Author hopes to strike a chord with fans who first saw band
The history of one of the biggest bands in rock music is being researched for a new book – and the author’s quest is starting in Sunderland.
Jethro Tull sold more than 60 million records in the late 1960s and early 1970s, with top 10 UK singles “Living in the Past” and “The Witch’s Promise”, and two American number one albums.
The prog rockers, led by flute-playing lead singer Ian Anderson, started out in Blackpool as an R&B covers band called The Blades.
But – re-branded – they set off on the road and played their very first ever show as Jethro Tull at the iconic Bay
Hotel at South Bents in January 1968.
Now music writer Richard Houghton is compiling a “fan history” of the band, which has been authorised by Ian Anderson’s management, and is hoping to hear from anyone who was at that historic show and witnessed the first ever official appearance of Jethro Tull.
Richard, who is the author of more than a dozen music books, said: "Jethro Tull are named after the 18th century agriculturalist who invented the seed drill, but the Tull name is now firmly associated in people’s minds with the rock giants.
"The Bay Hotel is a legendary North East music venue, to which promoter Geoff Docherty brought many top acts in the late Sixties and early
Seventies.
"I’d love to hear from anyone who was at that first ‘official’ Tull show and what they remember of it.
"This was before they’d had any albums and were about to release their first single."
Jethro Tull returned to the Bay Hotel in June 1969 and were back in Sunderland in March 1971, playing two shows at the Empire Theatre in support of their Aqualung album.
Richard added: "I’d be fascinated to hear from anyone who saw the band during this period, however foggy their memories may be, given that it’s now more than 50 years ago, or indeed any other Tull shows."
After several changes in line-up over the years, Jethro Tull are still going and only recently announced they had signed with Inside Out Music for the release of their 22nd album, The Zealot Gene, in early 2022.
Richard can be contacted at tullfanmemories@gmail. com