Epic performance in a legendary venue (the Ryman in Nashville) by a legendary troubadour singing a ballad about a legendary motorbike and playing some sweet guitar licks. He's quite a wordsmith too - "red hair and black leather, my favorite color scheme". Great line!.Dan said it right - he had that whole theater captivated. Thanks for the review SAD!
@@HisboiLRoi Thanks LRoi! Sounds like you were onboard early. I definitely remember Fairport from 60s FM radio but never really gravitated to RT until the 80s. I have a much better appreciation now than I did back in the day. Love his subtle nuanced approach to guitar. And he's a great lyricist. Take care man!
I first heard RT and Fairport Convention in 1970 as a High School Junior on Tucson's newly inaugurated freeform underground FM station, and became a fast fan. I have had the good fortune of seeing him live numerous times, both solo and with a band (but alas he had just left Fairport when I saw them). On more than one occasion during 1952VBL I have heard a nearby audience member ask "where is the other guitarist?"
One thought for you is to go to the Cropredy Festival that Fairport puts on in Cropredy, England every August. Richard Thompson doesn't make it every year, but he does make it frequently. I've been once, 2017 the 50th anniversary of Fairport Convention, it was fantastic, Judy Dyble was there as well as Iain Matthews. and Richard Thompson.
Bona fide genius. For me he's England's greatest songwriter *AND* our greatest guitarist. His singing's not too shabby either. He's been going nearly 60 (sixty) years. I first saw him live in the mid 80s; I've seen him twice in the last year or so, and he's as brilliant as ever.
Chuck knockin it outta the park AGAIN!! I've been a big fan of this guy with Fairport Convention, with his wife and solo. He does some cool stuff on the electric also!
Thanks Chaz! Glad you enjoyed. I like Richard's unique guitar style. Always tasteful and sometimes quirky. And like you say, equally proficient on acoustic and electric. Good songwriter too. In other news, the Ravens are hanging in there. A little worried about the O's. Need to get some pitchers!
Chaz, if you haven't already heard it, check out RT's searing cover of "Season of the Witch". It only appears on the soundtrack album for the "Crossing Jordan" TV show (a surprisingly great compilation in itself), but can be found on TH-cam.
1967 - Present - Fairport Convention, Richard & & Linda Thompson and solo. Equally fluent Acoustic or Electric and often compared to Dylan as a songwriter. You'll not get the full picture from comments. Check out Allmusic and dig in.
One further intresting thing about Richard. He was a very good friend of John Martyn and Nick Drake ( you have reacted to them both) . They often jam.ed together - wish I had been a fly on the wall.
Been privileged to have seen RT all the way from Fairport Convention through his duo with his then wife Linda into his solo years and his power trio. And yes A Sailor's Life ,which I requested, featured the then incredibly young Richard on lead guitar. Amazing player, brilliant songwriter
In the not so trivial trivia department, the Vincent Black Lightning, which was produced from 1948 to 1952, was the fastest production motorcycle of its time. Only 31 were built, and just 19 remain. The bike in the famous photo of Rolie Free breaking the speed record at Bonneville (over 150 mph), in the prone position clad only in swim trunks, was the very first Black Lightning. The bike that broke the Australian speed record in 1953 sold in 2018 for nearly $1,000,000, which is the world record for the highest price paid for a motorcycle.
A great singer; a brilliant songwriter; a superb guitarist; an extraordinary talent. Get the records, see him live - support great artists. The 1952 Black Lightning is a motorbike, not a car. He's British and became a key figure of the British folk-rock scene in the 1960s when he helped found the group, Fairport Convention. In the early 70s he went solo and has performed as a solo artist ever since. He is a brilliant musician on both acoustic and electric guitar - one of the best I've ever heard on record or seen live.
Richard Thompson is the single best British folk guitarist and you've heard him before on A SAILOR'S LIFE by Fairport Convention where they basically invented English Folk Rock which they pulled together on Leige and Lief...
