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NAKED LADIES (LADIES?)BURSTING OUT OF LARGE PAPER BAGS ,ASTRONAUT MOONWALKING ON STAGE, DISTURBING DRUM MACHINE RHYTHMS,80' S KEYBOARDS GALORE AND VOCAL CRISIS IN THE MAKING. THESE WERW KEY INGREDIENTS OF THE UNDER WRAPS TOUR OF 1984.
Queste le note del mio CD con cui Ian Anderson ci introduce all'ascolto di quello che reputo un caso piu' unico che raro. Un album ,anzi l'album piu' controverso del gruppo ma che mette tutti d'accordo(d'accordo sul fatto che sia un disco schifoso), ci sarebbero tante cose da dire, chi lo reputa pessimo, chi osceno, chi nemmeno lo menziona nella discografia, ma si tratta veramente di un brutto lavoro? Parliamone:
Non e' un classico, ne dei Jethro Tull ne del rock stesso, anzi, e' un esperimento Techno-Rock e come tale va inquadrato. Cosa criticare a quest'album? La DRUM MACHINE? Assolutamente non penso che un vero batterista avrebbe aggiunto qualcosa visto che lo stesso duo Anderson-Vettese opta per qui per una serie di suoni volutamente freddi come un freezer.
La composizine dei brani? Nemmeno,, basta leggere i performer che ci suonano,e poi dal vivo queste canzoni ingranavano che 'e un piacere, dunque?
Provo io a dare una spiegazione, secondo me questo tipo di suoni e di musica in genere, piu' di un certo tanto non puo' trasmettere ne lo si puo' sfruttare, in altre parole i Jethro Tull non hanno sbagliato nulla, anzi, composto o commissionato a qualche altro personaggio , questo album sarebbe stato assai peggio, inoltre l'elettronica 'e un territorio molto lontano, quanto di piu' lontano per i fan della band abituati al progressive rock e al taglio cantautorale di certe canzoni precedenti.
La gestazione:
Nel 1982 entra nel gruppo il 23enne Peter John Vettese(di origini italiane) ragazzo di energia e talento che che nell'album BROADSWORD sposta il suono sui sintetizzatori e ricorda il suo ingresso raccontando di aver risposto ad un 'inserzione del gruppo, questa :GRUPPO ROCK INTERNAZIONALE CERCA TASTIERISTA. Vettese (moccioso all'epoca dei traguardi dei Jethro Tull classici)non conosceva granche' della loro musica ,ma ottenne il posto improvvisando con molta spontaneita' sui pezzi, con molta ironia ricorda come ancora oggi gli attribuiscano il fatto di aver distrutto il sound della band coi suoi sintetizzatori. In realta' all'epoca di UNDER WRAPS , a differenza del suo predecessore Eddy Jobson, si fara' prendere non una ma tutte due le mani ,ma lui stesso ammette che sia Anderson sia Barre' erano consapevoli e d'accordo su tutta la nuova linea sonora che il gruppo stava prendendo,per mano sua..quello che forse non sapevano era la reazione dei fan ma anche della critica, forse Ian Anderson da buon paraculo invece intuiva qualcosa visto che per l'occasione COINTESTA i pezzi a Vettese oltre che a Barre',(merito che non ha mai riconosciuto agli altri membri nemmeno nei tempi migliori).Visto l'interesse di Anderson per le nuove tecnologie ,prova con Vettese un album solista in duo ,totalmente realizzato con le programmazioni al computer e senza strumenti a corda ne batteria: WALK IN TO THE LIGHT,gran parti delle musiche sono composte dal tastierista, per cui Anderson decide di realizzare un album simile col resto della band.
Le canzoni:
Se Broadsword aveva un qualcosa di pomposamente melodico ,(pure troppo) qui le canzoni sono snelle e ritmate, oltre che spicce, ma tutt'altro che semplici, descriverne una e un po' come descriverle tutte alla fine, non esiste un dislivello vero e proprio, pero' Lap of luxury che apre il disco possiede un gran bel tiro, Europan Legacy travolge e coinvolge, Saboteur invece tamarra e ritmata, ci piace con quel lavoro di doppio battente simulato alla Drum machine, e poi Later That Same Evening ,Tundra, Apogee(questa davvero ti entra dentro),sono tutte canzoni che alla fine funzionano senza disturbare i grandi echi del passato.
