After The Noise
Everything Is Equal
Tuesday 31 March 2026
Jethro Tull – The Curse (1993)
Another humdrum day in paradise. At least it’s dry. Dark clouds looming, as ever. I’ve long since stopped caring about British weather. It’s mostly rubbish and we just get on with it.
Tried to get fuel today. Forecourt completely dry. The bloody war in Iran. There always seems to be a fuel crisis lurking round the corner.
Not desperate though. Like I Will Survive, I’ll survive.
On come the unmistakable tones of Jethro Tull.
Flute-led, as expected.
Not entirely sure of the era on first listen, but it’s fine. More background than revelation today. Music sometimes just sits alongside the grind. That’s enough.
More a dabbler than a fan of the Tull, but this is good. Huge body of work there. I should explore more. I say that about a lot of groups.
Work waits. Second meal done. No snacking. No crackers. The cookies can exist without me.
Life is very calm this week. Working a lot, being creative. Brazil in six weeks. Sunshine pending.
Post-listening research says 1993.
1993. I’d have put money on 80s Tull. Shows what I know.
Next up: a cheese and pickle sandwich… without the cheese.
The Doors – I’m Horny, I’m Stoned (1971)
Out with Bowie (the dog, not the ghost of David Bowie) always gives me space to think.
What have we here? The Doors, post-Jim Morrison.
By 1971, he’d already checked out to that interest-free place in the sky.
A fine combination when younger, that sort of excess. As you get older… less essential.
Maybe carrying on was unwise. Maybe it was necessary. Grief doesn’t come with a handbook.
I’ve heard both no-Morrison albums, Other Voices and Full Circle. Not bad. Barely relevant. Very listenable, but once you see “The Doors” on the label, you expect Morrison to come bursting through the speakers. Shirt off, chaos intact.
A band carrying on without its centre. Like a sandwich missing the main filling. Still edible. Slightly odd. Strangely enjoyable.
I like these awkward records. They remind you that creativity doesn’t stop just because the mythology does.
A Listening Log favourite incoming.
Status Quo – Spinning Wheel Blues (1970)
End of March. Another month gone. Christmas will be in the shops by Thursday at this rate.
Status Quo quietly becoming a playlist favourite. The algorithm’s clearly having a moment with early Rick Parfitt, Francis Rossi and co.
The Quo playing the blues. And as good as any blues you’ll hear anywhere. No messing about. Straight down the line.
This is transitional Quo. Somewhere between 60s psychedelic pop and the three-chord boogie machine they’d fully become by Piledriver (1972).
Absolutely mental guitar work from Parfitt. Perfectly judged. He usually locks into that relentless chug, God rest him, but here he lets it breathe. It swings. It grinds. It lives.
A relaxed walk. Since the clocks went forward, there’s a proper hint of spring in the air. You can feel it.
Let the playlist do the work. That’s the whole point.
Leonard Cohen – Beyond the Level (2016)
Executive decision: I’ve changed my Leonard Cohen album on the playlist.
I’m the boss. I can do that.
Swapped in You Want It Darker. His final album. One of the great album titles.
I listened when it came out but never really got into it.
Songs of Love and Hate is still miles ahead for me. That one got into my bones back in 1996.
Saw Cohen at Glastonbury Festival in 2008. Everyone raved. I found it… boring. Probably on me. He was never meant to be dynamic. He was Leonard Cohen.
What stayed with me more was the sadness of it all. Touring because he’d been financially ruined by someone he trusted. Watching an old man circle the globe out of necessity felt harsh.
This track is exactly what you’d expect. Deep voice. Weight. Perfect for the morning.
The genius is there in every note.
Final question, naturally:
What kind of crackers did Leonard Cohen eat?
END OF LISTENING LOG
The Listening Log 