ON THEIR 40TH ANNIVERSARY!!!
Ray sings at the Tull tribute show in NY.....John Olivier on drums.
Erin Ward's fingers are a blur during "Salamander."
with Dave Pegg and PJ Wright!
Ray and "Living With The Past" performed in a very special 40th anniversary Tull tribute show in Buffalo, NY on June 28th. Joining the boys for this memorable performance was the great legendary bassist, Dave Pegg of Jethro Tull and Fairport Convention fame, along with special guest, international recording artist, PJ Wright.
The show, held at Club Infinity, Amherst, NY was opened by Dave Pegg and PJ Wright performing a set of their amazing songs from Galileo's Apology, followed by Living with the Past, joined by Dave, doing a set of Tull classics.
This celebration of the great Jethro Tull's 40th anniversary was an amazing night of music and merriment...with a few beers on the side! Rumor has it that some videos and pictures are forthcoming....
A website for the band is also up and running, with lots of interaction, pictures, and sound, plus video footage.
Check it out at http://www.myspace.com/tullband
Living with the Past is:
Ray - vocals, acoustic guitar, flute
Erin Ward and John Berg - acoustic and electric guitars
Kevin Kukoda - keyboards, vocals
Chris Martin - bass
John Olivier - drums
Click here : LWTP Promo Video - My God!
LIVE: New! Video of LIVING WITH THE PAST - Mother Goose
Late-Breaking Tull and SITU News, Videos, and Other Links
"People want what's gone. People don't want the new music that's going on now. They just want to live in the past."
- Jeff Beck on today's music scene
"I thought LWTP did its greatest performance ever on Saturday April 28th, and you had the audience loving it! I'm looking forward to being at your next gig. The band's music acts like a time machine,
bringing good time memories to life in the present..." - Bill I. - Tull fan from NY
LIVE: Video of LIVING WITH THE PAST - Broadsword: Tribute to soldiers
LIVE: Video of LIVING WITH THE PAST - Highlight Promo
Ray with LWTP in NY
Tull with Lucia jam
(Photo courtesy of Andy Cooke)
LIVE: Video of Tull and Lucia performing "Kashmir"
Video: 1976 Vintage Tull - Quiz Kid and Crazed Institution
Video: 1979 LIVE Tull - Dark Ages!
Ian signs an autograph on tour
Ray: How to stop, prevent, and even reverse coronary artery disease!
Through the use of diet, exercise, lipid panels, and heart scans, the knowledge is finally here! You must begin by getting a lipid profile done by your doctor. If your blood pressure is good (target 120/80), and your lipid panel is good (LDL <60, Triglyc <60, HDL >60, and Vitamin D3 level >50), you may very well have a calcium plaque score of zero when you get your heart scan. Unfortunately, you'd be a rare individual though. A heart scan is a very simple, non-invasive X-ray procedure that only costs a few hundred dollars and 5 minutes to do! It gives a very definitive picture and score of where in your heart you have plaque, the dreaded cause of heart attack and sudden death.
We start to form calcium plaque in our arteries throughout our bodies at a very early age. Soldiers in Vietnam, young men in their early 20's, were found to already have significant calcium plaque in their arteries. So you are never too young to start on this program and never too old to stop and even reverse what you already have. Through the use of certain medications (such as statin drugs like Lipitor) and a vitamin/supplement program (fish oil, niacin, vitamin D3, etc.), you can stop and, importantly, stabilize this plaque in its tracks and likely even reverse the process! People on this very simple and inexpensive program are seeing reductions in coronary plaque of 50-60% in just one year! Also important is that the plaque that you do have stabilizes, making it less prone to rupture and cause a heart attack. These are very exciting times for heart disease patients right now!! I am spreading the word to help others....you can avoid heart attacks, bypasses, and worse. Also, please consult with your doctor before beginning on this journey to combat heart disease.
Best of luck to you. Hope to see you at 100!
A Universe Records service to our Tull friends and fans around the world.
Pass it on. Get a heart scan. Save lives.