I musicisti:
Ian Anderson qui ha una voce piu tagliente rispetto a quella di Broadsword, e oltre a questo tenta dei vocalizzi davvero particolari tipici del Synth Pop giovanile(sentire Tundra per esempio). Sulle note del Cd Anderson non fa ben capire che la voce la stava gia perdendo durante quei concerti e non al termine del Tour, tanto che lo stesso Vettese ammise che piu' Anderson ne era consapevole , piu' ne risentiva anche caratterialmente, fu questo il motivo per cui il tastierista capendo l'aria che tirava decise di lasciare la band ,per poi tornare ospite in ROCK ISLAND. Martin Barre' invece chitarrista deliziosamente misurato ( un vero numero 1 di tecnica fantasia e gusto,senza di lui non sarebbero stati JETHRO) qui tocca l'apice, chitarrista eccezionale ,basta vedere le sue performance Live di quei concerti ,ma 'e anche l'ultimo album in cui restera' spontaneo e non verra' dominato dagli effetti di chitarra che da CREST OF A KNEVE in poi ne cambiera' un po(in peggio) lo stile tra sonorita' Hard tipo ZZ TOP e suoni lunghi con fischi allegati. Dave Pegg invece resta il piu' grande bassista del gruppo, se nello STORMWATCH Tour dal vivo suono' benissimo ma sbaglio' il suono(ma dal vivo ,il suo suono 'e sempre stata la sua pecca) il suo lavoro in studio da A in poi sara' perfetto, questo disco lo conferma, Pegg bassista che nasce mandolinista , plettro-dipendente dara' un suono e un attacco molto duro alla band in particolare nei martellati, e fa' strano che lui ,anima e cuore Folk dei Fairport Convention , curera' l'epoca piu' elettronica dei Jethro Tull. Peter John Vettese invece di estrezione Jazz-Rock e con severi studi classici alle spalle diventera' un esperto di elettronica e sintetizzatori vari, e nei Jethro Tull di quel periodo molta farina di quel sacco sara' sua, a mio parere Anderson fara' male a lasciarselo scappare cosi anche per le sue doti compositive che i suoi successori non avranno, da ricordare durante quella tournee' il suo duello in assolo con Doanne Perry (batterista di supporto al Tour) riproponendo il tema di FLY BY NIGHT, dall' album WALK IN TO THE LIGHT.
Un parere dei musicisti sul disco:
Ian Anderson ne parla molto bene ,considerandolo un buon prodotto, che forse assorbi' tutta la sua ingenuita' del momento preso da quei suoni nuovi e quel modo nuovo di lavorare, Barre' invece lo elogia come il migliore della sua discografia e reputa il brano Paparazzi,il pezzo migliore su cui abbia messo mano..Barre' ricorda come pero' si trovo' in grande difficolta' a gestire i macchinari vari con tutta quella tecnologia ,programmata ad arte.
L'Album dal vivo:
Considerato neanche tanto negli anni a seguire dopo l'intervento alla voce di Anderson, direi forse perche' i pezzi erano difficili da riprendere vocalmente, all'epoca venivano eseguite ad esempio Apogee, Later That Same Evening,piu' Under Wraps 1,e a fine concerto anche European Legacy, in seguito invece Under Wraps part 2 negli anni 90 , ma anche Paparazzi in versione strumentale,nel tour di Roots to Branches invece tornava Later That Same Evening ma che io sappia sempre INSTRUMENTAL...
Considerazioni:
L'ultimo ,(attenzione )Progetto della band , da CREST OF A KNAVE in poi per me anche salendo in qualita compositiva, la band non aggiungera' nulla diventando una cover band di se stessa, riciclando il passato per cui valuto questa come l'ultima prova importante del gruppo.
Elenco tracce e testi
01 Lap of Luxury (03:36)
The money won't last forever ---
rent man called twice today.
I hope some day you'll find me
in the lap of luxury.
Searched for a new apartment
but they don't grow on trees.
Just want to lay my head
in the lap of luxury.
Stepped out on a new horizon ---
felt a new spring in my feet.
Found a job, it could set me up
dangling in the lap of luxury.
And the gaffer is a man of substance ---
drives a jag and takes high tea.
Lives beyond the industrial wasteland,
laughing in the lap of luxury.
I need money, now, to soothe my heart!
Buy me a Datsun or Toyota ---
get the tax man to agree
all expenses I can muster
from the lap of luxury.
03 European Legacy (03:22)
She smiles at me
from beyond the eastern sea-shore.
Flashing jewelled eyes,
she hoists her skirts so high.
Nouvelle cuisine or an oyster bar ---
it's really up to her.
I'll write every cheque she brings to me.
I shoot on sight ---
it's my European legacy.
Round the castle walls ---
about the Highlands and the Islands
the faint reminders stand.
A visitor who took a hand
a thousand years ago, or so ---
stranded high and dry by tides ---
washed up a new identity.
The channel's wide ---
but it's their European legacy.
I strain my eyes
against the southern light advancing.
On whiter cliffs I'm high.
The sea birds roll and tumble as they fly.
I hear distant mainland music echo
in my island ears.
My feet begin to move instinctively
to the warmer beat of my European legacy.
She smiles at me
from beyond the eastern sea-shore.
