderson's voice is nearly gone. Focusing on a predominantly acoustic repertoire would be less demanding and yield better results. But the real weak point of "A Little Light Music" perhaps remains the fact that the pieces, besides being rearranged, are less incisive compared to the originals, or even just compared to other live performances (consider the excellent Bursting Out from 1978 as an example!). "A Little Light Music" is a project on the edge. Even the cover design, though graphically well thought out, appears a bit kitsch and perhaps is just saved by the original logo made with musical symbols.
Jethro Tull will try to change the pieces again the following year with the mediocre Beacon Bottom's Tapes from the 25th-anniversary box set, before realizing that the more faithful to the original one remains, the more the audience appreciates it. Rightly so!
Tracklist and Lyrics
02 Living in the Past (05:07)
Happy, and I'm smiling, walk a mile to drink your water.
You know I'd love to love you, and above you there's no other
We'll go walking out while others shout of war's disaster.
Oh, be forgiving, let's go living in the past.
Once I'd used to join in every boy and girl was my friend.
Now there's revolution but they don't know what they're fighting.
Let us close out eyes. Outside their lives go on much faster
Oh, be forgiving, we'll keep living in the past.
Oh, be forgiving, let's go living in the past.
Oh, no, no, be forgiving, let's go living in the past.
06 Nursie (02:27)
Tip-toes in silence 'round my bed
And quiets the raindrops overhead
With her everlasteng smile
She steals my fever for a while
Oh, nursie, dear,
I'm glad you're here
To brush away my pain
07 Too Old to Rock 'n' Roll; Too Young to Die (04:43)
The old Rocker wore his hair too long,
wore his trouser cuffs too tight.
Unfashionable to the end --- drank his ale too light.
Death's head belt buckle --- yesterday's dreams ---
the transport caf' prophet of doom.
Ringing no change in his double-sewn seams
in his post-war-babe gloom.
Now he's too old to Rock'n'Roll but he's too young to die.
He once owned a Harley Davidson and a Triumph Bonneville.
Counted his friends in burned-out spark plugs
and prays that he always will.
But he's the last of the blue blood greaser boys
all of his mates are doing time:
married with three kids up by the ring road
sold their souls straight down the line.
And some of them own little sports cars
and meet at the tennis club do's.
For drinks on a Sunday --- work on Monday.
They've thrown away their blue suede shoes.
Now they're too old to Rock'n'Roll and they're too young to die.
So the old Rocker gets out his bike
to make a ton before he takes his leave.
Up on the A1 by Scotch Corner
just like it used to be.
And as he flies --- tears in his eyes ---
his wind-whipped words echo the final take
and he hits the trunk road doing around 120
with no room left to brake.
And he was too old to Rock'n'Roll but he was too young to die.
No, you're never too old to Rock'n'Roll if you're too young to die.
09 A New Day Yesterday (07:33)
My first and last time with you
And we had some fun.
Went walking through the trees, yeah!
And then I kissed you once.
Oh I want to see you soon
But I wonder how.
It was a new day yesterday
But it's an old day now.
Spent a long time looking
For a game to play.
My luck should be so bad now
To turn out this way.
Oh I had to leave today
Just when I thought I'd found you.
It was a new day yesterday
But it's an old day now.
11 Look Into the Sun (03:45)
Took a sad song of one sweet evening
I smiled and quickly turned away.
It's not easy singing sad songs
But still the easiest way I have to say.
So when you look into the sun
And see the things we haven't done --
Oh was it better then to run
Than to spend the summer crying.
Now summer cannot come anyway.
I had waited for time to change her.
The only change that came was over me.
She pretended not to want love --
I hope she was only fooling me.
So when you look into the sun
Look for the pleasures nearly won.
Or was it better then to run
Than to spend the summer singing.
And summer could have come in a day.
So if you hear my sad song singing
Remember who and what you nearly had.
It's not easy singing sad songs
When you can sing the song to make me glad.
So when you look into the sun
And see the words you could have sung:
It's not too late, only begun,
We can still make summer.
Yes, summer always comes anyway.
So when you look into the sun
And see the words you could have sung:
It's not too late, only begun.
Look into the sun.
16 Pussy Willow (03:31)
In the half-tone light of a young morning
she sighs and shifts on the pillow.
And across her face dancing, the first shadows fly
to kiss the Pussy Willow.
In her fairy-tale world she's a lost soul singing
in a sad voice nobody hears.
She waits in her castle of make-believe
for her white knight to appear.
Pusy Willow down fur-lined avenue
brushing the sleep from her young woman eyes.
Runs for the train, see: eight o'clock's coming
cutting dreams down to size again.
Pussy Willow down fur-lined avenue,
brushing the sleep from her young woman eyes.
Runs from the train. Hear her typewriter humming,
cutting dreams down to size again.
She longs for the East and a pale dress flowing
an apartment in old Mayfair.
Or to fish the Spey, spinning the first run of Spring
or to die for a cause somewhere.
Pussy Willow down fur-lined avenue,
brushing the sleep from her young woman eyes.
Runs from the train. Hear her typewriter humming,
cutting dreams down to size again.
Pussy Willow, Pussy Willow, Pussy Willow, Pussy Willow.
17 Locomotive Breath (05:51)
In the Shuffling madness
Of the locomotive breath,
Runs the all time loser,
Headlong to his death.
He feels the piston scraping
Steam breaking on his brow
Old Charlie stole the handle
And the train it won't stop going
No way to slow down.
He sees his children jumping off
At stations one by one.
His woman and his best friend
In bed and having fun.
Crawling down the corridor
On his hands and knees
Old Charlie stole the handle
And the train it won't stop going
No way to slow down.
He hears the silence howling
Catches angels as they fall.
And the all time winner
Has got him by the balls.
He picks up Gideons Bible
Open at page one
I think God, he stole the handle
And the train it won't stop going
No way to slow down.
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