THE man who put the flute into rock brought an acoustic, stripped-down version of Jethro Tull to York’s Grand Opera House – and a packed house of devoted fans loved it.

I remember founder member Ian Anderson from his wild-haired and equally wild-eyed Top Of The Pops appearances with the band in the early 1970s, when it was at the height of its commercial success with great hits such as Living In The Past.

That hair has long gone, but the talent of this multi-instrumentalist – he plays the acoustic guitar and sings as much and as well as he plays the flute – certainly hasn’t gone away.

What an eclectic mix of musical styles and influences Jethro Tull have adopted over the years, from folk rock and hard rock to blues, classical and jazz.

The songs’ subject matter was startlingly wide-ranging – even the EU’s agricultural policies were the focus of one, called Set Aside.

Anderson, accompanied just by German guitarist Florian Ophale and accordionist, pianist and percussionist John O’Hara, seemed to revel in the intimate atmosphere of the Grand Opera House.

He was in relaxed, jokey mood as the evening progressed.

However, a highlight from this concert for me was actually provided not by Anderson but by Ophale, who played a stunning solo apparently written by him when he was only eight, and the most extraordinary version I have heard of Bach’s Toccata and Fugue in D minor, performed on the electric guitar rather than the traditional organ.