Ian Anderson (b. 1947)

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Biography

Ian Scott Anderson is a British musician best known for being the chief vocalist, flautist, and acoustic guitarist of the British rock band Jethro Tull. He is a multi-instrumentalist who also plays harmonica, keyboard, bass guitar, bouzouki, balalaika, saxophone, and a variety of whistles. His solo work began with Walk into Light in 1983; since then he has released another five albums, including the sequel to the 1972 Jethro Tull album Thick as a Brick, titled TaaB 2: Whatever Happened to Gerald Bostock? (2012).

In Their Own Words (5)

In the beginning Man created God; and in the image of Man created he him.

(text on back of album cover) , 1971

I may make you feel but I can't make you thinkYour sperm's in the gutter, your love's in the sink.

"Thick As a Brick". , 1972

The original Jethro Tull was a 19th century English agriculturist who invented a seed drill you see... the first automatic process where by small holes were made in Mother Earth and even smaller seeds were deposited one at a time and neetly covered over as a cat does after having been naughty.

GTK Ep 899. Broadcast 12th August 1974, Australian Broadcasting Corporation, interviewed by Gary Hyde. , 1974

Oh father high in heaven — smile down upon your sonWho's busy with his money games — his women and his gun.

"Hymn 43" , 1971

I don't think it's very easy to make friends with musicians. We're all a bit paranoid. It soon becomes very heavy.

Timeline

The story of Ian Anderson, told in moments.

1968 Event

Formed Jethro Tull. Named the band after an 18th-century agriculturalist because their manager picked it from a history book. Anderson played flute standing on one leg. Nobody else in rock was doing that.

How did a band named after an 18th-century farmer become progressive rock? Was that accidental?

1971 Event

Aqualung released. A concept album about homelessness, religion, and hypocrisy. The title track's opening riff became one of the most recognizable in rock. Anderson wrote it on acoustic guitar, not flute.

Is Aqualung about homelessness, religion, or both? What makes that opening riff so unforgettable?

1972 Event

Thick as a Brick. A single 44-minute track performed as if it were written by an 8-year-old prodigy. The album cover was a fake newspaper. Anderson was satirizing concept albums while making one.

Was Thick as a Brick a parody or a sincere concept album? Was the fake newspaper cover your idea?

1989 Event

Won the Grammy for Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance over Metallica. The audience booed. Anderson said he was as surprised as anyone. He'd been playing flute solos in the category of Metallica.

Did you really want a Grammy for hard rock over Metallica? What did you think when the audience booed?