A Song I Love – My Sunday Feeling – Jethro Tull

Written by Jim S.

My Sunday feeling is coming on over me
My Sunday feeling is coming on over me
Now that the night is over

Got to clear my head so I can see
Till I get it pulled together
That old feeling won’t let me be

I would characterize this song as a little bit blues, a little bit jazz. Wait a minute, the casual listener might say. Tull? Didn’t they do “Aqualung?” And “Thick as a Brick?” Those weren’t even remotely bluesy. True. But when Tull started out in 1967, they were playing blues like pretty much every other British band. And doing it quite well, thank you.

In addition to Ian Anderson on flute (!), they had a really good guitarist named Mick Abrahams who is a blues/jazz player. (I’ve come to the conclusion that every third Brit is named Mick). The exclamation point on flute is simply because, to my knowledge, no one else had thought of using that particular instrument in a rock band before. (Or since?)

Tull’s first album – This Was – came out in 1969. The first song on the album is “My Sunday Feeling.”

Won’t somebody tell me where I laid my head last night?
Won’t somebody tell me where I laid my head last night?
And I really don’t remember,

But with one more cigarette I think I might
Till I get it pulled together
Well that old feeling can’t get me right

According to Wikipedia, the song’s coda incorporates quotes from two well-known jazz tunes, Henry Mancini’s “Pink Panther Theme,” (specifically the song’s bass line, played as a short solo by Glenn Cornick) and Nat Adderly’s and Oscar Brown Jr.’s “Work Song.”

This is a tight, taut, jazzy well-played number that just cooks. Love the whole feel of it, the groove. Never seem to get tired of it.

Without further ado, “My Sunday Feeling:”

Abrahams wanted to keep the band going in a bluesy vein but Anderson won that argument and they eventually went in more of a folky/progressive direction. Mick left after this album and went on to form the terrific Blodwyn Pig who, strangely, much later re-recorded just about the entire This Was album. (Post coming up nextย on Pig).

7 thoughts on “A Song I Love – My Sunday Feeling – Jethro Tull”

  1. Great track and excellent album. Beggar’s Farm is probably my favourite, though, from This Was. Feeling very nostalgic for that bluesy feel now. Sometimes it’s good to have more than a few years of listening under your belt and this is most definitely one of them.

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  2. Funnily enough I haven’t listened to the whole album in a while. Just listened to “Beggar’s Farm,” and yeah, thanks for the reminder. It’s a long way from here to “Thick as a Brick,” eh? (Which I also love on its own merits). And having a few years listening does help. But when I hear stuff like this I think, How could you NOT like it?

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  3. Yup! These first ‘Tull’ albums are fantastic. Great tune. There’s a whole bunch of people out there that would dig this music if they were exposed to it. Like we’ve said before, you and I are “Diggin it”. Again great pick Jim. I’ll be doing the ‘Jethro’ tomorrow.

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    1. I agree that if some of these songs were still heard people would dig them. But I don’t necessarily assume that’s true anymore. I’ve tried some of this stuff on my son. He’s a musician and a great mustc lover. But jazzy, bluesy stuff Just doesn’t do it for him. Tried to indoctrinate him, didn’t work. Hopefully that will change over time.

      But I think he rejects much of it as his parents’ music and that perception is hard to overcome. It took me years to enjoy Sinatra partially for that reason.

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      1. In my experience they have to come around to discovering it on their own. Driving in the car a few years ago Big Earl asked if he could slap on some of his music. It was Xmas so I thought the usual fare but no it was Otis and we spent a couple hours digging it. Earl had a big shit eating grin on his face. He heard the Crow version of the song you featured and did his homework and found Otis. Tull just has so much good work, it will be found by guys like you and me.

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        2. I’m sure he is filing the old mans tastes in his mind for later. Nothing better than discovering a new tune. I betcha you remember a few. In-fact you’ve wrote about a few. Plus your son is busy making his own music, how cool is that! Thanks for the Tull reminder, we will be strolling tomorrow.

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