Jethro Tull
Heavy Horses (1978)
Jethro Tull certainly cannot be accused of being boring or uncreative. Over their fortysomething year history, the band has recorded albums in a significant number of styles - blues, progressive rock, folk, AOR, jazz....hell, even metal (don't believe me? Go and find out how many Grammies Tull won.) Of course, they've probably had just as many lineup changes, though there have been two absolute mainstays - vocalist/flautist/multiotherinstrumentalist Ian Anderson and guitarist Martin Barre.
Throughout the 1970s, though, the band was creatively and commercially at their absolute peak. This decade had the band's 'classic' lineups, delineated only by who was in the rhythm section (besides Anderson and Barre, pianist/organist John Evan was the only other mainstay). By the mid 1970s, the band's rhythm section was the extraordinary Barriemore Barlow on drums, and John Glascock on bass - the latter described by Deep Purple's Ritchie Blackmore as 'the finest bass player in rock'. Despite all this technical mastery, Anderson (as songwriter) decided to embark on a trilogy of folk-based albums.
1978's Heavy Horses was the second of these...and arguably, it's the last truly great Tull album.
The Album
The key to Heavy Horses' success is just how tight the band sounds throughout the entire album. Off-time rhythmic changes, unusual time signatures and seemingly unpredictable accents by Barlow are made to seem second nature by the band. It's the sound of a band incredibly familiar with one another. Adding to this synergy are some fine Anderson compositions, played by a collective of very, very talented musicians. The album is very folky in style - lots of mandolin, acoustic guitar, folk-style lyrics and strings - yet at times retains a harder, gutsier edge.
The title track is, simply, bloody fantastic. A snappy, tight intro leads to a first verse that is stunning - Anderson's deep, rumbling voice accompanied by a beautiful piano section, played by Evan. Later verses see acoustic guitars and strings take more prominence, and Evan's contributions are limited to background texture, but that first verse is the best one in my view. From there it's another six minutes of shifting dynamics (a rather jarring, fast tempo change midway through works fantastically, before shifting back again), super work from Barre and Barlow, and lyrics about big bloody horses. Similarly fantastic (personally I preferred it slightly) was No Lullaby, which is far removed from folk. Barre's heavy opening riff and solo signal that this is going to be a harder rock song, and then the rhythm section takes over. Glascock makes a simple repeated note sound positively marauding, creating a slow groove that Barlow does his best to fuck up completely by playing some brilliant fills. Strings and flute support each other in the verses, Barre whips out some more deft soloing, and Barlow later decides that sick fills are not enough, he's going to play his ride cymbal at 19000 hits per second.
Those two tracks are by far the longest at over seven minutes each; the rest of the album's material is of a more 'standard' pop length. Of those tracks, the pick of the bunch are the closer Weathercock, the opener ...And The Mouse Police Never Sleeps and the Glascock lead bass extravaganza Journeyman. Weathercock does feature some pretty dodgy lyrics (about a weathercock, would you believe) though they do fit the folky theme; fortunately, the musical arrangement is amazing; Anderson plays a brilliant flute solo, Barre tries to outdo him with a blistering lead break, Barlow loosens up with some ballsy drum fill work and Glascock goes along for the ride. The song basically ends with everyone trying to outdo each other. Mouse Police is tight (Barlow and Glascock especially are glued together) with a decent organ solo from Evan, and Journeyman is built around Glascock; his lead bassline provides the bedrock for the rest of the band to build on, and build they do. It's one of the better sets of lyrics (being rather descriptive of office slavery) and features more solid work from Barre and Anderson.
There aren't really weaknesses, as such. The remaining songs are solid, but not as good as their album compadres. Acres Wild is pure English folk, as is Moths; both are pleasant but hardly exciting. Rover has some decent moments, namely its whippy tempo, snappy guitar and flute work, but is little more than charming. One Brown Mouse is a good showcase for the keyboard work of David Palmer, and there's more great stuff from Glascock on this track, but despite some promise it just never quite seems to come together.
The Verdict
It may not be their finest album ever, but Heavy Horses represents the wider Jethro Tull sound well. Although it may be very folk-influenced, there are more than enough moments that are essentially classic Tull - Anderson's flute fluttering away, Barre providing deft flourishes, while the rhythm section provide a super backdrop.
It's a pity that circumstances dictated that this was the last full album of this lineup - Glascock died of a congenital heart defect in 1979, and Barlow left soon after, devastated at the loss of his friend. It does however serve as a fitting epitaph, even if it wasn't meant to be that way, because Jethro Tull were never quite the same after this.
My rating: 8.0/10
Standout Tracks
No Lullaby
Heavy Horses
Journeyman
Weathercock
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