Ray - Questions and Answers: Jethro Tull and LWTP
send us an email.
Questions about Ray, Living With The Past, etc. will be answered here,
so please send your emails to
Universe Records.
Hope you enjoy this site feature. Your questions and comments are most welcome by Ray and the boys.
Debbie (Florida) - I have two questions....we all know that Tull is the BEST, but what made you decide to put all this work into a tribute band instead of doing original music? Do you plan on making another CD?
Ray - We do have original material as well, but this particular band, Living With The Past, is a tribute to our favorite band....a band that we feel somewhat indebted to for all the great music they've given to us and the rest of the music fans around the world for 38 years and running. Every member of this band is a Tull fan, and we do it for the love of the music...certainly not for the money! The shows we have done so far have been well-received, and it's great to hear the comments and cheers from those in attendance....folks like us who also have been touched by the magic of this great music. It's especially meaningful to know that we are instilling a renewed interest in the music from fans who've seen us but perhaps did not have the opportunity to see Tull in recent years....then you see them at the next show and they say they went out and bought 3 or 4 Tull CDs that they were lacking in their collections because of a song or two that we performed. It's things like that that keep driving us to continue on with the project. As for new material or future recordings....we've thought about a few different things. We are all very busy guys, with families, dayjobs, and horse manure to take care of....if you don't keep up on those things, it really tends to pile up on you! We would love to record some stuff, but right now it's not a priority of ours. Doing a few Tull tribute shows is though, and we will play more of them as long as people want to come out and see them. When the club's empty, we'll know it's time to throw in the towel.
Pete (Toronto, CA) - Please tell us about your bandmates. Where did you find like-minded Tull musicians?
Ray - We all hale from the western New York area. I am kind of an organizer and the main pain in the arse for the other guys, but we are all equals in this band and all give input into how best to proceed with the project. Everyone is driven to perform Tull music live, and we thoroughly enjoy doing it, though the music is very tough to do! We know we aren't Tull, but we try to be professional and as competent as we can be, which is tough for a part time gig like this. Tull music is tremendously demanding stuff to play, but we all love the music so much that we find the time to do it. John Berg and I have been playing together for about 12 years now. He is a gifted guitarist....someone once said on the web that John was one of the best rock guitarists of our time. I agree with that assessment. John is a natural talent and plays amazing stuff. Martin Barre is his hero, so it's very meaningful to John to be playing the Tull stuff to other fanatics like us. Chris Martin on bass has been a Tull maniac since he was a kid. He's seen Tull many times through the years and is one of the most knowledgeable Tullians out there...plus he's a great bass player and has great common sense...an important attribute when it comes to playing Tull music and knowing what songs people want to see performed at our gigs. Chris and keyboardist Kevin Kukoda, as well as John, were in Present, a Tull tribute band we were all in some years ago. Kevin is a great keys guy, and brings the energy and enthusiasm needed to pull off the highly complex Tull keyboard arrangements. I've known Erin Ward since he was very young....I've been great friends of his mom and dad, who in my estimation are the number one Tull fans of all time. Erin is a great guitarist and one of the most versatile players I've ever known. He can play any style and has been in several great bands. John Olivier, our drummer, is incredibly talented and could be touring with almost any major band out there, so we feel priviledged to have him in the band. He's also a great person to work with, as are all the guys really. I feel lucky to be in the company of such great musicians and awesome guys to be doing this Tull tribute with.
Mike (New Hampshire) - Have you been backstage to meet Tull and what do they think about your tribute activities?
Ray - Yes, I've been backstage quite a few times, but mostly in the old days of Tull. As I grew older, I realized that the boys probably don't particularly like being bothered by groupies, paparazzi, and the likes of us fans, after a long day of travel, hotels, and an exhausting performance. I'm sure after the shows they much prefer to get a bite to eat, take a hot shower, and climb into a nice clean bed (hopefully without a careless hair on the pillow!). I've seen fans shove pens in Ian's face after a show and rudely ask for autographs that they will likely sell on EBAY to the highest bidder, and I swore that I would never intrude on them in that way.
