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Acoustic Classics II
''Acoustic Classics II'' is the seventeenth solo studio album by British singer-songwriter Richard Thompson. It was released by Beeswing Records on 10 August 2017. Background Acoustic Classics II is the second acoustic compilation album by Richard Thompson. The songs range from his time in Fairport Convention, as half of a duo with Linda Thompson and as a solo artist. The album was released on vinyl, CD and digital download. Critical reception On the ''Metacritic'' website, which aggregates reviews from critics and assigns a normalised rating out of 100, ''Acoustic Classics II ''received a score of 78, based on 1 mixed and 4 positive reviews. Among the critics that gave the album positive reviews, '' Uncut'' called the album "an unalloyed treat" adding that "there's something fundamentally satisfying about Thompson unplugged". Andy Gill writing in ''The Independent'' states that "there’s no dip in quality here as Richard Thompson revisits material" and ''Folk Radio UK'' c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Richard Thompson (musician)
Richard Thompson (born 3 April 1949) is an English singer, songwriter, and guitarist. Thompson first gained prominence in the late 1960s as the lead guitarist and songwriter for the folk rock group Fairport Convention, which he had co-founded in 1967. After departing the group in 1971, Thompson released his debut solo album ''Henry the Human Fly'' in 1972. The next year, he formed a duo with his wife Linda Thompson (singer), Linda Thompson, which produced six albums, including the critically acclaimed ''I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight'' (1974) and ''Shoot Out the Lights'' (1982). After the dissolution of the duo, Thompson revived his solo career with the release of ''Hand of Kindness'' in 1983. He has released eighteen solo studio albums. Three of his albums''Rumor and Sigh'' (1991), ''You? Me? Us?'' (1996), and ''Dream Attic'' (2010)have been nominated for Grammy Awards, while ''Still (Richard Thompson album), Still'' (2015) was his first UK Top Ten album. He continue ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Uncut (magazine)
''Uncut'' is a monthly magazine based in London. It is available across the English-speaking world, and focuses on music, but also includes film and books sections. A DVD magazine under the ''Uncut'' brand was published quarterly from 2005 to 2006. The magazine was acquired in 2019 by Singaporean music company BandLab Technologies, and was published by NME Networks from December 2021 to August 2023, when the brand was sold to Kelsey Media. ''Uncut'' (main magazine) ''Uncut'' was launched in May 1997 by IPC as "a monthly magazine aimed at 25- to 45-year-old men that focuses on music and movies", edited by Allan Jones (former editor of '' Melody Maker''). Jones has stated that " e idea for Uncut came from my own disenchantment about what I was doing with ''Melody Maker''. There was a publishing initiative to make the audience younger; I was getting older and they wanted to take the readers further away from me", specifically referring to the then dominant Britpop genre. Accordi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
What We Did On Our Holidays
''What We Did on Our Holidays'' (released as ''Fairport Convention'' in the United States) is the second studio album by the English folk rock band Fairport Convention, released in December 1968. It was their first album to feature singer-songwriter Sandy Denny. The album also showed a move towards the folk rock for which the band became noted, including tracks later to become perennial favourites such as "Fotheringay" and the song traditionally used to close live concerts, " Meet on the Ledge". History Following the departure of Judy Dyble, the band conducted auditions for a replacement singer, and Sandy Denny became the obvious choice. Simon Nicol has said "it was a one horse race really... she stood out like a clean glass in a sink full of dirty dishes". Denny joined the group in May 1968 and had been touring with them for several months before sessions for the second album began. According to author Richie Unterberger Denny's "haunting, ethereal vocals gave Fairport a big b ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Meet On The Ledge
