Living in the Past (album)

Living in the Past
Compilation album by Jethro Tull
Released 23 June 1972 (UK)
31 October 1972 (US)
Recorded 1968-1971
Genre Progressive rock
Length 87:28
Label Chrysalis
Producer Terry Ellis, Ian Anderson, Jethro Tull
Jethro Tull chronology
Thick as a Brick
(1972)
Living in the Past
(1972)
A Passion Play
(1973)

Living in the Past is a double album quasi-compilation collection by Jethro Tull, which contains album tracks, out-takes, the "Life Is a Long Song" EP, and all of their non-LP singles except for "Sunshine Day"/"Aeroplane" (1968), "One for John Gee" (b-side of "A Song for Jeffrey", 1968), "17" (b-side of "Sweet Dream", 1969) and the original version of "Teacher" that appeared in the UK as the b-side of "Witch's Promise" in 1969 (the re-recorded 1970 one that was released on the American version of "Benefit" was included instead).

Details

The album was named after the single released in May 1969 and was released in an elaborate gate-fold packaging that contained a large colour photo booklet with over 50 photos of the band.[1]

Two songs, "By Kind Permission Of" and "Dharma for One", were recorded live at Carnegie Hall. "Love Story", "Christmas Song", "Living in the Past", "Driving Song", "Sweet Dream" and "Witch's Promise", some of which had only appeared on mono versions before, were given new stereo remixes for inclusion on the album.[2] Additionally, "A Song for Jeffrey" and "Teacher" were also remixed.[3] Many of the tracks only appeared as British releases before being compiled on Living in the Past for the first time in the American market.

In the United States, Living in the Past was the first Jethro Tull album to appear on the Chrysalis Records label; while each of the band's previous albums were marked as "a Chrysalis Production", the albums were released by Warner Bros. Records' Reprise Records subsidiary. Early U.S. editions of Living in the Past bore both a Chrysalis catalogue number (2CH 1035) and a Reprise catalogue number (2TS 2106), suggesting that the album was scheduled to appear on Reprise Records but that Chrysalis gained control of the band's USA releases in late 1972.[4]

All of the tracks that were not on the original This Was, Stand Up and Benefit albums have appeared as bonus tracks on their 2001 Digital Remasters.

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[5]
The Rolling Stone Record Guide[6]
Rolling Stone (1973)(favourable)[7]
Sounds(favourable)[8]

AllMusic review the collection positively, stating that: "Not only was Ian Anderson writing solid songs every time out, but the group's rhythm section was about the best in progressive rock's pop division. Along with any of the group's first five albums, this collection is seminal and essential to any Tull collection, and the only compilation by the group that is a must-own disc."[9]

Charts

The album peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 charts and went gold not long after its release. The title track from the album became Tull's first top-40 hit in the United States, reaching No. 11, a full three years after it performed well in Britain. In UK, the album reached No. 13. In Norwegian charts, the album hit No. 5.

Differences in US version

The US vinyl version has "Hymn 43" in place of "Locomotive Breath" and omits "Inside" in favour of "Alive and Well and Living in", previously unreleased in the US. Additionally, "Witches Promises" and "Teacher" swapped places.[10][11]

Track listing

Original vinyl versions

UK vinyl

All tracks written by Ian Anderson except when noted. 

Side one
No. Title Length
1. "A Song for Jeffrey" (from the album This Was) 3:18
2. "Love Story" (1968 UK single) 3:00
3. "Christmas Song" (1968 UK single) 2:56
4. "Living in the Past" (1969 UK single) 3:18
5. "Driving Song" (1969 UK single) 2:37
6. "Bourée" (Bourrée in E minor by Bach arr. Jethro Tull) (from the album Stand Up) 3:40
Side two
No. Title Length
1. "Sweet Dream" (1969 UK single) 4:00
2. "Singing All Day" (previously unreleased, recorded in 1969) 3:03
3. "Witch's Promise" (1970 UK single) 3:48
4. "Teacher" (from the US version of Benefit) 4:06
5. "Inside" (from the album Benefit) 3:42
6. "Just Trying to Be" (previously unreleased, recorded in 1970) 1:34
Side three – recorded live at Carnegie Hall for the benefit of Phoenix House, 4 November 1970
No. Title Length
1. "By Kind Permission Of" (instrumental – John Evan, previously unreleased) 10:07
2. "Dharma for One" (Anderson/Clive Bunker, previously unreleased) 9:55
Side four
No. Title Length
1. "Wond'ring Again" (previously unreleased, recorded in 1970, early version of "Wond'ring Aloud") 4:11
2. "Locomotive Breath" (from the album Aqualung) 4:24
3. "Life Is a Long Song" (from 1971 UK EP) 3:17
4. "Up the 'Pool" (from 1971 UK EP) 3:09
5. "Dr. Bogenbroom" (from 1971 UK EP) 2:58
6. "For Later" (instrumental, from 1971 UK EP) 2:06
7. "Nursie" (from 1971 UK EP) 1:35

US vinyl

CD releases

Differences in the song selections between the US and the UK editions of the album resulted in different track listings for the various CD releases. Since the original American CD edition of Benefit was released with the alternative track list omitting "Alive and Well and Living In",[12] some of the US CD editions of Living in the Past add that track.[13] All of the single CD reissues omit two songs ("Bourée" and "Teacher") in order to reduce the running time to fit the album on one disc, but both countries' versions include "Inside", which originally was only on the UK vinyl. A 1997 two-disc Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab reissue contains every song selected for the UK and US vinyl editions.[14][15]

UK single-disc reissue

American single-disc reissue

Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab edition

Personnel

Jethro Tull

Additional personnel

See also

References

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