I saw Jethro Tull a couple of years ago. Ian Anderson's flute playing was exquisite. Way better even than when we were young. I've been playing professionally all my life and I've played with some very good flute players. Ian Anderson was brilliant. I don't much care how he got there or who influenced him. Saying he copied his act from someone else is like saying the Beatles copied their act from Chuck Berry.

As for whether Jethro Tull is folky, some of the albums, and many songs on other albums, sound much more folky to me than 90% of other singer/songwriter music I hear. What sets these Tull songs apart from most other singer/songwriter material for me is that they have a distinct flavor of traditional music.