As for what Tull thinks of our tribute thing, I doubt they really think much of it either way. They may think it's a cool idea and are hopefully flattered to think that the fans still care enough to try to put something like this together, but they are very busy and don't have time to think about who's playing in the local club in Niagara Falls! Having said that though, some of the boys did come to see us do an acoustic Tull thing a few years back, and that was great to see them there having a beer and watching us utterly butcher their great songs! But seriously, I do think they have some appreciation for what we are doing, and I think they know we have the band and the Tull fans best interests at heart.
Alex (California) - What's your favorite Tull song to perform live and why?
Ray - This is a tough one! There are so many great songs and I enjoy doing them all for different reasons. I find Locomotive Breath to be very challenging vocally and since my flute work is no where near Ian's, the flute solo is impossible to do justice to, but I love doing that song because of the raw energy of it. But I suppose my favorite one to do live is Aqualung. It is an amazing song to do live for me as well as the band....John Berg's guitar solos have always been a blast to witness on stage! I also love singing Broadsword....very moving lyrically, especially in this day and age we are living in today.
Sam (Pennsylvania) - How long have you been into Tull? What was your favorite tour?
Ray - I'm giving away my age here! I've been into Tull from the beginning, but Aqualung was the album that hooked me. I remember the first time I heard the album at a club in NY. The album had just been released and the club played Aqualung and Crosseyed Mary and it blew my mind....forever! I haven't been the same since! As for my favorite tour....wow, that is very difficult. I've loved them all, really. Stormwatch was an amazing tour. Passion Play was a very magical tour, that I luckily got to see three times. I always told people that the Passion Play shows were like spending a few hours in heaven. Even after all these years I still feel that way about that tour.
Chad (Florida) - There have been rumors that Tull fans use drugs to enhance the Tull experience? Have you seen this activity among Tull fans?
Ray - I normally would not address this ridiculous type of topic, however it seems like something that should be addressed, so I will. Two of the people I've respected most in the history of music, Frank Zappa and Ian Anderson, both detested the use of drugs. I feel the same way....I do not take drugs, period. My feeling on this topic is that drugs not only impair senses, but worse, they hold people back from becoming all they really could be in this life. I think that smoking pot is not only a waste of time and money, but it makes people demotivated and lethargic and it's bad for their health. Drugs fry the nervous system and damage the liver, brain, and other valuable organs of our fragile bodies. When I hear that people are addicted to meth, crack, and other such horrible drugs, I feel very sad for their wasted lives. I once heard that someone stole jewelry from his own grandmother so he could hock it to buy drugs. That's only one of the many sad stories I'd ever heard about drug abuse. As for other Tull fans using drugs, of course I've seen this, having lived through the 60s and 70s! I do not think it's any more widespread among Tull fans than fans of any other rock group....in fact, I've seen many more "straight" people that are into Tull..... doctors, lawyers, high-level managers, and even White House press secretaries! Tull is a thinking-person's band, and I think the music is best enjoyed without the use of illegal substances that can have detrimental effects on the mind and body. I have tried performing Tull music after just a beer and I was horribly bad! I'll stay on the straight and narrow, thank you. I suggest other Tull fans do the same and enjoy this great music to the fullest.
Juan (Mexico City) - You sound like a great tribute band but do not look like Tull much. Some tribute bands look more like the original band they tribute. Will this change about your band?
Ray - Interesting question Juan. Funny, but interesting! Actually, this has come up before. No, I will not be wearing a 1970's Ian look-alike hair extension or beard in the future, nor will I don a codpiece any time soon. Heck, I won't even stand on one leg to "act" like Ian! I've always thought that Ian doing those things or looking that way are unique to Ian. Ian is Ian....no one else could be Ian. The thing our band concentrates on, is the music. We try to tribute this great music the best we can by attempting to capture the feeling and intensity of the music, and to play the music as close to the original Tull sound as possible, while still adding our own signature to the music by doing some things slightly differently. I think attendees of our Tull shows appreciate that we try to give a convincing impersonation of the music instead. This is most meaningful to us as a band, so no, you won't ever see me acting like Ian or wearing the long flowing red locks from The Brick era or jumping around wildly on one leg. Some day, if we ever play in Mexico, please get in touch with me so we can meet and try to stand on one leg while drinking a cold Corona....but let's do it backstage, after the show!
