50th anniversary vinyl reissue of Jethro Tull’s 1972 album ‘Thick as a Brick’ due out in July

A 50th anniversary vinyl reissue of Jethro Tull‘s classic 1972 concept album Thick as a Brick will be released on July 29.

The reissue will offer a recreation of the original album’s unique packaging, which featured a 12-page broadsheet newspaper that included fake news articles, a crossword puzzle, a connect-the-dots puzzle and more.

The half-speed-mastered LP, which features acclaimed prog-rock studio whiz Steven Wilson‘s 2012 mix of the album, can be preordered now.

Thick as a Brick, which featured one long, continuous song, was released in March 1972 and became Jethro Tull’s first album to top the Billboard 200 chart, spending two weeks at #1 in June of that year.

The concept behind Thick as a Brick is that the album’s lyrics came from an epic poem written by an 8-year-old boy named Gerald Bostock, a character created by front man Ian Anderson.

The newspaper, dubbed The St. Cleve Chronicle & Linwell Advertiser, was written by Anderson and two of his Tull bandmates — keyboardist John Evan and bassist Jeffrey Hammond — and includes a review of the album itself.

You can check out a video of Anderson showing off the vinyl reissue at Jethro Tull’s official Facebook page.

Meanwhile, the long-out-of-print deluxe 40th anniversary CD/DVD version of Thick as a Brick will be made available again on October 7 and can be preordered now.

The CD/DVD set includes stereo and 5.1 surround mixes of the album by Wilson, the original mix and a book featuring a recreation of the newspaper, an interview with Anderson, rare photos and more.