This Was is the debut studio album by the British rock band Jethro Tull, released in October 1968. Recorded at a cost of £1200, it is the only Jethro Tull album with guitarist Mick Abrahams, who was a major influence for the sound and music style of the band's first songs. When the album was released the band was performing regularly at the Marquee Club in London, where other successful British groups, such as the Rolling Stones and the Who, had started their careers.^[1]

While vocalist Ian Anderson's creative vision largely shaped Jethro Tull's later albums, on This Was Anderson shared songwriting duties with Tull's guitarist Mick Abrahams. In part due to Abrahams' influence, the album incorporates more rhythm and blues and jazz influences than the progressive rock the band later became known for. In particular: This Was also contains the only Jethro Tull lead vocal not performed by Ian Anderson on a studio album, in "Move on Alone". Mick Abrahams, the song's author, provided vocals; Dee Palmer provided the horn arrangement. Abrahams left Jethro Tull following the album's completion.

The song "Dharma for One", a staple of Tull's early concerts (usually incorporating an extended drum solo by Clive Bunker), was later covered by Ekseption, Pesky Gee! and The Ides of March. This song featured the "claghorn",^[3] a hybrid instrument invented by Jeffrey Hammond which combined the body of a recorder, the bell of a toy trumpet and the mouthpiece of a saxophone.^[4] Anderson also claims to have invented the instrument.^[5]

In the documentary film Woodstock, the songs "Beggar's Farm" and "Serenade to a Cuckoo" can be heard playing over the festival's PA system.

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Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[6]
Record Collector	[7]
The Village Voice	C−[8]
The Daily Vault	A[9]
Encyclopedia of Popular Music	[10]

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This Was received generally favourable reviews and sold well upon its release. Record Mirror thoroughly recommended the album in 1968 for being "full of excitement and emotion" and described the band as a blues ensemble "influenced by jazz music" capable of setting "the audience on fire".^[11] Allen Evans of New Musical Express wrote in his review that the album "sounds good and has a lot of humour about it" and that the band "play jazz really, in a soft, appealing way, and have a bit of fun on the side with tone patterns and singing".^[12] American critic Robert Christgau, on the contrary, was appalled by the success of a band that combined "the worst of Roland Kirk, Arthur Brown, and your nearest G.O. blues band."^[8]

Recent reviews of the remastered edition underline the duality of Anderson and Abrahams' songwriting and stage presence, as well as the strong ties of the band to blues in their early days. Sid Smith of BBC Music wrote that "what made Tull stand out from the great-coated crowd (of touring bands) was the high-visibility of frontman Ian Anderson's on-stage Tourette's-inspired hyper-gurning and Mick Abraham's ferocious fretwork."^[13] An AllMusic reviewer remarked how Jethro Tull on their vinyl debut appeared "vaguely reminiscent of the Graham Bond Organization only more cohesive, and with greater commercial sense".^[6] David Davies of Record Collector reminds how "This Was only hints at the depth and majesty of the ensuing seven albums", but also wrote that "the direct, unfussy and predominantly blues-based" tracks of the original recordings and the extra tracks of the collector's edition "could well come as something of a surprise" and "be of the greatest interest to Tull aficionados."^[7]

The album reached number 10 on the UK Albums Chart^[14] and number 62 on the US Billboard 200.^[15] It was voted number 574 in Colin Larkin's All Time Top 1000 Albums.^[16]

Jethro Tull

• Ian Anderson – lead vocals (all except track 4), flute, mouth organ, claghorn, piano
• Mick Abrahams – lead vocals (track 4), co-lead vocals (track 2), backing vocals, electric guitar, nine-string guitar
• Glenn Cornick – bass guitar
• Clive Bunker – drums, percussion hooter, charm bracelet

Additional musicians

• Dee Palmer – French horn and orchestral arrangements

Production

• Terry Ellis – producer
• Victor Gamm – engineer