And Vice Versa

And Vice Versa

Ian Anderson is Jethro Tull, for all intents and purposes. He is the group’s lead singer, flautist, accoustical guitarist, songwriter, spokesman and egotist. The group has been together about two and one half years and has been successful in quest of fame but the search for fortune hasn’t yet ended. If it weren’t for Anderson, the group would have probably never crossed the Atlantic. The four musicians in the group aside from Anderson possess little in the way of personalities, but Anderson really doesn’t have one either.

Anderson is to Jethro Tull as Mick Jagger is to the Stones, but to a much greater degree of snobbery. In our interviews, he showed himself as a little boy who will put up with only things that go his way. Actually, it was hard to talk with him as I was honored by his down home attitude; I watched him eat dinner on two separate occasions. His eating habits do leave something to be desired, but proved he could very easily be mistaken for Mr. Middle America and his views indicate he would fall into the anguished “silent majority.”

He admits to being an introverted type of person, so it was even harder to get him to respond when his mouth was overflowing with a load of mashed potatoes. However, he sure knows how to choose salad dressing and decide if he might prefer soup. It was an education for me. Normally, I just sit and talk with performers back stage, in a public relations office or in their hotel room but sitting in the restaurant at the Continental Hyatt House in Los Angeles shows a lot more class.

He will admit he’s reluctant to meet other people, but still is firmly convinced he’s the same person on and off stage. On stage, however, he is profoundly entertaining and can be frequently observed standing on one leg, assuming unorthodox positions and accomplishing unusual gymnastical feats that might possibly be worthy of first place ribbons. Off stage, he is tempermental, characteristically dull and takes pride in the selection of beverages. He justifies his dual personalities (actually he is convinced he has only one) as “reacting differently under different circumstances. Sometimes I’m very happy and sometimes very unhappy. Working as often as I do has changed my mental condition but I’m happier now than before I got married three months and two days ago. Before my marriage, my main worry was when was I going to get married,” he disclosed. It should be noted that the length of his marriage was settled upon after he discussed it with his bride who sat next to him during the interview. It might have helped if I would have timed his discussion, but I believe it to be about three minutes.

Last year, Jethro Tull toured the United States for six months, spent another three months touring Europe and by the time they had finished recording their albums, they had but one week off to rest. Anderson enjoys the constant work which is consistent with his ability to strike me queerly. “It’s a lot more bearable to play every night,” he explained. “I used to be quite stable, but sooner or later I will have to suffer some kind of mental disorder from working so much. I worry quite a bit about a lot of things. I try and sort everything out from within without cracking up and if it works, it would really be quite a thing.” He sees any frustrations he occasionally feels as growing pains that come and go.

Anderson said that if he hadn’t become a musician, he might have become a teacher. “If I would have become a teacher, I would have surely cracked up. 50% of the teachers I had had already cracked up. Things are all right, really.” Before becoming a musician, he had been enrolled in art school and has had no formal musical training.

When one sees Jethro Tull on stage, it passes through one’s mind that Anderson might be on some type of drug. He said, however, he doesn’t take any drugs and never even smoked marijuana. He feels that people who smoke pot may possibly never mature and don’t know their own minds. He does realize that an overwhelmingly majority of rock performers do use artificial stimulants and depressants, but he pays it little mind. He also agrees that a lot of people in the audiences use drugs, but he doesn’t really care too much about audiences to say the least.

Sharply applauded and also criticized for his body movements on stage, he doesn’t consider himself an actor. He feels he’s just responding to hearing his own music played. The wild, unnatural looking man says he never noticed the movements until it was pointed out to him during a recording session. He really doesn’t concern himself with the audience and isn’t inspired by great applause. He says he plays music for himself, not for the audience.

Anderson is very critical of music critics, and journalists in general. He feels they are too quick to classify music and insists his music is nothing more than “pop music.” He has an apparent distaste for writers who call it jazz, blues or anything other than his personal definition. (This might explain his undying apathy and apparent boredom during our interview.) He even shunned England’s Melody Maker that placed his group second best in a popularity poll, putting him in front of the Stones and right behind the Beatles. “We’re not more popular than the Stones,” he admits. “We’re into two totally different things. We’re not even more popular than Led Zepplin ...”

Jethro Tull has completed four tours of the United States. Anderson claims to be a conservative person and admits the social atmosphere in the USA tends to depress him. Watching him eat his dinner tended to depress me. He isn’t a conservative eater. His views on America, mostly moderate, tend to be consistent with his middle American makeup. His views might enflame both sides although I’m sure he meant them to have great influence.

“There are two sides and neither of them have any compassion for the other. I really don’t have much time to get interested in the situation here, but I think if people spoke a little softer, things might get better,” he indicated between bites of his pork chops. He said that people in his native England aren’t nearly as militant as the people are in America. He is of the opinion that there isn’t a simple solution to the Vietnam conflict, but he opposes anyone’s involvement in any war but persisted to admit the United States does have a responsibility to the world.

The arrogant leader said that he has little to do with the other members of Jethro Tull off stage. He says that all of the members have a great deal of respect for each other but it appears they regard Anderson as another giant who should be respected without question, or else they fear dismissal from the group. Mick Abrahams, now with " Bloodwyn Pig, had been a member of the group until a year ago when Anderson gave him his walking papers because of an apparent “clash of personalities.” Anderson speaks of the former member as though he feared Abrahams might take away from his performance and leadership abilities.

Rock stars are generally praised by their fans to a point of repulsion. Anderson is the perfect example of being hyped as some kind of superman whose superiority is tangible. In reality, he seems to think he’s a super human being with the right to be treated in a fitting manner. However, he exemplifies what President Nixon dreams about at night; the common man with average needs and compassion for moderation.

Anderson does seem to have an apparent skill to answer all question although he does contradict himself at times. His personality is his main deficit while his worry of mental disorders seems a little unreal. This should not be confused as my feeling towards Ian Anderson, the performer of critical reknown and blooming talents, as it’s not.

Jeff Sherwood