IT'S not often you see true showmanship in rock music these days, so it's just as well some of the true characters are still touring.

Jethro Tull's Ian Anderson is one of them. The goggle-eyed frontman and guitarist Martin Barre, backed by a formidable group of musicians, came to York with an acoustic tour, showcasing some of their old hits and new compositions.

There was no support; instead, they had invited a special guest to play with them, young virtuoso violinist Anna Phoebe.

From the outset, the pace was breath-taking. Starting out with a storming blues number from the band's beginnings in 1968, they peeled back the years in a blaze of storytelling and a storming set.

The band - complete with pianist/ accordionist John O'Hara; drummer James Duncan and bass guitarist David Goodier - warmed up the crowd with a fantastic version of hit Living In The Past, rather more pared down than the original psychedelic version, Anderson's flute soaring and sweeping the song along.

This set the tone for the rest of the evening, as Anderson and Phoebe, who is an incredible violinist, made their instruments sing, wail and moan, playing them off against each other in a cacophony of gorgeous sound and a whirl of flamboyant performance.

Stand-out tunes included Phoebe's haunting composition Gypsy; the hippy-sentiments of The Jack In The Green; new tune The Donkey And The Drum, with its exotic, Middle Eastern feel, made complete by the warmth of the tones of the acoustic bass; the drawn-out Thick As A Brick, with its folkie start and full-on rocked-out end; and, as Anderson put it, the "porno jazz" of Bach's Bourrée.

Throughout the set, Barre didn't look completely comfortable with an acoustic guitar in hand; though when he conceded and played an electric version for the encore, he and the crowd had a smile on their faces.