Ian Anderson to the new Jethro Tull guitarist: "Don't become like Satriani or Malmsteen"

Ian Anderson revealed in an interview with Loudersound the approach he wanted to give to the work of the new Jethro Tull guitarist, Jack Clark, who was involved in making the band's latest album, "Curious Ruminant", released in March 2025. It's the first record cut by Jethro Tull with Clark as a stable member of the lineup, even though the musician had already collaborated with the group on several occasions. As Anderson explained, Clark had stood in for bassist David Goodier during a surgical procedure and had also supported keyboardist John O'Hara, partly covering his role but on second guitar. It was an experience that also let Anderson appreciate his soloing skills.

In discussing Clark's contribution to the new album, the Scottish musician emphasized above all his sense of restraint. Anderson spoke of "intelligent and measured" solos, built on effective phrasing and the ability to land on the right note without giving in to the temptation of virtuosity for its own sake. An approach that, he said, he explicitly suggested to Clark when he joined the band full-time: "If you've got a sixteen-bar guitar solo, please don't turn into Yngwie Malmsteen or Joe Satriani."

The advice reflects a musical vision consistent with Jethro Tull's historic aesthetic, which has always leaned more towards taste, sonic function and the narrative construction of songs than technical showmanship. Clark, in his early thirties, officially joined the group in 2022 as a substitute bassist and was promoted to lead guitarist in 2024, following the departure of Joe Parrish-James.

Jethro Tull, led by Ian Anderson, will perform in Piazza Duomo for the festival's 45th edition on 10 July 2026. It will be the band's fourth appearance at the festival: the group that made the history of British progressive rock already played the Piazza Duomo stage in 1999, 2003 and 2008.

The legendary prog band behind "Aqualung" and "Locomotive Breath" have announced that they'll continue the "Curiosity Tour" into 2026 to showcase their latest album, "Curious Ruminant".

Tickets go on presale from 2pm on Wednesday, December 10 via Ticketone, Ticketmaster, Vivaticket and the usual local outlets.

Made up of nine tracks ranging in length from two and a half minutes to nearly 17 minutes, Jethro Tull's latest album, "Curious Ruminant", confirms the singer-songwriter identity of Anderson's recent work with the project—he wrote every track—with his legendary flute raging away and sounding decidedly more at ease in the studio than he now appears live, though still clinging to simple vocal lines, all pitched in the mid-low register.

Alongside current members David Goodier, John O'Hara and Scott Hammond, the album also features former keyboardist Andrew Giddings and drummer James Duncan. It also marks the recording debut of guitarist Jack Clark.

The sonic grandiosity of the rock band behind "Aqualung" and "Thick As A Brick" resurfaces only occasionally, but in its artisanal simplicity, "Curious Ruminant" reminds us that Jethro Tull were (also) a great folk band, taking refuge in the acoustic atmospheres of those precious late-60s/early-70s beginnings, at the dawn of the prog era that Anderson and co. would go on to embrace with such enthusiasm, becoming its undisputed protagonists.

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