Rock Island (Jethro Tull)

This is one of those cds that you have to listen to the whole thing to experience the whole vibe of the rock island cd!! If you like music you will love this! If you like Jethro Tull it is a must have!! Some cds are so good it is hard to descibe ,this is one of them!! This was put out in 1989 and the next 2 cds were very good also but this one really stands out!! The Whalers Dues is my favorite also Another Christmas Song!!

What really sold me on this album is how it holds up to the classic sound of all my favorite Jethro Tull albums before it. While the album overall is nothing less than "fantastic", my favorite tracks are the title song "Rock Island", "The Rattlesnake Trail", "Ears Of Tin", "Heavy Water" and "The Whaler's Dues". This CD will always be on my best Jethro Tull albums list and comes highly recommended.

When I listen to Messrs Anderson & Co., I keep asking myself: Why should this devil have all the good tunes? I listen to "Jethro Tull" for 40 years, and I am quite happy with "Rock Island". I like it and I don't consider my money misspent

I have no idea if any of todays' folk metal musicians ever listered to Jethro Tull, but these guys have been mixing hard rock/metal with British traditional music since the early 70's. This brew has given Tull a certain recognizable sound which has defined them throughout their career even though they have incorporated a wide variety of influences over the years. Rock island has a hard edge to it which tilts it more toward metal than some of Tulls' earlier work but Ian Andrerson's flute and melodic sensabilities still make it classic Tull. I believe that Tull fans who liked Aquqlung as well as On the Crest of a Knave will enjoy this release. I also think that fans of folk metal will like this album since Jethro Tull were a folk metal band long before the term for the genre was coined.

"Rock Island" is an album for those Jethro Tull fans who are more inclined toward the heavy rock side of Tull over their folkier, accoustic side. It opens with the fast paced rocking "Kissing Willie" and is followed by the riffy "The Rattlesnake Trail" complete with Martin Barre's searing guitar fills. Then comes my personal favorite from the album "Ears of Tin." It's one of those 'stop-go' songs. The verses are melodic, featuring mandolin and flute while the refrains contain pulsating hard rock. Next is "Undressed to kill," a slow, steady rocking song. Then comes the title song, which is fairly subdued until the fast paced instrumental break. "Heavy Water" is another moderate to slow paced rocker, which is followed by the subdued and melodic "Another Christmas Song." Then comes the another of my personal favorites: the slow, brooding "The Whaler's Dues." Between Martin Barre's jagged electric guitar fills and Ian Anderson's wheezing flute, the song just gets under you... Read more