Jethro Tull – Heavy Horses: New Shoes Edition, 5-disc set (9 February 2018)

Honestly, I waited forever to buy Too Old, and then only grabbed it when it was on sale. It's just not an album I enjoy.

Of what's left, the only other one I'm indifferent about is "A" (great side A, poor Side B). Of the other albums - yes including Under Wraps - most are essential. I doubt they'll ever get as far as J-Tull.com, but frankly that's the only Tull album I could gladly not get (although a 5.1 mix might be be tempting). Under Wraps, Broadsword, Catfish, and Crest of a Knave would be a hot ticket, imo.

 

Might be the fact that multi-tracks have gone "missing" and thus the essential purpose of this series (remix and 5.1) mixes were not complete. The Too Old TV special is no replacement for live footage and does not hold up to repeated viewings and the CD spawned from it is no replacement for the original recordings.

I love the Too Old to Rock and Roll album and this set was a pretty big disappointment for me..........

 

But..but..Black Sunday in 5.1!

 

Rock Island CD and vinyl I have sound a little thin, but I doubt they will go stat far - not enough interests I think ... But Crest of a Knave won Grammy (the weirdest win ever) and perhaps will eventually get deluxe treatment.

And discagree to Too Old.. - I loved TV special.

 

Yet they bought other CDs and vinyl in the meantime. Guess they had spare cash enough for that.

 

If you worry about money for food and shelter - collecting music should be the last thing on your mind.. I remember when I was "in a hole" for several ears - I sold all my equipment and probably would sell my CDs if there were many takers (LP collection was lost in a flood already)... Those things are definitely not a necessity.

 

Ha ha... of course! You miss the point. I'm not talking about people who don't buy CDs because they're spending money on necessities. I'm talking about ones who buy all kinds of music, but don't buy a box set which was available for years and which was advertised as limited edition, and when it went out of print, they moan about it on these forums. They simply chose to buy other music.

 

When you watch this forum, that is clearly NOT the case: What I see here is always the same bunch of whiners who don't have respect for the work of the artists and producers and only want cheap, cheaper, cheapest, canceling orders multiple times because another shop has it 10 cent cheaper, let the items ship around the world wasting recources only to get it 2 cent cheaper or wait with the order as it maybe gets cheaper.
And then the bickering starts when the item doesn't arrive in time or are sold out....

 

Yes, exactly. This.

 

Most seem to feel the TV special re-recording is actually better than the original album.

I'm glad we have this, plus half of the original album remixed, the bonus tracks and a flat transfer of the original album.

 

Where's the connection between having respect for the work of an artist (if we didn't, we'd all be buying bootlegs or downloading illegally) and not wanting to shove money down the throat of a greedy seller in case somebody else might have it for a smaller price than what you paid for at certain well-known sites? And if these sets had started out in the premium price range, it would be a different story, but several of these sets have been available for very good prices. So it's kind of a given that, when "Stand Up" did not come down like the previous ones did, people were complaining or waiting too long, still in the hope of a bargain - especially since it's one disc less and the production costs can't be much higher than with previous sets.

If there is demand, I don't see why these sets have to be so limited. It's the same with the Marillion series. Or the Mike Oldfield, Tears for Fears boxes. I think it's criminal that such great music isn't kept in print. The fact these went away so quickly shows that there is a market for mid-priced, sensibly put together (no vinyl, no trinkets) digital media sets, and that these are effectively replacing single- and double-disc remasters as the go-to versions. Difference being, they're much more limited...

You also seem to forget that not everybody is constantly up-to-date, some may miss the release and only hear about it later.

And of course in this day and age, so much gets released and re-released, one has to choose and set priorities. I couldn't possibly justify buying This Was, Clutching at Straws, White Album and Electric Ladyland all at once!

 

Much of the post Aqualung material (aside from the hits) has been brand new to me as I’ve purchased these book sets. I really enjoy the TOTRAR set and I’m actually baffled that the hardcore fans aren’t more appreciative of it. It’s a slight departure in terms of how Tull was presented up to that point, but I think 75% of the album has great songs.
I will concede that the TV special visuals don’t quite hold up, however, I’m glad we have them.