Richard (London) - Why did you choose the name "Living With The Past" for your band instead of something more original and unique?
Ray - Well, we wanted to have a name that was obviously identifiable to Jethro Tull since we are strictly a Tull tribute band and do not plan on playing original music within the context of this particular band. In the past, other tribute bands similarly had names that hooked them to Tull's music, and we wanted to use a name that was previously not used by another band. "Living With The Past" was chosen as our band's name to honor the great Tull CD/DVD of the same name, which exemplified the live Tull experience. It's a great name that Tull came up with, and we are honored to have it as our band's name. And had we chosen "Back in Black" or "Hotel California" as the band's name, people coming to our shows would be rather shocked to hear what we were playing for them! So, we think we have a great name for the band, one that is very identifiable with Tull's music, and one that hopefully we won't need to pay Tull royalties for!
Living With The Past - Press Clipping:
Buffalo News
"Tribute bands have become an accepted segment of the music industry, primarily because so many of these bands have become adept at performing note for note replications of classic material from revered artists. For many, catching one of these bands in concert is the next best thing to seeing the real McCoy. "Ray" has chosen to follow the path less trod upon, turning his longtime love of Jethro Tull into what legendary Buffalo artist Mark Freeland enthuses is one of the most amazing tribute acts going. "Living With The Past" is the moniker Ray's group has chosen to drape itself in, and it's a fitting one. Even as far back as the late 60's, Tull leader and unequivocal genius Ian Anderson knew the benefit of keeping tongue firmly planted in cheek, and his song, in addition to giving Ray a name for his group, bespoke the power of the pastoral during a time when the old ways were being quickly swept asunder. Ray has long realized the power, magic, and timelessness of Anderson and Tull's unique mix of blues, folk, Celtic, classical, and progressive rock - a few years ago, he released an album under the nom de plume Ray. Titled "Somewhere in the Universe," it was dedicated lovingly to Anderson and Tull - and according to Freeland who caught the band last time it played a few months ago, he sings and plays flute very much in the Anderson vein. Word has it that Living With The Past pulls from various points throughout Tull's nearly 40 year career and replicates the music with technique and conviction, from the capoed acoustic guitar arpeggios to the snarling but sweet Les Paul/Marshall tone of guitarist Martin Barre.
This should be a real (and rare) treat for Tull fans." - Jeff Miers
Ray: All About Flutes
Ray: From the very first time I saw Jethro Tull in concert, I knew I just had to learn how to play the flute. My mother was a flute player, so I knew somewhere deep down inside I had to have some sort of fluting talent. Frustration ensued however, because, though I loved Tull's music and they were always my favorite band, I was always absolutely horrible on flute! A trumpet player for years, I knew how to read music, but was always too busy to take proper flute lessons, opting to learn and play strictly by ear. That's probably my first mistake....so I greatly recommend to those of you thinking of getting into playing the flute to find a good teacher and learn proper technique, etc.! My first flute was a student model Armstrong....it was fun to play around with the Tull records, but I was never able to improve. I went through a few other flutes, and some years later finally found a flute I could play reasonably well. This Gemeinhardt flute was a big step for me, because it played beautifully and had great tone. It elevated me considerably in my flute abilities, though I knew I'd never be able to quit my day job by playing flute! It was around that time that I met up with some new friends that were Tull fanatics and wanted to put together a Tull band. Finally, I had the motivation to get better at this metallic tube that I had struggled with for years. I worked hard and practiced a lot, and eventually started to get better. Still, while I felt myself going into a new level of playing, I was still pretty horrible. Every time I listened to Ian's mastery of the instrument, I realized just how miserably awful I really was at it! Then, finally, a light bulb went off in my head.....my flute always seemed flat to me, and no matter how hard I tried to play in pitch, I was always just flat. I always had great problems