Glenn Douglas Barnard Cornick (23 April 1947 – 28 August 2014) was an English bass guitarist, best known as the original bassist for the British rock band Jethro Tull from 1967 to 1970. Rolling Stone has called his playing with Tull as "stout, nimble underpinning, the vital half of a blues-ribbed, jazz-fluent rhythm section".[1]
Glenn Cornick | |
---|---|
Background information | |
Birth name | Glenn Douglas Barnard Cornick |
Born | Barrow-in-Furness, Lancashire, England | 23 April 1947
Died | 28 August 2014 Hilo, Hawaii, United States | (aged 67)
Genres | Rock, blues rock |
Occupation(s) | Musician |
Instrument | Bass guitar |
Years active | 1962–1977, 1996–2014 |
Labels | Chrysalis |
Formerly of | Jethro Tull, Wild Turkey, Paris, Carthago |
Early life and career
editCornick attended Barrow-in-Furness Grammar School for Boys, and then moved to Blackpool.[2] The first group he played with was "The Executives", a group that played versions of famous songs in clubs and pubs.[3] Later, he joined a soul band called John Evan Smash[4] in which Ian Anderson and guitarist Mick Abrahams were also members. Drummer Clive Bunker, who was a friend of Abrahams, then joined them to form Jethro Tull.[5]
Jethro Tull
editCornick toured and recorded with Jethro Tull from late 1967 to late 1970. He played on the band's first three albums, This Was, Stand Up and Benefit, playing an important role in the arranging of the music, being one of the few members of Jethro Tull with some musical training. During his time with the band, he established his stage persona with strong virtuosity and remarkable musical competence. One of the few live recordings of Cornick with Jethro Tull is the video Nothing is Easy - Live at the Isle of Wight, recorded in 1970 and released in 2004. He was fired from the band, mainly because his lifestyle was more inclined to partying than other members'.[3][6][7]
Wild Turkey
editAfter leaving Jethro Tull, Cornick played as a session musician for Leigh Stephens on his 1971 album And a Cast of Thousands.[8] In the same year, he formed Wild Turkey, initially with: Graham Williams (guitar), Alan 'Tweke' Lewis (guitar), John "Pugwash" Weathers (ex-Pete Brown & Piblokto! and Gentle Giant) on drums and Gary Pickford-Hopkins (ex-Eyes of Blue) on vocals; but Weathers and Williams left to join Graham Bond's Magick before Wild Turkey recorded any material - soon after, Weathers joined the progressive rock band Gentle Giant. They were replaced by Jon Blackmore (guitar and vocals) and Jeff Jones (ex-Man) (drums) who joined Cornick, Tweke and Pickford-Hopkins to record Wild Turkey's first album Battle Hymn - which only reached number 193 in The Billboard 200.[9] The band released a second album, Turkey, before splitting up.[10]
Karthago and Paris
editCornick then joined the German band Karthago, with whom he recorded just one album, Rock'N'Roll Testament, before leaving and moving to Los Angeles to form Paris, with guitarist Bob Welch (ex-Fleetwood Mac) and Thom Mooney (ex-Nazz) on drums. They recorded an eponymous album, Paris, in 1975, before Mooney was replaced by Hunt Sales (ex-Todd Rundgren's Runt), and in 1976 recorded Big Towne, 2061. Paris disbanded in 1977.
