The Jethro Tull Christmas Album
Template:Short description Template:Refimprove Template:Use British English Template:Use dmy dates Template:Infobox album Template:Music ratings The Jethro Tull Christmas Album is the twenty-first studio album released by Jethro Tull, on 30 September 2003. This was the band's last studio album for 19 years (until the release of The Zealot Gene<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> in 2022), as well as the last album to feature the lineup of Ian Anderson, guitarist Martin Barre (and his last album with the group), bassist Jonathan Noyce, keyboardist Andrew Giddings, and drummer Doane Perry.
Content
The Jethro Tull Christmas Album is a mix of new material, re-recordings of Tull's own suitably themed material and arrangements of traditional Christmas music. In 2009, the live album Christmas at St Bride's 2008 was included with the original album on CD.
Of the opening song, Birthday Card at Christmas, Ian Anderson has said:
- "My daughter Gael, like millions of other unfortunates, celebrates her birthday within a gnat's whisker of Christmas. Overshadowed by the Great Occasion, such birthdays can be flat, perfunctory and fleetingly token in their uneventful passing. The daunting party and festive celebration of the Christian calendar overshadows too, some might argue, the humble birthday of one Mr. J. Christ. Funny old 25ths, Decembers…"
Track listing
- Tracks 3, 4, 6, 8, 12, 14, and 15 are all re-recordings of previously released pieces. 'Bourée', however, has significant alterations to the musical arrangement.
- 'God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen' (Track 5) has been played in concert many times over the years: this is the first studio version.
Christmas at St Bride's 2008
Recorded live at St Bride's Church
Personnel
- Ian Anderson – vocals, flute, acoustic guitar, mandolin, piccolo, percussion
- Martin Barre – acoustic guitar, electric guitar
- Jonathan Noyce – bass guitar
- Andrew Giddings – keyboards, accordion
- Doane Perry – drums, percussion
- Additional personnel
- James Duncan – additional drums and percussion
- Dave Pegg – additional bass guitar and mandolin
- The Sturcz String Quartet:
Charts
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| Chart (2024) | Peak position |
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