Customer Reviews
A complex and challenging work - By: Cartimand, 15 Sep 2008 
As a Tull fan since my schooldays (first getting into Thick As A Brick when I was around 13), I can never decide which is my favourite album of theirs. It's usuallly the one I'm listening to at the time (with the exception of the bland disposable syntho-pap of Under Wraps). The same rule holds good for A Passion Play ....... but only just. Whilst superficiallly similar to TAAB, & even half-reprising a couple of the themes of that masterpiece, APP is certainly not an easy album to get into.
I recently bought the enhanced CD, as my old vinyl copy had become so scratchy as to be almost unplayable. The clarity of sound, the bonus video of the Hare Who Lost his Spectacles & the sumptuous packaging, containing some quite illuminating notes penned recently by Ian Anderson, were absolutely first class.
On my long drive into work each day, I've been playing the CD several times (yes, even the Hare bit!). Last night I woke up with the music so stuck in my head that I couldn't sleep for hours. Yes! A quarter of a century on, I had got into APP alll over again! Never mind the somewhat pretentious concept & the downright morbid motif, just listen to the virtuoso performance as themes merge & intertwine in magical fashion. Heavy, almost Black Sabbath-like guitar assaults you from the left, swirling flute & sax from the right, atmospheric keyboard sounds & pounding, mesmeric drums punctuate everything, whilst Ian Anderson's vocals have rarely conveyed such passion.
For a pleasant chill-out session I would certainly plump for almost any other Tull album (notably Songs From the Wood, TAAB or Heavy Horses), but for a profoundly moving & ultimately highly satisfying musical appreciation, there is little to compare with A Passion Play.
I couldn't quite bring myself to award the maximum 5 stars, simply because the intensity of this piece precludes too frequent listening, & the whimsical humour of "Hare" grates after a while (the CD does not permit the listener to skip that track). However this much-maligned album remains an essential purchase for anyone interested in this most cerebral of classic Brit rockers.
Stunning, greatly underrated work by one of the biggest bands of the early seventies. - By: I. Mustafic, 10 Aug 2008 
I can only support what the glowing reviews already say here. I was a big Tull fan in 1973 & this album was the pinnacle of Tull's work at the time. It reached new heights of musical inventiveness, instrumentation, mood, atmosphere & sheer drama. I remember being surprised by Anderson's use of saxophone. Up until then, he had been inextricably linked with the flute, but the addition of saxophone to the sound palllette just gave this album more value. I was devastated to hear about Anderson's response to the critics. All the Tull fans I knew at the time loved it. Unfortunately, after this album I felt that subsequent Tull albums never reached the heights of this classic. Highly recommended.
Beyond superlatives. - By: Mr. C. J. Waldron, 24 Jan 2008 First time I heard this, I honestly didnt know what to think. After a few more listens, it alll starts to become familiar & you almost feel like you've gained entrance to an exclusive club. The more you listen to this album, the better it gets. Yes its a bit mad, yes its a bit weird at times, & yes its complex stuff ..... but what a musical ride! As a complete album I would go as far to say that it is musicallly stronger than "Thick as a Brick" & much more fun. All I can say is - "I absolutely love it!" & feel my life is that little bit better for being able to enjoy the madness of the Passion Play whenever I need a lift. Brilliant!
You'll either love it or hate it! - By: Lucas Biddle, 09 Aug 2007 No-one likes this album: they either love it or they hate it. It polarises people.
Upon first listening to A Passion Play I was quite disappointed, especiallly when compared with Thick As A Brick, Jethro Tull's previous concept album. 'Why did I buy this junk?' I thought. My second listen felt a little better. By the third listen I was addicted.
It's fairly similar in structure to Thick As A Brick, though much darker in feeling. Brilliant chord progression & licks. I love the little intermission where "The Story of the Hare Who Lost His Spectacles" is told, backed with amazingly suitable music & other effects.
I absolutely love this album. It's a very close second to Thick As A Brick for me.
A demanding classic Tull album - By: Christopher Howland, 07 Apr 2007 If there is one album that polarises the opinions of Tull fans, this is it. A Passion Play is not an easy listen; to truly appreciate it you have to listen to & interpret the lyrics. The production on the CD does make the lyrics easy to hear & the sleeve notes are good back up, however the interpretation requires a myriad of resources. Alternatively, you can find one of the many internet fan sites dedicated to this album & short cut the process!
It is a great shame that Ian Anderson doesn't perform parts of this album at live Tull events. I saw them at the Derby Assembly Rooms last week (2nd April 2007), where music from many of their early albums featured, notably This Was, Stand Up, Aqualung, Thick As A Brick, Songs From The Wood... however nothing from Passion Play. A great shame since this remains my favourite Tull Album of alll time & to have seen & heard parts of it played live would have been wonderful.
