On the topic of Richard Thompson, a friend of mind in Portland, Oregon, knowing I'm a fan of
Richard Thompson and Fairport. sent me this article today a few might enjoy reading.
http://www.oregonlive.com/music/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/entertainment/1138766103157040.xml&coll=7 - or -
Thompson's treasure box Friday, February 03, 2006
MARTY HUGHLEY
For more than a decade, about once a year, English guitarist and singer Richard Thompson has come to Portland to play, usually at the Aladdin Theater. Even on a rainy day, it's not uncommon to see his fans lining up outside the building by 2 or 3 in the afternoon for an 8 p.m. show, so intent are they on getting a seat up close.
Thompson's shows at the Aladdin always sell out, and the audiences are both knowledgeable and worshipful. If you saw a young artist on the rise greeted with such intensity you'd expect his records to start racing up the charts and his subsequent shows to leapfrog into bigger and bigger halls. And yet Thompson retains his peculiar status as a rock demi-legend.
In the words of Thompson archivist Nigel Schofield, "His is not music which attracts the casual record buyer, even though certain of his albums come highly recommended by critics, fellow rock stars, record company executives and all-time-best charts and polls."
The boxed set "RT -- the Life and Music of Richard Thompson," due out on Tuesday, is not made for the casual record buyer. It's five discs and more than 51/2 hours of music with nary a hit single to be found. That is, if you don't count Thompson cover versions of the Who's "Substitute," Squeeze's "Tempted" and -- yes, really -- Britney Spears' "Oops, I Did it Again."
There are guitar epics ("Calvary Cross"), silly novelty tunes ("My Daddy Is a Mummy"), traditional folk songs ("Loch Lomond") funny topical songs (the wardrobe-malfunction riposte "Dear Janet Jackson") and tragic love songs (several varieties). And there's enough depth and subtlety to both the emotionally complex, character-driven writing and the tradition-steeped, adventure-loving musicianship to absorb a patient listener for ages.
It's also not a glossy-sounding set. The majority of the tracks are live versions, a few of them are demos, and more often than not the crowd noise and room ambience are noticeable characteristics.
But in gearing this as treasure trove for the RT faithful, rather than as a lure for the uninitiated, compilation producer Neil Wayne may have created the best Thompson primer after all. Chances are that once you're intrigued, you'll be engrossed, so why not dive in full bore?
The five discs are divided thematically in a fashion that flows better than the chock-a-block chronology of the earlier Thompson boxed set "Watching the Dark." The theme of disc one, "Walking the Long Miles Home," isn't especially clear; ostensibly, its selections reflect the singer's opinions and observations on the world. But the others divide nicely into essentials, extended guitar workouts, covers and rarities.
For longtime fans, there's enough spark and spontaneity in the familiar songs to make them entirely fresh. Yet the versions retain the marvelous melodic contours and Thompson's remarkable seat-of-the-pants precision; if they are sometimes slightly less polished, they are never less engaging.
And the sheer breadth of his work here is stunning. With tracks dating back as far as 1971, there's plenty of his seminal folk-rock innovations, his finely wrought and literate ballads, riveting roots rock, and such fun surprises as a Cajun-flavored version of the rockabilly nugget "Flying Saucers Rock 'n' Roll" and a crowd favorite called "The Story of Hamlet," in which Broadway songsmith Frank Loesser translated Shakespeare for the cheap seats.
Where the set becomes a slog for the non-devout is in Schofield's mammoth liner notes, 168 pages worth. The career history is so stuffed with discographical asides and other arcana that it's nearly impossible to follow as a biographical or critical study of Thompson.
All the same, next time he comes to town, those fans waiting outside the Aladdin will know every detail.
