When ‘Bursting Out’ was released in 1978, it was the first official live album by Jethro Tull. I experienced it as a welcome addition to my Jethro Tull collection and have cherished it for a long time as one of the better live albums I had. The recordings were made during the ‘Heavy Horses’ tour. Of course I have the ‘New Shoes Edition’ of "Heavy Horses' (I have them all/recently completed with ‘Stand Up’). That ‘New Shoes Edition’ includes a DVD with ‘Live in Berne/may 1978”. Indeed a performance from the ‘Heavy Horses’ tour. It has exactly the same playlist as on ‘Bursting Out’ and the DVD even includes the TV commercial for ‘Bursting Out’. That is why I did not expect a separate special edition of ‘Bursting Out’. Moreover, I had my doubts about whether I should buy this ‘The Inflated Edition’. Especially since I already have the extra DVD ‘Live at Madison’ that came with it. Of course I ordered it anyway. That's how it goes as a Jethro Tull fan and collector. A great opportunity to compare some things. When Claude Nubs announced it, it was immediately clear to me that 'The Inflated Edition' would bring a completely different listening experience. From that one moment I was aware that I did not regret this purchase. With 'New Shoes' Claude reverberates through the entire room. With 'The Inflated' he is clearly audible in front of me on a stage. His "sit down and relax" is of course hilariously outclassed again by the powerful 'No Lullaby', but again with a much more emphatic 'There is a band in front of me on a stage' mix. The sound is good. The instruments are clearly distinguishable. I feel like I am among the audience. Exactly as it should be in a live experience, in my opinion. Ian Anderson's speeches are also free from unnecessary reverb. Clearly an improvement. Nice to hear how those speeches are more or less a rehearsed part of the show. The sound on the “live at Madison” DVD has also clearly improved. All in all, it shows once again that mixing an album is a profession in itself and that Steven Wilson represents the top class in this. Happy with this purchase that I reward with a 10.
