NEWS: Jethro Tull finish work on their 23rd studio album, due for release in Spring 2023

Press release from Chipster PR below.  We waited 19 years for a new Jethro Tull album in The Zealot Gene, but now we are only waiting a year between albums for the next one!

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Jethro Tull finish work on their 23rd studio album, due for release in Spring 2023

 

Jethro Tull have completed work on the recording of their 23rd studio album, following swift on the heels of their critically-acclaimed return earlier this year with ‘The Zealot Gene’, their first album in two decades.

Ian Anderson checks in with the below:

“We have been putting the finishing touches to the artwork for the album cover and wrapped up the recording and mixing a few weeks ago. Due to the usual long wait for vinyl pressing and manufacturing, we are scheduled for an Spring 2023 release but, during the weeks and months to come, you will be hearing more about the record and the various formats which will be available.

It’s a little too early just yet to tease you with titles, tracklists and content, but rest assured that it is all done and dusted as to mastering and the main elements of art and packaging. I hope you will like the concept and themes when I am ready to tell you more. It has been a long and tricky job to get the material recorded during a hectic schedule of touring in these last months. A day here, a day there and the odd burst of a few days together at some points along the way.

I wrote the main themes and lyrics back in January of this year and sent the first demos to the band in February and March, much as I did with The Zealot Gene, back in 2017. Most of the recording took place in June and August with the stereo mixing done in September. My new pal Bruce Soord of The Pineapple Thief undertook to create the surround sound mixes and an alternative stereo mix too.”

Jethro Tull continue live dates this year, with shows in mainland Europe before returning to the UK for their annual Christmas shows, and then further dates in 2023.

‘The Zealot Gene’, released in January 2022, was Jethro Tull’s 22nd studio album and it garnered critical acclaim across the board. Reaching #9 in the UK album charts, a feat the band hadn’t reached since 1972, it also debuted at #4 in Germany, #3 in Switzerland, #5 in Austria, #8 in Finland, as well as top 10 in the US Album Charts, Current Album Charts and Rock Album Charts.

With more than 30 albums to their credit and sales totaling more than 50 million, Jethro Tull are one of the most successful rock bands of all-time with a catalog that contains classics that still resonate today. Led by Ian Anderson, Tull still continue to tour throughout the world, entertaining audiences of all ages.

The band consists of:
Ian Anderson – Flute, acoustic guitar, harmonica, vocals
David Goodier – Bass guitar
John O’Hara – Piano, keyboards and accordion
Scott Hammond – Drums.
Joe Parrish-James – Guitar

JETHRO TULL ONLINE:
http://jethrotull.com/
https://www.facebook.com/officialjethrotull/
https://twitter.com/jethrotull
https://www.youtube.com/user/tullmanagement
https://www.instagram.com/jethrotull_/

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#1022: Langer the F@ckin’ Wanger

RECORD STORE TALES #1022: Langer the F@ckin’ Wanger

In grades seven and eight of grade school, I was just trying to survive.  It was a waiting game now, a trial of perseverance.  At the end of grade eight, I would be out of there.  My sister Kathryn called it the “Hell Hole”, which is pretty messed up when you think about it, at the ages we were.  Just kids.  But I only had to survive two more grades and I was done.  I’d start fresh at Grand River Collegiate Institute and leave the Hell Hole behind me, forever.  Those kids would mostly all be going to a different school, and I’d be with Bob Schipper, whose massive frame intimidated every bully around.

I tended to cautiously keep to myself and a handful of people that I thought I could trust a little bit.  Recess was usually pretty bad.  Killing 15 minutes in the cold, while trying to stay out of the attention of other kids.  It was a lonely existence but survivable.

One afternoon I was out minding my own business by the baseball diamond when the school’s wildest bully, Langer, grabbed me by the throat and threw me down onto the benches.

“I heard what you called me!” he yelled in my face.  He had a sidekick, a face I can’t remember, the Grover Gill to his Scut Farkus, except very real and not at all funny.  I remember his Grover standing behind him smiling as he choked me.

“I called you Langer,” I recalled as I tried to speak.

“No you didn’t,” he menaced.  “You called me Langer the fuckin’ wanger!”

“I did?” I said puzzled.  His friend laughed behind him.

“Yeah you did!  Say you’re sorry,” he threatened.

“Sorry,” I mumbled.

He let me fall to the ground.  Nobody came to help, no teachers saw and no students cared.

