Jethro Tull
The prog veterans play 10 UK shows, with Ian Anderson hitting the rails rather than the road.
ASSUNTA OPAHLE/PRESS
“[The shows] will offer little snapshots of our recorded history… The set-list is the best compromise possible.”
Beginning his working day with a 9am Zoom call, Jethro Tull leader Ian Anderson is a busy man. Here we talk about a new UK tour from Tull, the vinyl release of the band’s great long-lost album from the 70s, and the likelihood of former guitarist Martin Barre performing with them again.
You’re seventy-six. Do you still enjoy being on the road?
I don’t know if ‘enjoy’ is the word. That’s like asking Lewis Hamilton if he has had fun driving his Mercedes for the last couple of years. Remembering every one of those thousands of words and notes for a couple of hours demands intense concentration and commitment. What I don’t like is the wasted time spent travelling or doing sound-checks, but without teleportation such is life. That’s why I travel so much by train.