Jethro Tull
A Passion Play

I hold the CD cover in my hand. I flip through the booklet of this great album that sends chills down my spine every time I listen to it. And I assure you that I have listened to it many, many, many times. It was released in 1973 as one single great track divided in two by a cabaret-style interlude. It was then re-released in 1998 with the suite divided into many separate tracks, but I prefer to review this masterpiece without giving importance to the division of the tracks. "A Passion Play" is the most bizarre and controversial album in the discography of the dear old Jethro Tull. The lyrics tell of a man named Ronnie Pilgrim, a man who, after death, visits heaven and hell before being reborn.

Right from the heartbeat that opens, traverses, and closes the record, from the first notes of the album and the first verses sung by Ian Anderson, you sense divergences from Tull's previous works: in this album, at least part of the cheerfulness and irony that characterized albums like "Thick as a Brick" is lost, making way for solemnity and drama that are present throughout its roughly 25 minutes. Only the cabaret-style interlude "The Story Of The Hare Who Lost This Spectacles," humorous and recited by Jeffrey Hammond, serves to lighten the seriousness that pervades the entire album. The characters in this piece are animals, and the story, which has nothing to do with the rest of the album, is accompanied by the band and an orchestra. Personally, I do not like this interlude; I consider it the only flaw of this milestone, but Jethro Tull have always been unpredictable.

It is significant that in this album, Anderson's flute solos and arabesques decrease to give way to other wind instruments, like saxophones, and keyboards, which, however, are never too invasive, enhancing the superlative work of Martin Barre on guitars and Jeffrey Hammond on bass. This work has been heavily criticized by both fans and critics, precisely because of these changes in direction that have significantly altered the "Tull Sound."

As far as I'm concerned, "A Passion Play" is the absolute masterpiece of this great band's discography, where you can find the variety and creativity of this great artist, Ian Anderson. Their skill was in blending rock, blues, progressive, folk, and jazz to create an unforgettable sound.