Flashing jewelled eyes,
she hoists her skirts so high.
Nouvelle cuisine or an oyster bar ---
it's really up to her.
I'll write every cheque she brings to me.
She shoots on sight ---
it's her European legacy.
05 Saboteur (03:32)
In and out of shady places ---
walking on cold corners of the maze.
Following the trace you leave unwittingly.
I wanna be no Saboteur.
Oh, no, me no Saboteur.
Painted ducks across your landscape ---
happy in your domesticity (it don't come free).
Misfortune, like a Sparrow Hawk, hangs over you.
Wanna be no Saboteur.
No, no, me no Saboteur.
Deepest regrets I humbly offer you
as I cut into your life.
With clean precision, all is simplified ---
pass the hat and pass the knife.
By now you must be worried, wondering
who is me and what lies behind my art.
I'm only removing broken sea-shells from the beach ---
oh, no, me no Saboteur.
There's at least one of me inside your ranks
in your factory or school.
I anticipate a cleansing opportunity
to take the horns by the bull.
History forever writing
pages to be cut or painted grey,
or celebrated like Jesus in his
temple rage
as he chased the money-men away.
I wanna be no Saboteur.
Be no, be no Saboteur.
07 Astronomy (03:38)
The middle lane has trapped my car in red-light claustrophobia. I slip the shackles, cut the rope --- stand naked with a telescope as the cat walks alone under a big sky. Against the dark so thin and white --- gonna be a big sky night. Miss Galileo, come with me and view the new Astronomy. Black hole dressing on salad plate --- quasar at the kissing gate. Now the cat, he walks alone under a big sky. Umbrella dome pin-pricked in lights --- gonna be a big sky night. My spectacles, my white lab coat --- my coffee, thermos and my notes. I pat my pockets. I got the keys to the secrets of the observatory. And closing the door, I feel a new dawn as the darker slides align --- you to yours and me to mine. And now you stand, assisting me --- I can touch what I can see, see, see. I look in wonder, I feel no shame --- see the consequences of the game. Expand the universe. Head for the Big Bang. Reach for my switch and shout --- gonna turn the big sky out. There's got to be astronomy. Astronomy.
08 Tundra (03:41)
Short Arctic desert day ---
and someone left their snow-shoes in the tundra.
Look around every which way
but I can't see just where the footprints go.
Is it a casual disappearance? ---
Plucked from the middle atmosphere
like straw wind-blown.
No speck on the horizon ---
no simple message scrawled
upon the snow.
Unearthly visitation ---
someone left their snow-shoes in the tundra.
Hungry buzzard flier
circling round and round
rattling death's tambourine.
Have to run it down the cold wire ---
late insertion in tomorrow's lost and found.
Should I spread out searching?
But I'm a little thin upon the ground.
So I raise my lips to coax
the last drop of brandy from the bottle.
Rest my feet and contemplate
the mystery that's haunting
this Siberian space.
Show-shoes they bind me down ---
I'm just one more parasite of the surface layer.
I begin to get the feeling
I've been on this stage before
and I'm the only player.
One more Arctic desert day ---
another set of shoes out in the tundra snow.
I make my fade to white-out
and you can't see me where my footprints go.
09 Nobody's Car (04:08)
Black Volga following me ---
Nobody's car.
Mr. No-one at the wheel of
Nobody's car.
Wet pavements, thin apartments ---
quiet dissent from darkened doorways.
I want out alive.
Speak up for me if you can.
So, careful how you drive
in tourist city.
Slap in front of my hotel ---
it's Nobody's car.
Is that my limousine?
No, it's Nobody's car.
Are you on routine assignment?
Plastic shades on black-browed eye-hole.
I read this book before.
I even saw the film.
How did the ending go?
(Intourist city.)
Black out.
It's a weird scenario.
I've seen a thousand times before
but only on my video.
Feel my steps quick in the headlights
of Nobody's car.
Down cobbled alley with no exit from
Nobody's car.
Doors slam, two figures silhouette ---
somewhere before, I feel we've met.
Can't tell you any more.
I agreed to go along with all they asked of me.
Intourist city.
I drive Nobody's car.
10 Heat (05:37)
When the rats are running
and the boys are gunning
for heads on a tin plate ---
you can hear the footfall
softly in the back yard.
And the black jack is called
face up on the last card.
You'd better call your witness
in your dirty business.
Trop tard sera le cri.
Better run while you can ---
better set the tall sail.
Better make deep cover
before the boys have you nailed.
There's just one chance to get away ---
I'll catch up with you another day.
I'll close my eyes and count to ten
and come right after you again.
Grab your credit cards ---
cash in on your resources.
Take your passport from the drawer,
don't stop to change the horses.
Get out of the heat.
Now can you feel the pressure?
Have you got the measure
of being a wanted man?