“I can’t wait to get the fuck out of here,” I thought to myself as I counted the months in my head.

In eighth grade I saw him attack a much smaller kid, a sixth or seventh grader with a lisp.  Rock Hudson had just died of AIDS, and AIDS jokes were all the rage with the bullies that year.  The funny thing is, we had sex ed that year and the teacher asked the class if we knew what AIDS was.  Nobody knew exactly.  “It makes you old,” was the closest guess any of them had.  But sure, go ahead bullies, make AIDS jokes.  They just equated AIDS with gay, as bullies often do.

Langer grabbed this smaller kid and demanded, “Say you’re Rock Hudson!”  The kid didn’t know what that meant and said so.

“SAY YOU’RE ROCK HUDSON!” repeated Langer.

“Hudsthon” said the kid, enough to satisfy Langer to release him.

Langer was actually one of the few bullies who did follow me to highschool.  However, his selection of classes were physically separated from most of mine, plus Bob was there, and Langer kept his distance when Bob was around.  One day he did have a try, but I found him easy to dodge.

“Hey Ladano!” he said I entered the computers lab.  “Did you masturbate this weekend?”

“No,” I answered quickly, “But you did.”  I had never come up with a one-liner so fast before.  I was proud of myself.

I felt his hand grab the back of my shirt as he pulled me out of the classroom and back into hall.

“You’re dead!  Today after school!” he threatened.

“Fine!” I said in defiance.

“We meet where you parked your bike, after class!”

“Sure!” I answered.

I walked to school that day; I didn’t ride my bike and didn’t need to go to the bike racks to get home.  I just exited through a different door and walked home as normal.  Langer never followed up and that was my last encounter with Langer the fuckin’ wanger.  The last of the schoolyard bullies, faded away forever.

 

Youtubin’: ZZ Top’s Elwood Francis plays “Got Me Under Pressure” with a 17 string bass

This went viral a few days ago, with everyone missing the point!

Remember when ZZ Top used to showcase goofy guitars in all their music videos?  Be it a furry bass or a guitar made out of Muddy Waters’ house, ZZ Top have long showed off bizarre electric stringed instruments as part of their schtick.

It doesn’t matter that you could play this song on one string if you tried hard enough.  All that matters is that Elwood got peoples’ eyes on ZZ Top!  And tongues are waggin’, pro and con.  Not that any of that matters.  When you look at ZZ Top’s history, Elwood now fits in better than ever!

 

 

REVIEW: Tonic – “If You Could Only See” (1997 CD single)

TONIC – “If You Could Only See” (1997 Polygram CD single)

Tonic’s Lemon Parade was not a bad album at all.  Regardless of the strength of its deep cuts, it is now known for one song: “If You Could Only See”.  It put Tonic on the map, and it also put a bullet in their career.  If you’re over a certain age, you remember the powerful and tasteful ballad from when it hit the charts in 1997.  I had the album already.  I bought it when it first came out, after reading a glowing review in the local paper and seeing a used copy pop in at the Record Store.  Finding Jack Joseph Puig’s name in the producer credits got my attention too.

The single for “If You Could Only See” features the well known album version.  Acoustic, but only until the guitars punch in, this is a ballad with crunch and heart.  It’s a true story of an argument that singer Emerson Hart had with his mother, over a woman she did not approve of.  He simply said “If you could only see the way she loves me, maybe you would understand.”  And with that a song was born.  A hit song.

Three live tracks from Amsterdam round out the CD single.  Album opener “Open Up Your Eyes” is not a lightweight live version either, clocking in at over seven minutes.  Guitars drone and cry until they form the song’s main riff.  It’s not an overly heavy live version, just an awesome one where you can hear all the instruments clearly.  It breaks down in the middle, when the band plays at lower volume and gives the guitar space to just jam.  Great tune, and one that deserved more attention.

“Thick” was never one of the album highlights, but the live version is superior.  The vocals aren’t as high pitched, and it’s a more laid back vibe.  Not perfect, but more appealing than the album.  There’s some cool haphazard guitar shenanigans towards the end that are worth checking out.

Shame that “Casual Affair” is the shortest of the live tracks as it kicks the heaviest.  Not as tight or as slamming as the album version, but live versions are what they are.

These are not the greatest live tracks that have ever been put on a single, but certainly a welcome addition to any Tonic collection.  Their use of slide guitars and acoustics instruments separated them slightly from the rest of the competition.  Vintage live by the original lineup, and why not.