 

I appreciate Too Old & this post.

 

I speak about this all the time, but feel like an alien doing it. "Collectability" is the bane of the music fan. It's anti-music, it's anti music-fan, and honestly it's quite hateful. Music has value only when it's being played. Exclusive bonus material, strictly limited boxes, ridiculous colored Vinyl, and the rest of it - none of it has anything to do with why I've loved and listened to music all these years. We live in times when releases are seen as "investments", which honestly makes me gag. I just find it distasteful when it's completely manufactured. I mean, a colelctor wants to own a first press of a Stones album.... I get that, it's an historical artefact. But a needlessly limited edition purple Vinyl special frisbeee edition? Nah.

I have all of the Tull book sets, and I guess I could sell them and use the money to make a mortgage payment.... yikes. I'm gutted for those that missed out on Thick as a Brick, for example. It's a real shame people don't get to own it. It certainly gives me no pleasure knowing I have something others want.

That said - Too Old.... I've been trying to love it since the 70's. The book set is actually fascinating - in theory. Having the TV Special is a nice value-add, imo. I just don't want to have to listen to it.

My buddy bought the Too Old set the week it released. We sat and went through it that evening. We watched the video etc. I tried. It was over a year before I got my own copy, and the reality is I've never played mine. It just doesn't work for me. A great package then - but just not interesting enough. IMO.

 

They are probably limited in case they didn't sell well. I'm sure they'll all be reissued. As for Too old. Swap the 4 weakest songs with strip, commercial, ragtime and cigar(full) and you get another pretty good tull album

 

Too Old... is the only one of the series (besides TAAB, obviously ) that I still don't have. I keep putting it down on my priorities list, but I hope I'll get it sooner or later, because you never know when something might be gone...

 

The book set is currently $22.00 USD on importcds.com right now. A steal!

 

Yeah - you don't really want it, but you know that as soon as it goes OOP, you'll wish you'd gotten it anyway. I too jumped in when the price had dropped a bit, a sale made me put my hands into my pocklets.

One possitive about Too Old - the short, but just stunning, Salamander. Truly one of my favorite Tull tracks. And of course, you get the big book, which is always a good read.

 

I'm not sure why some people dislike TOTRNR so much.
My guess is the subject matter and the album visuals, because the music itself is great and IMO as good as anything they did in the 1974-1979 period.
The TV Special recording has more dynamic playing and sounds great despite being a rushed 8-track recording.

 

The saxophone? The record sleeve? The comic strip? The lack of old days prog hooks? The buffonesque TV special? Any reason seem good enough to dislike the album.

Trapped between Ministrel and SFTW, this album deserves to be listened with dedicated attentive ears and opened mind. Not your old JT prog days but a precursor to what was to come. The boxset version and its content uplift the experience.

 

Original album is rather uninspired. Production, lyrics and Anderson's vocals are below Tull standard (at that time). Salamander is great track. Others... not so much.
Personally for me this album is one of the weakest in Tull catalogue. The band is trying to pretened something they are not (musical play sleazy poppy group).

That said... I'm still glad that I own The TV Special Edition, it is a great set (only sad part is 5 missing tracks).

 

Yeah being a soundtrack, they were going for a different style. Similar with Warchild. But you can tell the difference between the album songs and the left overs. The left overs are the songs that sound like the Tull we loved before and after

 

I'll never get the lack of love for Too Old... I know its genuine and widespread, but I still just don't get it. I love the album as it was released in '76.

 

For me, the melodies just aren't up to snuff. Ian is beginning to recycle themes and it's simply weak. This does not prevent me from enjoying the spectacle that is the TV special!

 

Dunno, melodies from title, Salamander are very good, and "From a Dead Beat to an Old Greaser" is simply one of my favorite Tull melodies (albeit crafted not as superb as some other songs.