Jethro Tull - Boston Tea Party, Boston 1970 (2024)

1970 was a pivotal year for Jethro Tull, when their relentless roadwork and perseverance began to pay off. On 24th Jan, British magazine New Musical Express chose Tull as best new group by more than 3,000 votes and their third album, Benefit, was their most ambitious and original work to date. In terms of the band's profile in America, this was the year Jethro Tull had truly arrived. The previous album, Stand Up, introduced guitarist Martin Barre to the fold and found the band stretching well beyond the parameters of the blues-based debut. The 1970 American tour would find the group expanding to a quintet, with Anderson's long-time associate John Evans joining the group on keyboards, further expanding the sonic palette. Classical elements now entered the already heady brew of blues, jazz, traditional English folk, and hard rock that defined the band's sound. This was undoubtedly a turning point for Jethro Tull whose hard work would finally pay off with Aqualung, their most poignant and popular album. From there, Tull were very nearly an American band! Timeline revisits this classic performance live from the Boston Tea Party, Boston on July 10th 1970, with a fully restored and professionally remastered original WBCN FM broadcast.