3/5 stars

Tim’s Vinyl Confessions Ep. 390: Rare CDs II With Mike Ladano

“Mr. Lebrain is back, and this time he brought a ton of his Japanese import CDs. Or should I say, he grabbed a stack of rock! We once again go through our rare, out of print, imported, and otherwise hard to find discs. A follow to our first episode on the subject which can be seen here.”

Grabbing Stacks of Japanese Imports with Mike, Harrison and John T Snow!

Super special guest John Snow showed up tonight with a stack of Japanese imports!  Jeff Scott Soto, Danger Danger, Firehouse and more!  Harrison also brought some Japanese action along with some assorted musical treats.  I showed off some big Thin Lizzy and Kiss imports from Japan, and random stacks of whatever happened to be lying nearby.  And when I say random, I do mean random!

We also took viewer questions for Harrison about his home country of Australia.  If popular, this will become a regular feature of the show.

Grab a stack of CDs below and enjoy the show!

John from 2Loud2OldMusic Grabs a Stack of Rock with Mike and the Mad Metal Man! – 7:00 P.M. E.S.T. tonight

GRAB A STACK OF ROCK…with Mike and the Mad Metal Man
Episode 3: Special guest John Snow

Continuing to show off our collections, tonight Harrison and Mike are joined by the infamous John T. “Snowman” Snow for another hour of fun.  What will we show off tonight?  You’ll just have to tune in and see.  We all know John’s collection is massive and loaded with rock.  How will he choose to spend his hour tonight?  Let’s find out!

We also have some surprise viewer questions for Harrison, and YOU can participate in the comments section!  Join us, won’t you?

Friday November 11 at 7:00 P.M. E.S.T. Enjoy on YouTube or on Facebook.

 

Youtubin’: Van Halen – “Ripley” (1984 instrumental)

I’ve always liked the final Van Halen album, A Different Kind of Truth, and I have found it still stands up after a decade of digestion.  As you are probably aware, most of the album is reworked demos.  One such demo is “Ripley” from 1984, which later became “Blood and Fire” on the album.  The music made it into the score for a movie called The Wild Life which has never seen a proper audio release.  Eddie called the song “Ripley” because he played it on a Ripley guitar.

It’s impossible to listen to it without hearing David’s final lyrics and vocals in your head.  But is the instrumental version better than the final?  That’s a tough call.  It definitely would have been interesting to hear what Sammy Hagar could have done with “Ripley”, but if the idea to rework it with Hagar ever came up, it obviously didn’t bear fruit.

Enjoy “Ripley” by Edward Van Halen!

#1021: Closing Time! Last Cottage Video of 2022

RECORD STORE TALES #1021: Closing Time! Last Cottage Video of 2022

Jen and I were Highway Stars! Rocking to Deep Purple, live in Copenhagen 1972, we reveled in the joys of jamming, intense improvisation, and hard rock and roll. The perfect accompaniment to our last cottage road trip of 2022. Before we knew it we had arrived at our destination. It may look a little different in the fall, but there is still no place I’d rather spend my weekend.

There was a different kind of beauty this time.  Fewer leaves, fewer animals.  You could see through the trees, a feeling I was not used to, especially when partaking in the O.D.P. (Out Door Piss).  When we were kids, we never made it to the lake in November nor did we want to.  It was always far too cold and the snow would have started.  Not anymore.

It was unseasonably warm, and within minutes I was in short sleeves and short pants again, just as I was all summer. This is November? I set up on the front porch with more Deep Purple, Ozzy, Dio, and Black Sabbath. It was an utterly brilliant day of rocking the shores of Lake Huron.  Then on the Friday night, we went live with the Mad Metal Man and the second episode of Grab A Stack of Rock.  A brilliant way to end the season.

Our weekend was quiet and fun, including lots of outdoor rock and roll with board games, a dinner at Boston Pizza (since the barbecue is packed up for the winter) and even a step into Lake Huron.  A first for the month of November!  We drove home to the music of Black Sabbath (Dehumanizer and Cross Purposes) to put the final nail in the coffin of 2022’s cottage season.  For me personally, since this season stretched from late April to early November, it was one of the longest seasons, if not the longest ever.  And it couldn’t have gone any better!  2022 was a triumphant season in virtually every way, and we sure did enjoy it.

 

My dad found the end of this video a tad too emotional!  We all miss the place and hate leaving!