Notes and Quotes: "Living in the Past"

This top-ten hit of 1969 is set in a quintuple meter; that is, rather than the usual two, three, or four beats to a measure, this song has five. Of course, this makes for interesting dancing, but by 1969 danceability was less necessary for chart success than it had been earlier in the decade.

Another remarkable aspect of this recording is the prominence of the flute as a solo instrument playing in a bluesy style. Their follow-up album, Stand Up would include a jazz/rock transcription of Bach, "Bourée." This would seem to put Jethro Tull into the Classical Rock camp (especially when David O'List from Nice joined them briefly) and writers generally catagorize the group as a "progressive rock" band in the 70s.

Schedule

13 April, 2012