Jethro Tull – Around the World Live
Eagle Rock Entertainment
www.eaglerockent.com

Rating: A

Four DVDs of Jethro Tull, encompassing several eras of the band, and a book… all in a great package with a bonus Ian Anderson interview!  Wow, only one sentence and the review is over.  There is not much need to meander on with dates, songs and whatnot, as I spelled out everything that matter on this sucker right out of the box.

But…just for grins and giggles, I will tell you a bit about the collection anyway.  The earliest Tull performance found here is from the Isle of Wight back in 1970; the entire band along with Anderson really kicks out the jams, as on “My Sunday Feeling.”  Six years go by and the next performance comes from Florida in 1976, this time featuring a full set.  Then it is off to Germany for a 1980 concert, followed by some Germany live bits from 1982 and 1986. 

The ‘around the world live’ theme is pretty much straight to the point, as the band performs in Chile in 1996, Holland in 1999, London, England in 2001 and Switzerland in 2003 and 2005.  The songs on this disc number in the dozens, and range from a couple of performances of “Aqualung” and many other hits, as well as fan favorites including “To Cry You A Song,” “Cross Eyed Mary,” “My God,” “Fat Man,” “Some Day the Sun Won’t Shine For You,” “Serenade to a Cuckoo” and many, many more. 

Ian Anderson, Martin Barre and the many others who are performing on this DVD collection are all great musicians.  Anderson is the leader and he takes charge. Watching him change, both physically and musically over the years is interesting.  Hearing him perform his music over decades is ironically sort of timeless.  The style of clothes change, and the hairlines recede, but the music takes on a life of its own.

This is a must-own for any Jethro Tull fan. 

By Jeb Wright