Ian Anderson

Jethro Tull fans will discover Ian Anderson's gentler side in his solo work. Anderson's famous, impish vocal stylings are still here -- he sounds like an old friend on the verge of turning on you -- but the music is positively sprightly. Flute glissandos and percussive flourishes gambol in the air like hummingbirds, shaking off downy feathers of notes that float in the sun. Nearly every trace of chilly Anglo sobriety melts away, leaving a soft sparkling dew. These tunes make it even harder to believe that Anderson's band won a Grammy for "Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance" in 1989.