Ian Anderson on his favourite “cult classic” album
The requirements to define an album as a cult classic are somewhat abstract. One steadfast notion when ascertaining if a record is cultish is the response it gets from its community instead of the mainstream market. The Shaggs’s Philosophy of the World may be an LP that bucks the trend, but most of the time, cult records not only operate on the fringes but also deliver an artistic impact that flows through the creative community that surrounds it. This is something Ian Anderson of Jethro Tull is fully aware of.
Anderson and his band of prog pioneers have undoubtedly had a widespread influence on their respective realm and the era in which they were at their peak—the late 1960s and early 1970s—but they always had a distinctly cultish essence. In the contemporary period, they still retain a strong following, but one that features many who were there to experience their heyday. It’s a case of if you know, you know.
Whether it be their refusal to give in to the pull of outside expectations, constantly experimenting with different sounds, such as classical, folk and jazz, or the fact that many of their most notable albums remain cultishly beloved today, such as 1972’s Thick as a Brick, the follow-up to their best-selling effort, Aqualung, Anderson experienced the trappings of this area of popular music long before it had been properly categorised.
The era in which Anderson and the Tull emerged was of great cultural significance. The most successful acts are still lauded today, despite some of them dying over 50 years ago. However, despite having an extensive list of prominent supporters, several artists who actually had an instrumental effect on the emerging sounds did not get their due.
One of the most important is Mancunian folk hero Roy Harper, a master of fingerstyle, a Keatsian poet, and an astute genre-melder before it became prevalent. Having fans in Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, and The Who, as well as contemporary heavyweights such as Kate Bush, Fleet Foxes and Joanna Newsom, clearly outlines his cultish effect. Pink Floyd were such big fans that they jumped at the opportunity to have him feature on one of their biggest cult compositions, ‘Have a Cigar’, from 1975’s Wish You Were Here.
Anderson has never shied away from discussing Harper’s tremendous impact on his own work. His effect is perceived in his complex lyricism and Jethro Tull’s commitment to genre-bending. He’s even dubbed him his “primary influence,”confirming that without his work, prog rock as we know it might not have come to fruition like it did, as they pioneered the earliest version of the form.
When speaking to Classic Rock in 2021, Anderson named Harper’s 1968 second album, Come Out Fighting Genghis Smith, his favourite “cult classic” record. Noted for its sprawling 11-minute composition ‘Circle’, which was unlike anything anyone was releasing back then, pushing folk into a classical and progressive realm by comprising it of several movements, the record was majorly innovative in many aspects. While you can hear elements of where Jehtro Tull would subsequently head in ‘Circle’, Anderson claims ‘Another Day’ was the most resonant piece for him.
He explained: “A year later, when I first moved down to London, I heard a folk singer who was making a bit of a name for himself. I scraped together some coins and bought this album, which spoke to my interest in the solitary singer-songwriter way of making music. The song Another Day really resonated with me. Many people, in addition to me, regard it as a cult classic. Kate Bush covered it the tune.”
During the summer of 1968, Anderson lived alone, and Come Out Fighting meant a lot to him, providing personal and artistic solace. Luckily for him, he would get to know Harper well over the coming months, thanks to playing a couple of shows together, including June’s iconic Hyde Park Free Concert, boasting both artists, Pink Floyd and a fledgling T. Rex. It was clear to Anderson by the time Autumn rolled around that Harper really was the real deal.