"Meet on the Ledge" is a song written by British singer-songwriter Richard Thompson and recorded by British folk rock band Fairport Convention in 1968 on Island Records. It was their second single. Background The song was taken from the album ''What We Did on Our Holidays''. The band had performed the song on the 1969 launch of ''From the Roundhouse'', a short-lived BBC television youth and arts programme about the London "underground scene". The vocals were performed by Sandy Denny and Iain Matthews. The song's title came from a large, low-hanging tree limb on which Richard Thompson used to play as a child, and which he and his friends had dubbed "The Ledge". Reception Thompson has acknowledged that some people interpret "the ledge" as some sort of code for the afterlife and that it is popular at funerals. In an interview with ''Mojo'' magazine in March 2011, Thompson said: "The hardest thing about being a 17-year-old songwriter is that you're embarrassed – you're never g ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hand Of Kindness
__NOTOC__ ''Hand of Kindness'' is the third solo album by singer/songwriter/guitarist Richard Thompson. It was recorded and released in 1983, after a ten year collaboration with former wife Linda Thompson. It is his first album of original solo material since '' Henry the Human Fly'' (1972). Background and details After having separated from Linda, and the "Tour From Hell" to promote the couple's '' Shoot Out the Lights'', Richard resumed his own career as a recording and performing artist. Several songs feature the twin saxophones of Pete Zorn and Pete Thomas, and for about 18 months after the release of ''Hand of Kindness'', Thompson toured with his "Big Band" that featured the two sax players prominently. The album opens with " Tear-Stained Letter", later a country music top ten hit for Jo-El Sonnier. In 2021, Thompson's ex-wife Linda cited album track "How I Wanted To" as her favorite of her former husband's songs. The album's cover photo features Thompson holding an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Old Kit Bag
__NOTOC__ ''The Old Kit Bag'' is the eleventh studio album by British folk rock singer-songwriter and guitarist Richard Thompson, released in 2003 on the Cooking Vinyl label. Background The title refers to the World War I marching song "Pack Up Your Troubles in Your Old Kit-Bag". When asked if the album had a theme, Thompson had no immediate answer, then said "I suppose the title is a theme of sorts. It's a reference to the old World War I song, 'Pack up your troubles in your old kit bag,' which is about smiling and whistling a happy tune as the Germans rain shells down on you." After years of being a prestigious but small-selling signing with a big label, Thompson signed with the small, independent and independently-minded Cooking Vinyl label in 2002. The first fruits of this new partnership was ''The Old Kit Bag''. Thompson had financed the recording himself and relied on his new label for marketing and distribution ("I should have started doing that years ago because it mea ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Amnesia (Richard Thompson Album)
''Amnesia'' is the sixth studio album by Richard Thompson, recorded and released in 1988. After the lackluster sales of '' Across a Crowded Room'' (1985) and '' Daring Adventures'' (1986), Polydor declined their option to renew their contract with Thompson. Thompson's then manager Gary Stamler negotiated a deal with Capitol Records and Thompson cut his first album for his new label in 1988. This was a good time for Thompson to be at Capitol: at the time the label was managed by Hale Milgrim, who was already a fan of Thompson and his work. Thus Capitol invested more money and effort into promoting Thompson than had been the case in the past and with other labels. Mitchell Froom was retained as producer, and the album was again recorded in Los Angeles with American session musicians providing most of the backing. Thompson still used British players to lend specifically British touches to some songs. In particular long-time collaborators John Kirkpatrick, Aly Bain and Philip Pi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hokey Pokey (album)
''Hokey Pokey'' is the second album by the British duo of singer Linda Thompson and singer/songwriter/guitarist Richard Thompson. It was recorded in the autumn of 1974 and released in the year 1975. Much of the material on the ''Hokey Pokey'' album was written sometime before the album was recorded and even predates the Thompsons' conversion to Islam. In terms of musical style Thompson's songwriting on this album reflects a number of British styles despite not being in the English folk-rock style of "Bright Lights": Music Hall, English hymns, traditional brass bands, pub sing-alongs and even the double entendres of George Formby are all discernible. In many cases, Thompson juxtaposes an upbeat tune with a bleak lyric. It was voted number 604 in the third edition of Colin Larkin's ''All Time Top 1000 Albums'' (2000). Track listing All songs written by Richard Thompson except as noted. #"Hokey Pokey (The Ice Cream Song)" #"I'll Regret It All in the Morning" #"Smiffy's Glass Ey ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pour Down Like Silver
