Spinal Tap sounds like Jethro Tull to me

I just realized how some Spinal Tap songs sound like later Jethro Tull particularly Stonehenge and Sex Farm (not the lyrics as much). Some of the guitar melody lines sound just like Martin Barre. What's ironic is Tull did Thick as a Brick as a takeoff on prog rock, then they became that and Spinal Tap, a comedy band, sounds like them at times. And Tull won best metal act in 1989. It's all one big comedy loop. Maybe Tull was the real fake band and not Tap.

 

I think Ween's Mutilated Lips and She Wanted to Leave off The Mollusk both sound a lot like Jethro Tull.

 

Much as I LOVE Tull, "Stonehenge" has always sounded like Tull to me. I bet it was no accident....

 

Stonehenge is a pretty obvious Tull pastiche.

 

Many moments on Broadsword sound like blueprints for the Spinal Tap soundtrack.

 

Jethro Tull doesn't really go far back enough, though, to be the model for Spinal Tap, who have British beat and psychedelic tunes. I think the slightly earlier hard rock figures -- Led Zep-nee-Yardbirds, Deep Purple -- are a closer fit than Tull.

 

Jethro Tull is my favorite metal band.

 

"I think the problem may have been, that there was a Stonehenge monument on the stage that was in danger of being crushed by a dwarf."

 

There are some similarities, but I think you're making too much of big a thing about it.

 

I don't think one could possibly make too much out of Spinal Tap. In any case, my take is that ST is "The New Yardbirds" retaining Jeff Beck in the lead.

 

People who are bigger fans of the period than me will say Deep Purple most closely resembles Spinal Tap, although there are apparently enough archetypal moments in the film that almost every rock star of the era thinks it was based partly on them.

 

I think the band Spinal Tap is clearly an amalgam of several bands. But yeah, I certainly see Tull in certain places (Stonehenge in particular), the Beatles in others (the row between Nigel and David's girlfriend, "yes, there's great love between us, great love" reminds me of Paul and Yoko), Deep Purple, Led Zeppelin ("my solos are my real hallmark," then Nigel actually stops to tune the violin he's using to scrape the strings, something Pagey might do), Uriah Heep ("Rock And Roll Creation"), Ted Nugent ("Sex Farm"), "Jazz Odyssey" is clearly a dig at any number of pretentious '70s jam bands, et al, et al.

 

Status Quo

 

There was someone before the movie they were referencing, but the "bizarre gardening accident" forecasts Jeff Porcaro's death.

 

Jethro Tull Can’t Escape Rabbit Costumes – Real Life ‘Spinal Tap’ Stories
by Nick DeRiso March 4, 2014 12:01 PM
ultimateclassicrock.com/jethro-tull-spinal-tap/?trackback=tsmclip

One of the most famous moments in ‘Spinal Tap’ finds bassist Derek Smalls trapped in a pod on stage, fighting to get out as his bandmates performed ‘Rock and Roll Creation’ without him. For Jethro Tull’s Ian Anderson, that hit close to home — very close.

Only this time, the snafu involved rabbit suits during an early-’70s tour in support of ‘A Passion Play,’ rather than strange on-stage cocoons.

Anderson relayed his story as part of our ongoing series of rock star memories in honor of the classic mockumentary’s 30th anniversary. Turns out, even high-brow proggers like Anderson have had their share of ‘Tap’-style disasters.

There’s also a weird coincidence associated with Tull and the same Smalls character. But, more on that in a moment. First, about rabbit suits…

“We started a U.S. tour in 1973 in Buffalo, N.Y., where we began the show – without proper rehearsals – by appearing on stage in giant white rabbit costumes,” Anderson remembers. “Each rabbit suit had a zip in the back so after a bit of wild dancing to the taped intro music, we lined up across the stage one in front of the other where the plan was that each rabbit would unzip the rabbit in front, the musician occupants would burst out of the rabbit suits playing their instruments and the live show would begin.”

Derek Smalls could have told you what happened next.

“The zips jammed on two of the rabbit suits – so the band line-up was somewhat depleted as the road crew wrestled with the suits and ended up cutting the musicians free with box knives.”

Actually, it’s fitting that something from the film would echo in real life for Anderson, because he has made at least two concrete connections between Jethro Tull and Spinal Tap.

“It should also be remembered – as ‘coincidences’ go – that the name ‘Derek Small’ appears on both the ‘Thick as a Brick’ and ‘Passion Play’ album covers, some 10 years before the ‘Tap’ movie,” Anderson says. “Ah, well – get your inspiration where you can find it.”

Anderson has previously said that one of the movie’s advisors was a label representative who toured with Jethro Tull, as well. Meanwhile, a new reissue of ‘A Passion Play’ is planned for 2014.​

 

Tull doesnt have enough past members, Deep Purple certainly does.

 

There are 24 members for Tull, 14 for Purple.

 

The bulk of them were after Spinal Tarp was filmed tho.

 

FWIW, by the time Spinal Tap happened Jethro Tull had changed drummers five times while Deep Purple has always had Ian Paice on drums.

 

Spinal Tap was loosely modelled on Status Quo, although sonically I think they're probably closer to Uriah Heep, what with that prominent organ in many songs.

 

Two maybe three drummers before the script was written.

 

The Rutles certainly an inspiration as well. The only earlier mockumentary about a fictional band I can think of.

 

I was talking about just the music not the bands history. It's the minor key songs that really sound like Tull to me. Not all of them but sometimes I hear post-Songs From the Wood Tull in there where Anderson's voice got lower. I've only heard Break Like The Wind once recently but I could hear it on that album also.

 

I hear it too. Plus Tull very much got lost in excess by the mid 70's. So much so that as much as I love Tull - and think if they'd quit somewhere between Benefit and War Child they'd have gone out beyond on top - they could've cranked out something like Big Bottom. A is dreck.

 

I thought they were based on Saxon as well? Hank Azaria mentioned being on the road with them as 'research' for his role.