We know him as "Prog Man". He wears a different t-shirt every Saturday. Usually a prog band tour t-shirt. Though I have seen him wear a Who t-shirt (not prog) and a Doctor Who t-shirt. He is always alone.
On Saturday I noticed he was wearing a Jethro Tull Tour 2002 t-shirt.
"Mmmm, Jethro Tull," I thought.
"Come on," I said to Betty. "We're going to HMV to buy Jethro Tull's Greatest Hits."
"Just because you've seen Prog Man wearing a Jethro Tull t-shirt?" she said. "It's not going to be Yes all over again, is it?"
Living In The Past is a compilation of the Tull's early stuff. It's very good except for the two long live jams in the middle. What was it about the early 70s and tedious jams? We were listening to the double CD of George Harrison's All Things Must Pass the weekend before last. The extra tracks on the end are extended jams. Studio jams maybe, but jams none the less.
They should take a hint from Status Quo. Yes, Status Quo. The Best Of The Early Years by the Quo is jam-free. It's a whole bunch of classic pop songs, several even resembling the greatness of the early Bee Gees. The reviewer on Amazon is of the opinion that some of the tracks "are on a par with many tracks on Love's classic Forever Changes album."
High praise, indeed.
If you haven't got all three of these, your collection is not complete.
Just don't forget to kick out the jams.
The Staircase in the Woods by Chuck Wendig
4 hours ago
For the first time since Moses was in primary school you write about something that you like, and I find myself having an attitude of complete indifference to these performers. How very sad.
ReplyDeleteRobert Marley's entire catalogue is Jam
ReplyDelete"Ooh, yeah! All right!
We're jammin'
I wanna jam it wid you.
We're jammin', jammin',
And I hope you like jammin', too.
Ain't no rules, ain't no vow, we can do it anyhow:
I'n'I will see you through,
'Cos everyday we pay the price with a little sacrifice,
Jammin' till the jam is through."
Whatever happened to Les Battersby?
ReplyDeleteDid he become a roadie for Status Quo?
I knew as I clicked on the comments link that I'd find mj and Les Battersby here.
ReplyDeleteYou need to be on something to like jams. At least it wasn't a drum solo.
Vicus - I don't believe you. I can see you looking in a full length mirror pretending to play the flute whilst standing on one leg.
ReplyDeleteDonn - I think jammin' must mean something different in Jamaican as there weren't any long, tedious guitar work in that song. There weren't even any in Clappo's version of I Shot The Sheriff.
MJ - Les and the Quo are currently on tour in Germany.
Kaz - I thought jams were just for the benefit of the musicians. Mutual musical masturbation. Mmm.
Donn - That should be "wasn't", not "weren't". I'm not well.
ReplyDeleteThree minutes and twenty eight seconds of my life I'll never get back.
ReplyDeleteDo you have the Man Flu?
Tell Kaz I dreamed last night of the actor who plays Ken Barlow. I have concerns about my mental health.
I think it could well be the Man Flu.
ReplyDeleteI hope "Ken" didn't spill any of his druid fluid.
I've got a Marmalade single Geoff.
ReplyDelete'wasn't'
ReplyDeleteoh piffle, my grammar is a hodge podge of byzantine, kafkaesque, verbagical, whatevermacallits.
Personally I prefer to use rap slang from the 'schtreet'..
such as..
"Oh NO you di-INT!?"
Sweet jaysus.. I thought I was the only person ever to have liked Status Quo.
ReplyDeleteMurph - That's the spirit. Nice short Marmalades, not horrible long jams. The Jam didn't jam, either.
ReplyDeleteDonn - I changed one of the words in the paragraph when I should have changed three. I don't usually do footballer speak.
Jimmy - I like the really early Quo. The heads down no nonsense mindless boogie Quo is a bit much.
I like pretty much anything by Status, especially the ones where northern biker types do that head from side to side thing.
ReplyDeleteMy first wife's brothers are Status fans from Staffordshire, and they do the head thing - I think one of them did it at my son's wedding. It's kind of compelling viewing for me.
In a few years time, instead of ballroom dancing at the Blackpool Tower Ballroom, there'll be a room full of octogenarian Quo fans doing the head thing.
ReplyDelete