Jethro Tull: Nothing Is Easy -- Isle of Wight 1970

[rcarlberg]

Recently ran across this DVD (released 2004) and was surprised how much I enjoyed it. Tull was at their absolute PEAK in 1970, having just released "Benefit" and working on "Aqualung." Anderson flies around the stage like a spastic Fagin, and Clive Bunker is unbelievable. Even dour old Glenn Cornick is animated and entertaining to watch. The sound quality is remarkably good, considering.

The DVD unfortunately cuts three songs from the full set they played, apparently (as near as I can research) because John Evan objected to their inclusion. Too bad, I'd love to see everything, warts or not.

The songs are interspersed with a contemporary interview with Anderson, where he's kind of embarrassed by his stage antics of 35 years earlier, although he's good natured and humble and doesn't come across as a "rock star" at all. Also included is some footage of the backstage maneuverings at the IOW festival, where the promoters try to leverage the band into forcing the crowd to leave the grounds so they can charge admission again to let them back in. Terry Ellis rightly tells the promoter to stuff it.

Also included a lip-synced performance of "A Song for Jeffrey" from the Rock & Roll Circus show, where Tull is apparently still learning how to perform in public.

Anyway, I thoroughly enjoyed this disc.

[Facelift]

The songs are interspersed with a contemporary interview with Anderson,

Why Anderson insists on derailing perfectly good performances with this stuff (he ruined Living With the Past, too), I have no idea. It's not like the DVD format can't accomodate an "extras" section, or an audio commentary that can be turned on or off.

I don't get it.

Yeah, the music on the Isle of Wight DVD is really good.

[JJ88]

Check out the 'Message To Love' film covering the whole 1970 IOW festival, if it's still available. It's not quite as dramatic as 'Gimme Shelter' in that there's no murder, but it's not far off. The emcee Ricki Farr is regularly involved in verbal combat on-stage with the radical hippie element....in the end it becomes a free festival.

There's also a similar Moody Blues release, although some songs have visual trickery to cover up the fact they clearly didn't have footage for some of the songs.

[rcarlberg]

Got it -- although at basically "one song per band" and just 12 bands (out of more than 50!) the DVD is hardly "the whole IOW festival." Just ordered the Miles Davis footage from 70IOW. In addition to Tull and Davis there's also DVDs of the performances by The Who, Jimi Hendrix, Moody Blues, ELP, and Leonard Cohen. Probably many more in the can -- it was a five-day festival and, unlike 1969's Monterey Pop, I haven't heard anything about not being able to afford filming everything.

One of the reviews of the Tull set says that "We Used To Know/For A Thousand Mothers" is spliced together video from other songs. I didn't notice.

[the winter tree]

I never saw Glenn Cornick as "dour". On most of the things I've seen with him he's very smiley and really grooving to the music.

[JJ88]

Well no, what I meant was acts across the three days or whatever it was. The Hendrix set (or at least what was filmed) was shown on TV many years ago here. I remember that being very disappointing.

The Who one is just (most of) the performance, rather than adding contemporary interviews. It's not dissimilar to the set they played on the Live At Leeds album, although the latter is much tighter.

There isn't that much footage of early Jethro Tull other than this IOW performance, indeed I'm not aware of much live footage of them after this point until the late 70s. Another one I would recommend is the Classic Artists DVD...part of the extra features is some documentary on them from the late 60s which features some of a 1969 Royal Albert Hall performance with this same line-up.

[Trane]

excellent DVD

Why Anderson insists on derailing perfectly good performances with this stuff (he ruined Living With the Past, too), I have no idea. It's not like the DVD format can't accomodate an "extras" section, or an audio commentary that can be turned on or off.

I don't get it.

Yup, but he did that already in the 80's, in that Slipstream footagen wg-here he kind of makes fun of himself and TAAB and prog rock in general

[ronmac]

...unlike 1969's Monterey Pop, ...

Since we're correcting each other, Monterey Pop was in June of 1967.

[rcarlberg]

Right you are. Thanks

[JKL2000]

Right you are. Thanks

You should have used a period after "Thanks."

[arturs]

I completely agree how "hot" Tull were at the time. Tanglewood is the only live footage from Tull in 1970 other than IOW. Because it is a complete show, and from only a month before IOW, I would guess this includes something similar to the parts that Evan didn't like. And this new version of this has acceptable sound throughout, a minor miracle!

[rcarlberg]

You should have used a period after "Thanks."

Thanx..

[mogrooves]

Tanglewood

Caught them a week later, and then four days after that. My favorite period of their career!

[Firth]

The DVD is killer, and I said so on the site 3 years ago when. I rented it from Netflix. I looked and I didn't buy it, so I need to get it. Since it was filmed maybe we'll get a bluray of it someday with DTS master audio. Clive Bunker smokes

[rcarlberg]

Okay, here's another question for you trivia buffs. On both the Jethro Tull DVD and the 'Message To Love' DVD about the whole Isle of Wight festival, in the credits for concert sound is one Ron Geesin.

Same guy?

[Mister Triscuits]

Yes, it's definitely the same guy credited on both the Tull DVD and Message to Love.

[rcarlberg]

Nobody likes a smartass.

[zombywoof]

Tull were fun in this era and this is a great video. Not nearly as refined as later years, but still worthwhile to see IMO. If you don't have the 'soundtrack', wayside currently has it for $4 ...

http://waysidemusic.com/Music-Produc...spc-20067.aspx

[rapidfirerob]

I completely agree how "hot" Tull were at the time. Tanglewood is the only live footage from Tull in 1970 other than IOW. Because it is a complete show, and from only a month before IOW, I would guess this includes something similar to the parts that Evan didn't like. And this new version of this has acceptable sound throughout, a minor miracle!

I was at this Tanglewood show. The Who, Jethro Tull, It's A Beautiful Day. $3 on the lawn. Bill Graham sent some of the same acts from the Fillmore to
Tanglewood. I went to camp in the area. Those were the days indeed.