Cold drink in your hand ---
hot sweat on your brow.
And there's no understanding
going to help you now.
Grab your credit cards ---
cash in on your resources.
Take your passport from the drawer,
don't stop to change the horses.
Notify all parties
of an earlier vacation.
No use trying to board the train
after it's left the station.
Get out of the heat.
11 Under Wraps #2 (02:14)
Keep it quiet. (go slow.)
Circulate. need to know.
Stamp the date upon your file ---
Masquerade, but well worth while.
Wrapped in the warmth of you ---
Wrapped up in your smile.
Wrapped in the folds of your attention.
Wear an air --- (keep mum)
Of casual indifference.
Careful how you go
About your usual business.
Wrapped in daydreams of you ---
Wrapped up by your eyes.
Wrapped in the folds of your attention.
Under wraps! i've got you under wraps.
Tell you when --- (not yet)
Soon the great unveiling.
Bless my boots! upon my soul!
Secrecy, it is my failing.
Wrapped in your summer night ---
Wrapped in your autumn leaves.
Wrapped in the winter of your sleeping.
12 Paparazzi (03:47)
Paparazzi, can't make the man.
Paparazzi, can't break the man.
Next to the transit lounge
see the Paparazzi tears.
No-one came in today
from Boston or Tangiers.
And in departures ---
only faceless trippers trip,
loaded with duty free
held in white knuckle grip.
Snap it up, flash away ---
steal a camel for a day.
Break the story in heavy type ---
the news is running late tonight.
Be-decked with Nikon necklaces
hear the Paparazzi cries.
Under their noses walk
the famous in disguise.
Conspicuously huddled there
but no-one stops to look.
They've got their crayons out
to colour in the book.
Snap it up, flash away ---
steal a camel for a day.
Break the story in heavy type ---
Paparazzi won't be home tonight.
Paparazzi --- write it down.
Paparazzi --- turn it around.
Paparazzi --- take it, fake it,
break it.
`Cos it's a story.
Now someone's cut the lines
communication's down.
All photo film is fogged.
Celebrities surround
and jab their fingers at me.
They kiss but I can't tell.
Even poor Paparazzi
must have privacy as well.
Snap it up, flash away ---
steal a camel for a day.
Break the story in heavy type ---
the news is running late tonight.
Snap it up, flash away ---
steal a camel for a day.
Break the story in heavy type ---
Paparazzi won't be home tonight.
13 Apogee (05:29)
Sailing round the true-blue sphere---
is it too late to bale out of here?
Well, there has to be some better way
to turn back the night,
spin on to yesterday.
The old man and his crew---
after all these years,
it's apogee.
Pilot training and remorse---
spirit friends fly too,
at apogee.
Apogee --- solar bright.
Apogee --- through the night.
Apogee --- overground.
Don't think I'll be coming down.
Screened for a stable mate
with nerves of ice we flew,
at apogee.
No creativity allowed
to pass through stainless veins of steel,
at apogee.
Apogee --- put the kettle on.
Tight-lipped --- soldier on.
High point --- communicate.
Don't forget to urinate.
So glad they put this window in.
How to explain, how to begin?
See! Tennyson and Wordsworth there
waiting for me in the cold, thin air.
Beware a host of unearthly daffodils
drifting golden, turned up loud.
Tell the boys back home,
I'm gonna get some.
The Wrong Stuff's loose in here ---
I'm climbing up the walls,
at apogee.
So hoist the skull and bones ---
death and glory's free,
at apogee.
A stranger wind, a solar breeze ---
I'm walking out upon the starry seas.
See pyramids, see standing stones ---
pink cotton undies and blue telephones.
Goodbye, cruel world that was my home ---
there's a cleaner space out there to roam.
Put my feet up on the moons of Mars ---
sit back, relax and count the stars.
14 Automotive Engineering (04:05)
In the hands of science ---
the complete appliance.
We're moved to motor.
Do you fly a Spitfire?
Do you slide on a tea-tray?
Or walk on a short trip (Sundays).
Or drive come what may (enjoy).
Automotive science and engineering.
When big was better ---
and fast was chic,
the oil was cheaper ---
now we're up the creek.
But the Japs are coming
and everyone's turbo'd
and carbon fibre
is the way to go, go.
Down at the robot factory
things are humming.
New radical suspension ---
no humans testing.
(Wind it up, wind it up.)
Take a trip
in your Freudian slip.
Doctor Ferdinand (Ferdie)
has you in his grip.
Carico i commenti... con calma
Altre recensioni
Di the green manalishi
Il disco peggiore dei Jethro Tull: freddo, troppo tecnologico, poco acustico e carente di quel flauto che ha reso grande la band.
La canzone più orripilante che i Jethro abbiano mai scritto è General Crossing, un pezzo inutile che non comunica niente.
