Jethro Tull’s Cornick dead at 67

Glenn Cornick, Jethro Tull’s original bass player, has died.

The 67-year-old died of congestive heart failure at his home in Hawaii, it’s been reported.

Cornick was born on April 23, 1947 in Barrow-In-Furness and played in various groups before briefly joining Ian Anderson in the John Evan Band in 1967. The band soon split, leading the pair, along with guitarist Mick Abrahams, to form what would become Jethro Tull.

The bassist played on the first three Tull albums This Was, Stand Up and Benefit before he was “invited to leave” by the band’s manager Terry Ellis in 1970.

He formed Wild Turkey, recording the albums Battle Hymn, Turkey and four-track sampler Don’t Dare To Forget, before joining German band Karthago. He went on to form Paris with ex-Fleetwood Mac member Bob Welch.

Jethro Tull frontman Ian Anderson says in a statement: “It is with great sadness that we learned today of the passing of Glenn Cornick, bass player with Jethro Tull from the band’s 1968 inception until 1970. He had also played with the John Evan Band during 1967, so his contribution to the geographical transition from Blackpool to London and into the professional music scene was considerable.

“Glenn was a man of great bonhomie and ready to befriend anyone – especially fellow musicians. Always cheerful, he brought to the early stage performances of Jethro Tull a lively bravado, both as a personality and a musician.

“His background in the beat groups of the north of England and his broad knowledge of music were always helpful in establishing the arrangements of early Tull.

“During the many years since then, Glenn continued to play in various bands and was a frequent guest at Tull fan conventions, where he would join in with gusto to rekindle the musical moments of the early repertoire.

“We will miss him hugely.”

Cornick toured the US with Tull in 1970, an experience the bassist said was “fast and exciting.”

He told It’s Psychedelic Baby in 2011: “It was more fun than any young man could ever hope to enjoy. I loved being on the road, though the others weren’t so keen. We would go to the States for 30 days and play 30 different cities. It was fast and exciting and very hard work.

“We were playing on an equal level with all the great bands. We were friends with bands who, 18 months earlier, had been my heroes, including Jimi Hendrix, The Who, Led Zeppelin, Mountain, Johnny Winter, the Jeff Beck Group, Eric Clapton and Chuck Berry.

“I don’t think the band was ever better than we were at that time.”

Cornick is survived by his wife and three children.

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