''Pour Down Like Silver'' is the third album by the British duo of singer-songwriter and guitarist Richard and vocalist Linda Thompson. It was recorded in the summer of 1975 and released in November 1975 on the Island Records label. Background The Thompsons had adopted the Sufi faith in 1974 and had moved into a commune in London. The songs on this album reflect their new faith and the relief that Richard Thompson had found in that faith. It seems that various and conflicting pressures were bearing down on the duo at the time. *Linda Thompson: '...At one point our Sheikh forbade Richard to do music... On the other hand, he always encouraged me, "you have a voice and you've got to sing".' Humphries, Patrick, ''Richard Thompson – The Biography'', Schirmer, 1997. * Jo Lustig (managing the Thompsons at the time): 'Richard came to me and said "look, my Mullah doesn't want me to play electric guitar. I don't know what I'm going to do about my career... I'm not going to be working. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Unhalfbricking
''Unhalfbricking'' is the third studio album by the English folk rock band Fairport Convention and their second album released in 1969. It is seen as a transitional album in their history and marked a further musical move away from American influences towards more traditional English folk songs that had begun on their previous album, '' What We Did on Our Holidays'' and reached its peak on the follow-up, '' Liege & Lief'', released later the same year. The album features several Bob Dylan songs, which he had not yet released. It also features Sandy Denny's signature song " Who Knows Where the Time Goes?", which was subsequently covered by many other performers and is now regarded as a classic. The only traditional song on the album, " A Sailor's Life", is seen as pivotal in the development of English folk rock music. Changes in the line-up of the band, due not only to its musical direction but also to external events, mark this album as a turning point in the band's history. 196 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
You? Me? Us?
''You? Me? Us?'' is the ninth studio album by British singer-songwriter Richard Thompson released in April 1996 via Capitol Records. It was Thompson's fourth album for the label, his fifth with Mitchell Froom producing and his second to be nominated for a Grammy Award. Thompson's son Teddy from his first marriage (to Linda Thompson) Teddy sings backing vocals on disc 2. Music The album is split into two discs. Disc one, ''Voltage Enhanced'', is recorded with a band and is largely electric. Disc two, ''Nude'' is largely acoustic with just violin or Danny Thompson's double bass for accompaniment. Two songs, "Razor Dance" and "Hide It Away", are included on both discs. The songs on ''you? me? us?'' are notable for the metrical complexity and richness of lyrics and Thompson's guitar work. His acoustic guitar playing is highlighted on the ''Nude'' disc. His electric playing is to the fore on "Put It There Pal" and "Bank Vault In Heaven" on the ''Voltage Enhanced'' disc. Trac ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Across A Crowded Room
__NOTOC__ ''Across a Crowded Room'' is the fourth solo album by Richard Thompson released in 1985, on both vinyl and CD. As of 2019, it remains his final collaboration with producer Joe Boyd (who had produced ''Shoot Out the Lights''), as well as his last studio album to have been fully recorded in England. The album gives its name to the film ''Richard Thompson: Across a Crowded Room'', a concert film shot at a 1985 performance at Barrymore's in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, which focuses on material from the album. Reception ''Spin'' wrote, "Richard's command is such that his instrument serves as an eloquent extension of his limited vocal range, punctuating and amplifying each song. He puts nimble ax-wielders like Eddie Van Halen and Adrian Belew to shame, refusing to sacrifice a single note or nuance, even at high speed. As rewarding as any you'll hear all year. Track listing All songs written by Richard Thompson. #"When the Spell Is Broken" – 4:31 #"You Don't Say" – 3:35 #"I ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
