Best Jethro Tull Hard Rock songs: Tull head bangers

The hardest hitting fast songs and hard rock hits by Jethro Tull

Exploring the darker side of Tull, we've assembled the best heavy metal hits by the band. Excluding the obvious Aqualung, which has a love-hate relationship with most fans (love it, hate to hear it again for the 1000^th time) let's explore other hard rock songs by Jethro Tull. This can be a spring board for new fans to start discovering more of the band. The first few tracks are obvious, but hopefully we've opened your eyes to some new songs later in the list. These are the Top 15 fast paced, heavy metal, hard rock songs by Jethro Tull.

1 – Cross Eyed Mary, from the indelible Aqualung LP.

2 – Locomotive Breath, we all know and love.

3 – Sweet Dream, another early hard rock hit.

4 – Heavy Water (1989) from Rock Island, a great heavy hitting album.

5 – Doctor to My Disease (1991) from the Catfish Rising CD, and the first song on the list you may not know. Give it a try, it rocks the rafters.

6 – Songs From the Wood (1978) the title track is a powerful song, the anchor for many concerts.

7 – Minstrel in the Gallery (1975) the title track really gets going by midpoint. A great rock anthem!

8 – Overhang, (from the 20 years box set, previously unreleased) a guitar lovers dream. Martin Barre never disappoints us.

9 – Beastie (1982) from the album: Broadsword and the Beast.

10 – Black Sunday (1980), a fast concert track, often enjoyed live on every tour since 1981.

11 – Hard Liner, good and heavy, from the Nightcap compilation in '93.

12 – Something's On the Move, (1979) from Stormwatch, this was a great concert opener in the '82 “Broadsword” Tour.

13 – Teacher, (1970) from the Benefit LP, the tempo is so fast, but it's gritty and has a hard edge to it.

14 – And the Mouse Police Never Sleeps … (1979) opener on the Heavy Horses album.

15 – Hymn 43, a 1971 hit that still holds up today with good momentum.

Rainbow Blues and Pibroch (Cap in Hand) have pretty hard rock curves to them, as well.

“All Along You Knew” by Honeymood Suite (studio version) is a great rock song with some fierce flute by Ian Anderson (only in the studio version; he's not the live one). It doesn't qualify as a Jethro Tull song, but it's Ian at his angriest. Check it out.

That was the hard rock side of Jethro Tull.

Also check out the softer side: Tull acoustic ballads.

So many Tull songs fall right in the middle, between hard rock and soft ballad. It's hard to find a song that swings widely in either direction. Ian Anderson writes in a complex style of changing tempo. That's the band's charm, their ability to surprise the listener. When they do get going, Jethro Tull's hard rock edge is fierce and unstoppable.