Wild Turkey again, the 1990s and recent work
editIn 1996, Cornick participated in a Jethro Tull tribute, called To Cry You A Song - A collection of Tull Tales, playing on the songs "Nothing Is Easy", "To Cry You a Song", "New Day Yesterday", "Teacher" and "Living in the Past", together with the former Tull members Clive Bunker, Mick Abrahams and Dave Pegg, together with John Wetton, Glenn Hughes, Robby Steinhardt, Wolfstone and Keith Emerson.[11]
In the early 2000s two live Wild Turkey albums were released, Final Performance (2000) and Live In Edinburgh (2001) and in 2006 the fourth studio album, You and Me in the Jungle, was recorded by Cornick, Pickford-Hopkins, Dyche and Gurl, who had all appeared on earlier albums. They were joined by Graham Williams (ex-Racing Cars) (guitar), John "Pugwash" Weathers (percussion) and former Jethro Tull drummer Clive Bunker, all of whom had played with Cornick in the past.[12]
Death
editCornick died in Hilo, Hawaii, on 28 August 2014, due to congestive heart failure.[13][14]
His death was widely reported in the media [15] and specialist publications like the Prog Magazine[16] and Rolling Stone.[17] Jethro Tull bandmate Ian Anderson paid tribute on the band's website.[18] Martin Barre also lamented the death of his friend.[19]
Discography
editWith Jethro Tull
edit- This Was (1968)
- Stand Up (1969)
- Benefit (1970)
- Living in the Past (1972 compilation)
- Nothing is Easy - Live at the Isle of Wight (1970 - released in 2004)
- Live at Carnegie Hall 1970 (1970 - released in 2015)
With Wild Turkey
edit- Battle Hymn (1971)
- Turkey (1972)
- Don't Dare To Forget (1974) (three new tracks on a four-disc sampler)
- Stealer of Years (1996)
- Final Performance (2000)
- Live In Edinburgh (2001)
- You & Me in the Jungle (2006)
With Karthago
edit- Rock 'N' Roll Testament (1975) Bellaphon 288-09-036
With Paris
edit- Paris (1976) - Zoom Club ZCRCD56
- Big Towne, 2061 (1976) - Zoom Club ZCRCD62
References
edit- ^ "Fricke's Picks Radio: Remembering Jethro Tull's Glenn Cornick". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 3 September 2014. Retrieved 29 August 2017.
- ^ "Glenn Cornick". The Official Jethro Tull Website. Archived from the original on 15 August 2007. Retrieved 7 August 2007.
- ^ a b "Ian Anderson: Remembering Glenn Cornick". YouTube. 6 September 2014. Archived from the original on 13 December 2021. Retrieved 25 May 2016.
- ^ Jethro Tull Biography at Marquee Club Archived 19 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved 14 September 2014
- ^ Remembering Jethro Tull's Glenn Cornick at Rolling Stone Archived 3 September 2014 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 14 September 2014
- ^ "Glenn Cornick". Jethro Tull. 24 April 1947. Archived from the original on 5 February 2015. Retrieved 25 May 2016.
- ^ "Glenn Cornick: April 23rd 1947 – August 29th 2014". Jethro Tull. Archived from the original on 1 September 2014. Retrieved 25 May 2016.
- ^ "Glenn Cornick's Complete Discography". proboards.com. Archived from the original on 9 February 2015. Retrieved 9 February 2015.
- ^ "Battle Hymn - Wild Turkey | Awards". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 2 September 2014. Retrieved 24 August 2014.
- ^ "Wild Turkey - Turkey". Discogs. Archived from the original on 23 June 2018. Retrieved 23 June 2018.
- ^ "Jethro Tull Tribute". Magnacarta.net. Archived from the original on 18 April 2017. Retrieved 24 August 2014.
- ^ Cornick, Glenn. "credits for You & Me in the Jungle". cornick.org. Archived from the original on 30 September 2011. Retrieved 16 August 2011.
- ^ "Former Jethro Tull Bass Player Glenn Cornick Dies". Billboard. 29 August 2014. Archived from the original on 4 September 2014. Retrieved 30 August 2014.
- ^ Bussewitz, Cathy (29 August 2014). "Former Jethro Tull bass player Glenn Cornick dies". Miami Herald. Archived from the original on 31 August 2014. Retrieved 29 August 2014.
- ^ "Glenn Cornick Obituary". Guardian.com. Retrieved 12 February 2019.
- ^ "Jethro Tull's Cornick dead at 67". Prog.teamrock.com. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 23 June 2018.
- ^ "Glenn Cornick, Original Jethro Tull Bassist, Dead at 67". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 23 June 2018. Retrieved 29 August 2017.
- ^ "Glenn Cornick: musician. April 23rd 1947 – August 29th 2014". Jethrotull.com. Archived from the original on 1 September 2014. Retrieved 30 August 2014.
- ^ Jim Clash (30 August 2014). "Martin Barre Recalls Jethro Tull Years With The Late Glenn Cornick, Aqualung". Forbes. Archived from the original on 6 February 2018. Retrieved 29 August 2017.
External links
edit- Glenn Cornick official website Archived 29 August 2004 at the Wayback Machine
- Glenn Cornick Biography on Jethro Tull website Archived 5 February 2015 at the Wayback Machine
- Discography for Glenn Cornick compiled by Charles Kenney and designed by Steve Gugerty @ The Jethro Tull chat page Archived 9 February 2015 at the Wayback Machine
- Glenn Cornick discography at Discogs