Nothing is Easy - DVD

Jethro Tull

This DVD is not only a piece of concert footage, it's a litle slice of the times, and what times they were. Ramshackle organistion of a huge festival leading to upset hippies breaking down twelve foot high fences with their bare hands. Fighting with the police and rolling on the ground entangled wth police dogs. All good clean fun...

What is really surprising is the quality of the filming and audio quality, turns out that it's directed by Murray Lerner, award winning director of the original footage of the event. Tull rip through a blues and folk inflected set of songs from their first few albums intersperced with footage of the festival itself and the musings of Ian Anderson in 2004. It's interesting to hear his views on the times but hindsight can sometimes be a dampener. It can't be denied that the times were a changin', Anderson describes it as a watershed between the peace and love vibe and hooliganism; I'd look at it as the outbreak of collective protest .

The social commentary is an aside to the meat of the film; an assured performance by one of the most individual and original bands this country has produced. The audience numbered 600,000 by the way, it's that Isle of Wight Festival that Jimi Hendrix changed the direction of popular music at. Despite that the bands were forced to soundcheck in front of the audience, cue a mighty dose of confusion and panic on the part of the organisers and a wholly justified 'you're really pissing us off' attitude from the audience. Luckily Tull's management sorted it out to everyone's satisfaction.

Tull's performance steps up to the mark and surpasses it, only serving to remind that live performance was the central part of being a musician. Tull still tour the US and Europe on a scale that would exhaust many modern bands.

And how innovative they were, a lead singer in a blues/rock band playing a flute? And playing it in such a, dare I say, punk manner. This is also a good summation of a period in the bands history, from here on they moved into the rock arena and then defined folk rock with two albums (Songs From The Wood and Heavy Horses) whilst everyone else was busy listening to the Sex Pistols. Back in 1970 'A Song For Jeffrey' was a cornerpiece of their repertoire, here included from a TV show with Tony Iommi of Black Sabbath on guitar of all people.

'My God' is a deliciously satirical social commentary on the hypocrisy of religion from their seminal album 'Aqualung', here riffed and improvised upon to a manic level. All of the tracks go to show just how different Tull were from everything else out there. 'Nothing is Easy' is deliciously exuberant, the final two songs roll into one extended jam.

To sum up; this is a videogram for anyone with a remote interest in the times depicted or Jethro Tull, not one for completists only, as these things so often are. Buy it and be amazed at the bass players trousers...