Just Trying To Be - Jethro Tull - Piano Cover By Alan Goldberg

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The lyrics from this short little tune by Jethro Tull caught me full on as an angst-filled teenager struggling against parental authority when it was first released in 1970 on the Benefit album (and also in 1972, on Living In The Past) . When I ponder them now, I am struck by how applicable the lyrics are to what's going on in America today with regards to media and political manipulation and various attempts at deception by people who think they gain by doing such things. Since I believe this song was written about parent-child relationships, it is very telling thinking about it in a modern context. Maybe "Big Brother"?

There was a time when you were so young and walked in their way
They made you feel they loved you all-seeing they say
You're going wrong if their game you don't play
And that the song I sing will lead you astray

Unfeeling, feel lonely rejection
Unknowing, know you're going wrong
And they can't see that we're just trying to be
And not what we seem
And even now believe that it's not real and only a dream

I call this one of Ian Anderson's short "minstrel tunes". Like "Cheap Day Return", "Grace", and "Nursie", it's all about the cadence of his unique voice alongside the acoustic guitar. The challenge becomes capturing the feel of that cadence in a solo piano piece. I've listened to this song so many times over the years that the cadence is in my DNA by now so I hope I got close with this one.

Thanks for listening!