hitting the highs as well. Was it me? Could I really still be that horrible....or was I ready for......a new flute?! That's when I knew I just had to buy a high quality flute. I had to see if that would help take me to the next level. That was the best decision I'd ever made in my musical endeavors. I was mad at myself for wasting so many years struggling with inferior instruments, and I was determined to find the very best flute I could afford. I started researching into flutes. I got to know them all....well almost anyway. I got opinions from many experts, and everyone seemed to have different viewpoints on which direction I should go in to find just the right flute. I finally tried the flute Ian himself was using in concert, the prestigious Japanese-made Sankyo. I was so excited to get it, and when it arrived I played it feverishly. It had beautiful sound, and played in the right pitch. I could hit the highs that long eluded me. But still, something was not right. This is when I learned that what was the perfect flute for one was not right for another. I used the Sankyo in an actual gig, and that proved to be a mistake for me. I only had it for a few days before the show, and I was unable to adjust to the much larger hole than I was used to with the Gem flute I normally played. The Sankyo hole is very large and oblong in shape. I was constantly dry-mouthed, and I struggled pretty badly with it. I returned it to the vendor and explained that it just wasn't the right fit for me. They were great and took it back no questions asked. All good music outlets will give you a trial period, so always take full advantage of that trial before you decide to buy the flute. Find just the right one for you before you buy. That's the most important thing I could possibly convey to you about flutes. Again, after some further research, I decided to try the Powell Sonare flutes. These Chinese, hand-made flutes utilize the latest flute technology with the famous U.S.- made Powell silver headjoint, and at a reasonable price.....around $2000-3000. I had heard that these flutes were as good or better than flutes costing $10,000, and they rarely ever needed adjustments. The Powell flutes have magnificent tone....Ian uses Powell flutes for recording and Sankyos for concerts. The Powell headjoint has a smaller cut hole than the Sankyos, which for me was perfect! From the instant I played the Powell Sonare, it was a magical experience. After all these years, I finally found the right flute!!! It was like butter in my hands.....smooth as silk. I was able to play it effortlessly. The highs rang out clear and clean and the lows had a tone that blew my mind. I could play things I had never come close to playing before. The excitement was overwhelming for me.....and while I was still a long, long way from Ian Anderson's abilities, I was finally able to play respectably well. So, in closing of this long-winded summary of my fluting life, please follow my advice if you endeavor to play the flute, stand on one leg, and scream out those Tull classics in the privacy of your living room, or in your own Tull band. Shop around, check the internet websites, take advantage of those free trial periods, and find just the right flute. I highly recommend the Sankyo flutes if you can play a flute with a larger hole....go to: Flute Center of New York for those. Flute World (Michigan) is an outstanding flute resource and carries a huge variety of flutes.....they have the Powell Sonares that I highly recommend....get the model 6000. I like the offset G flutes for ease of playing. Get a B foot if you are going to be sitting and playing carefully, but if you plan on playing on the fly, in a band, or moving about wildly in your living room, get a C foot for easier right pinky playing.....I use a C foot....I think Ian does as well for the same reason. Happy fluting!!!!!!
Jethro Tull Work of Art Unveiled
Here it is.....for your entertainment.
Songs from the Mushroom(All rights reserved.)
Jethro Tull Album List and Lyrics
The Tullzine Site- site for the Tull fan forum TalkTull, and a tribute page for our dear departed Tull fans.
Laufi's Tull Site- one of the very best.
Cup of Wonder - very interesting Tull site well worth checking out!
Fairport Convention Website - See what Dave and the boys are doing these days.
Maartin Allcock's Website - Check out the newlywed Maart and see what else he's up to...
Kinesis Progressive Rock - great source for prog rock.
Mark Freeland - A Tull friend of Ray's - Check out his amazingly witty and refreshing book....gets rid of your stress and puts a smile on your face!
Ray and his trusty steed, Angel the Wonderhorse.
