Squonk wrote
This must be a brilliant series Bob, better than the Jools Holland show.
I am also getting quite turned on to Richard Thomson.
What would be the best albums to start with?
Also who are the other muso's in the first video, look kind of familiar but just cant get the old memory going? ?
Off the top of my head Ray La Montange (duh!) Elvis Costello (duh!) Nick Lowe (on acoustic guitar), Allan Toussaint on piano, Richard Thompson on electric guitar, Levon Helm plays drums but does not sing. The other electric guitarist is, I think, Larry Campbell who was in Dylan's band for a while and worked with Helm on his two solo albums. Then there's Elvis's band The Imposters who (last time I checked) were Steve Nieve on keyboards, Pete Thomas on drums and Davey Faragher on bass.
Best Thompson albums to start with.... well there's only about 40 to chose from ?
Depends on where you want to start in a long-ish career.
For british folk-rock get Richard and Linda Thompson's "I Want To See the Bright Lights Tonight".
For more contemporary sounds and more electric guitar get "Rumor and Sigh" or the recent "Sweet Warrior". If you can stand a little more adventurous production then head for "Mirror Blue" which has some really good songs on it and an atypical (for Thompson) Crowded House-ish production from Mitchell Froom. "Rumor and Sigh" generally seems to be going quite cheap when it's in the shops. I think that's one of his strongest albums.
For a darker, more electric take on the british folk-rock sound consider Richard & Linda's "Shoot Out The Lights" or "Pour Down Like Silver"
I have just about all of his output. The one's I've listed above seem like good "entry points" to me. There's a very comprehensive box set recently released "Walking On A Wire" but that might be pricey.
