Just bought Richard Thompson’ Daring Adventures on CD and iPod. I only had it on vinyl and I listen to music almost exclusively on iPod these days. It’s a much underrated Thompson album. Missie How You Let Me Down and Long Dead Love are classic bitter lovelorn dirges, actually my favourites of his large collection in the genre. Al Bowlly's in Heaven everyone recognises as a classic that only Thompson could write, with its pitch perfect evocation of a different era of music, the ’30s, and its Djangoish guitar and languid tune. Then there are Nearly in Love and Dead Man's Handle, close cousins of Wall of Death, songs in which the jolly rolling rhythm sets up a piquant contrast with the bitter lyrics. Valerie segues from rock ’n roll (which Thompson always plays beautifully) into a wonderful tight jig and How Will I Ever Be Simple Again is one of his great store of heart-breaking ballads. The greatest living British singer-songwriter-guitarist no contest.
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AuthorI'm a writer whose interests include the biological revolution happening now, the relationship between art and science, jazz, and the state of the planet Archives
March 2016
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