J-Tull Dot Com
| J-Tull Dot Com | ||||
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| Studio album by Jethro Tull | ||||
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Publication |
1999 |
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admission |
1999 |
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| Label (s) | Roadrunner Records | |||
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Format (s) |
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Title (number) |
14 + 1 |
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running time |
54:20 |
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| occupation |
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Ian Anderson |
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Studio (s) |
Ian Anderson's studio |
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J-Tull Dot Com is the twentieth studio album by the progressive rock band Jethro Tull . It is the last album by the band to be produced exclusively as a studio album.
occupation
Jethro Tull recorded the album with the cast of Ian Anderson , Martin Barre , Andrew Giddings , Jonathan Noyce and Doane Perry . The British Indian-born Najma Akhtar was a background singer on Dot Com . Most of the compositions and all lyrics are by Ian Anderson. Nothing @ All was co-composed by Giddings, Hot Mango Flush by Barre.
history
The band recorded the album in 1999, around five years after the last studio album was released. It was released in August 1999.
album
J-Tull Dot Com , like the previous album Roots to Branches, is characterized by hard rock and folk rock . Like its predecessor, it contains numerous echoes of musical styles from other continents as well as many pieces with reflective content. The title refers to the band's website at the time.
Spiral is a fast-paced rock song that is about the transition between dreaming and waking up. It remains unclear what is dream and what is reality. Dot Com , which is influenced by Indian music, focuses on a long-distance relationship in which people communicate via email. The singer expresses his longing; the vocal part of Najma Akhtar stands for the woman's side. In the fast, flute-dominated rock song AWOL ( Absent without leave , or the English expression for deserting ) the singer reports that he takes time off to spend a nice day with his girlfriend; but he also knows that he will have to compensate for this later with overtime. Nothing @ All is a short, calm instrumental piece in which the piano is in the foreground.
The lyrical, rocking Wicked Windows allows for different interpretations: Either it is a high-ranking, inhuman military man or a ruler with his "evil glasses", or it is Anderson himself who looks self-critically through the newly acquired glasses. In Hunt By Numbers , Anderson sings about the hunting behavior of his cats; the rock song is musically dominated by the hookline of the electric guitar. Hot Mango Flush depicts an exotic scene in text and music, perhaps in a tropical coastal city. El Niño contrasts the conquest of the oceans by seafarers with the power that the El Niño weather phenomenon wields again and again. This piece is characterized by music with an Indian feel. The mid-tempo rock song Black Mamba begins with flute and piano music. The singer wants a woman with the properties of the poisonous black mamba . Mango Surprise is a reprise of Hot Mango Stuff , but it sounds more Caribbean and with "Hot Mango Stuff" only has one line of text that is repeated several times.
The folk rock piece Bends Like a Willow is a love song. A woman is sung about who " bends like a willow " and will certainly understand him when he is old and bitter. In the first stanza it is compared to a sailing boat, in the fourth stanza it is sung about as protection in the event of war. The flute dominates again musically. Far Alaska begins with an intro of flute and electric guitar. Dream destinations like Alaska are sung about, but at the same time reference is made to the hardships of traveling, and the singer asks the travelers to think of him. The hookline of the electric guitar is in the foreground. The Dog-Ear Years is another love song. The singer describes himself as "dog-eared" and " coming from the Jura ". He and his partner have got used to each other; they remember less relaxed times. The song is folky and influenced by playing the flute. A Gift of Roses , also a folk rock piece, is about a gift of roses that the singer brings to his wife after a long absence. He is happy about his homecoming and asks his wife to use “her luminous marker” to help “the fisherman” find his way home. In addition to flute and electric guitar, the accordion comes to the fore for the first time on the album .
Some editions contain The Secret Language of Birds , the title track of Ian Anderson's solo album, released in 2000, as a hidden track ; before the start of the piece, Anderson points out the new album.
Cover
Bogdan Zarkowski designed the cover based on a painting by Ian Anderson, which depicts the Egyptian deity Khnum in front of a light gray-brown background. Anderson had made it after a sculpture by the sculptor friend Michael Cooper. The album title is partly above, partly on the figure. In the body of the figure is the "O" of the album title; it's on fire. Left and right are the vertically arranged, ornate letters "DOT COM DOT" and "COM DOT COM", each to be read from the left.
On the back is a smaller, similar image of the figure with enlarged font; this time, however, she plays the flute and is within the burning "O" of the album title. To the right of this is the title list, written entirely in small letters. The background resembles that of the front.
effect
The album peaked at # 44 in the UK and # 161 in the US. In Germany, the album rose to number 15. At Allmusic , the original edition received two out of five possible points. Above all, the reviewer criticized Anderson's weaker voice, which was partly offset by his improved flute playing.
Track list
- Spiral (3:50)
- Dot Com (4:25)
- AWOL (5:19)
- Nothing @ All (Instrumental) (0:56)
- Wicked Windows (4:40)
- Hunt by Numbers (4:00)
- Hot Mango Flush (3:49)
- El Niño (4:40)
- Black Mamba (5:00)
- Mango Surprise (1:14)
- Bends Like a Willow (4:53)
- Far Alaska (4:06)
- The Dog-Ear Years (3:34)
- A Gift of Roses (3:54)
Web links
- Reviews of J-Tull Dot Com on the baby blue pages
- J-Tull Dot Com at Allmusic (English)
- Detailed information about the individual versions of the sound carriers at musik-sammler.de
- Lyrics at cupofwonder.com (archive version )
- Information about the lyrics at cupofwonder.com (English, archive version )
- Reception on laut.de
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c Information on the lyrics at cupofwonder.com (English, archive version )
- ↑ UK charts at officialcharts.com (English), accessed on December 20, 2016.
- ↑ Jethro Tull biography. Rolling Stone , accessed December 20, 2016
- ↑ Entry on officialcharts.de , accessed on December 13, 2016
- ↑ Description of the album at allmusic.com (English), accessed on December 13, 2016