Ian Anderson,
Jethro Tull, and God
My last post referenced one aging
rock star, his fading voice, but excellent recent album release (Paul McCartney
and his latest album ‘McCartney III’).
So, here I go again!
I have long been a fan of the band Jethro Tull (since 1968 to be precise) and of their leader, front-man, composer, and singer Ian Anderson.
Now, unlike McCartney, Anderson’s voice was never one of the greatest, sweetest, or most powerful of rock voices. And, like McCartney’s, it has not got better over the years. I last saw Jethro Tull in 2006, and while it was a great concert (and we had wonderful seats!) it was clear that live even more than in recordings, Ian Anderson’s voice was even then struggling.
But, interestingly, in the most recent album by Jethro Tull, his voice sounds quite good. Is that down to studio manipulation, or good production techniques? Or is he just composing now within his diminishing range? I don’t know.
But I would say that this album ‘The Zealot Gene’ is a great album and I have been listening to it more often than I expected since it was released a few months ago. If you are not minded to give the whole thing a listen, then I would especially recommend the track ‘Mine is the Mountain’.
What intrigues me is the theme of the album. It is not a concept album in the traditional sense. Nonetheless, each track does have biblical allusions, and it is reported that Anderson began writing each song with a passage from the Bible in mind.
Interesting.
In several interviews over the years, Ian Anderson has expressed his views on religion, Christianity, and Jesus. He is not at ease with pomp and ceremony, and expresses a distaste towards some aspects of organised religion. But he also claims not to be hostile towards faith. He is clear that he is not a Christian, while being very positive about Jesus.
He is quoted as saying ‘I’m a big supporter of Christianity and the physicality of the church, but I don’t call myself a Christian… they all hope that I’m going to come out of the closet one day and say ”That’s it yeah I really am a Christian after all!” but I’m not going to do that.’[i]
Hmmm… I wonder.
Like so many people, he cannot quite throw it off. It is always there. It is a constant theme in his work. And – as he acknowledges in his interviews – he often performs in churches, wants to support the physical presence of churches, and fundraises for them.
As I listen to his songs and as I read the interviews, it seems to me that he can’t let it go…
…or perhaps it can’t let him go.
And, to get away from Ian Anderson specifically, I would observe that this is the case with many folks. God (as I would say) or ‘it’ (however they would determine that) will not let them go.
I think this disturbs some people.
I think it makes some folks very angry (because they really want to be rid of ‘religion’, but just cannot shrug it off.)
I think it can present some deep contradictions in some people (take the high priest of atheism, Richard Dawkins, who seems unable to leave alone the religion he would seek to abominate, calls himself a ‘cultural Christian’, and attends carol services at Christmas. As one commentator said ‘Even he, it seems, has been infected by some version of the God meme.’[ii])
Now, I am not wanting to make this personal about the views of either Ian Anderson or Richard Dawkins both of whom I greatly admire, even if I would not always agree with them, and each of whom I would be delighted to spend an evening with, chatting, discussing, exploring and arguing over a fine malt whisky or a glass of good red wine. I am more interested in the fact that so many folks who reject faith still cannot quite get beyond faith issues. Something still niggles, upsets, intrigues, angers, or all of these, and more. They seem not to ba able to ‘let go’… or…??
As someone of faith, I cannot help but wonder if it is not so much as they cannot let it go, as God will not let them go.
C. S. Lewis (most well-known for the Narnia novels) was one of the best known apologists for Christianity in the 20th century. Yet, he had been an atheist who only very resistantly and reluctantly acknowledged the God who had (so it seemed to him) relentlessly pursued him. And so (as he records it) he embraced Christian faith ‘kicking, struggling, resentful’. He said he was ‘the most reluctant convert in all of England’.
And I suppose for me as someone who believes, I see in all this some indication of a God who will not easily or readily let us go. He is the ‘Hound of Heaven’ of Francis Thompson’s poem (which had a huge influence on J. R. R. Tolkien).
I fled Him, down the nights and down the days;
I fled Him, down the arches of the years;
I fled Him, down the labyrinthine ways
Of my own mind; and in the mist of tears
I hid from Him, and under running laughter.
Up vistaed hopes I sped;
And shot, precipitated,
Adown Titanic glooms of chasmèd fears,
From those strong Feet that followed, followed after…
…‘Ah, fondest, blindest, weakest,
I am He Whom thou seekest!’
And, as I conclude this post, I am happily listening to Jethro Tull’s ‘The Zealot Gene’. Thank you Ian Anderson!
[i] https://indeflagration.fr/in-english/ian-anderson-jethro-tull-interview/
[ii] https://www.newstatesman.com/politics/2011/12/religion-christmas-dawkins
Fascinating! Thanks, David, for those insights. I've not listened to Jethro Tull for decades, but I'll certainly try the new album.
ReplyDeleteHope you enjoy it Roger!
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