Too Old to Rock 'n' Roll: Too Young to Die! - Jethro Tull

Too Old to Rock 'n' Roll: Too Young to Die! (Jethro Tull, 1976)

1. Quizz Kid - 5:09
2. Crazed Institution - 4:48
3. Salamander - 2:51
4. Taxi Grab - 3:54
5. From a Dead Beat to an Old Greaser - 4:09
6. Bad-Eyed and Loveless - 2:12
7. Big Dipper - 3:35
8. Too Old to Rock 'n' Roll: Too Young to Die - 5:44
9. Pied Piper - 4:32
10. The Chequered Flag (Dead or Alive) - 5:32
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11. A Small Cigar - 3:39
12. Strip Cartoon - 3:19

A cartoony album cover, a comic strip for liner notes, songs pulled from a "soundtrack" to a never-produced TV movie about an aging 50's motorcycle rocker... there are a lot of red flags here. But if you make it past the signs flashing "KEEP AWAY!!! THIS MEANS YOU!!!", you'll find an enjoyable album with several songs worthy of adding to the pantheon of Tull classics and a wry, poetic story.

David Palmer's orchestrations get about as much album time as poor Martin Barre's lead guitar and John Evan's organ/synth put together (Palmer would join the band officially on the next album), but we still get several fine moments of Tullian hard rock with Baroque overtones. "Quizz Kid" is the strongest of the rock pieces, with enough roaring guitar, arpeggiated keyboard, and manic flute-playing to satisfy the snobbiest of fans.

For an album with a leather-clad fist-pumping (perhaps obscenely gesturing?) rocker on the front, though, this is a very calm and pretty album. "From a Dead Beat..." is one of the gentlest, stateliest pieces in the band's oeuvre, with tasteful orchestration and sweetly contrapuntal bass from newcomer John Glascock. The title track and "The Chequered Flag" are also very stately and surprisingly emotional. The philosophical examination of life, death, and moving on in "The Chequered Flag" provide several delightful head-scratching moments, while the anthemic "Too Old..." takes several twists and turns, standing as a sterling example of intelligent, creative rock and roll.  And John Glascock gets in some seriously excellent bass riffs, to which I am hopelessly partial.

Are there some less distinctive moments here?  Yes.  "Salamander" plagiarizes the previous album's "Cold Wind to Valhalla" and doesn't really say anything new.  "Taxi Grab" and "Bad Eyed and Loveless" are more blues-based pieces, hearkening back to the band's roots but again not saying much (aside from Barre's tripping-down-the-stairs guitar solo in "Taxi Grab").  I guess that's the problem when you're an excellent band - your high quality of work makes albums like this look bad, even though an average band would be lucky to have something this good in their discography.

Arbitrary rating: 4 out of 5 leather-clad fist-pumping (perhaps obscenely gesturing?) rockers