Richard is English .... I dont think you have dug into English folk and folk rock have you :) In the 60's he was a part of Fairport Convention and since then struck with his wife then on his own, and is known as one of the graet singer songwriters, worldwide, mind , a powerful storyteller with a knack for a tune ...check him out
Well done Chuck. RT is a Brit, born in Notting Hill London. A true Folk hero who arguably has his main market now in the US. That notwithstanding he was a cornerstone of Folkrock masters Fairport Convention for many years then continued acclaim as a husband wife due of Richard and Linda Thompson before embarking on his mega solo career. Welcome to his world. He is a master guitarist either electric or acoustic and a consummate songwriter. His songs are incredible works of human observation. If you storytelling try ‚Beeswing‘ next, or if something much darker is your thing then ‚Cold Kisses‘, a very clever observation of the sometimes dodgy male psychi. Whether solo or with a full band RT is a musical Tour de Force!
Great choice. I also recommend people listen to "The Calvary Cross", "Beeswing" and "I Misunderstood". Calvary and I Misunderstood have more of a Rock arrangement.
If there was an award for the greatest musical output with the least amount of recognition, Richard Thompson would win in a landslide.
Epic performance in a legendary venue (the Ryman in Nashville) by a legendary troubadour singing a ballad about a legendary motorbike and playing some sweet guitar licks. He's quite a wordsmith too - "red hair and black leather, my favorite color scheme". Great line!.Dan said it right - he had that whole theater captivated. Thanks for the review SAD!
Great listen Chuck! Thanks!
Great choice Chuck! I've been an RT fan since I was 16.
@@HisboiLRoi Thanks LRoi! Sounds like you were onboard early. I definitely remember Fairport from 60s FM radio but never really gravitated to RT until the 80s. I have a much better appreciation now than I did back in the day. Love his subtle nuanced approach to guitar. And he's a great lyricist. Take care man!
I first heard RT and Fairport Convention in 1970 as a High School Junior on Tucson's newly inaugurated freeform underground FM station, and became a fast fan. I have had the good fortune of seeing him live numerous times, both solo and with a band (but alas he had just left Fairport when I saw them). On more than one occasion during 1952VBL I have heard a nearby audience member ask "where is the other guitarist?"
Thanks for sharing HisboiLRoi!
One thought for you is to go to the Cropredy Festival that Fairport puts on in Cropredy, England every August. Richard Thompson doesn't make it every year, but he does make it frequently. I've been once, 2017 the 50th anniversary of Fairport Convention, it was fantastic, Judy Dyble was there as well as Iain Matthews. and Richard Thompson.
Bona fide genius. For me he's England's greatest songwriter *AND* our greatest guitarist. His singing's not too shabby either. He's been going nearly 60 (sixty) years. I first saw him live in the mid 80s; I've seen him twice in the last year or so, and he's as brilliant as ever.
Chuck knockin it outta the park AGAIN!! I've been a big fan of this guy with Fairport Convention, with his wife and solo. He does some cool stuff on the electric also!
Thanks Chaz! Glad you enjoyed. I like Richard's unique guitar style. Always tasteful and sometimes quirky. And like you say, equally proficient on acoustic and electric. Good songwriter too. In other news, the Ravens are hanging in there. A little worried about the O's. Need to get some pitchers!
Chaz, if you haven't already heard it, check out RT's searing cover of "Season of the Witch". It only appears on the soundtrack album for the "Crossing Jordan" TV show (a surprisingly great compilation in itself), but can be found on TH-cam.
1967 - Present - Fairport Convention, Richard & & Linda Thompson and solo. Equally fluent Acoustic or Electric and often compared to Dylan as a songwriter. You'll not get the full picture from comments. Check out Allmusic and dig in.
One further intresting thing about Richard. He was a very good friend of John Martyn and Nick Drake ( you have reacted to them both) . They often jam.ed together - wish I had been a fly on the wall.
Been privileged to have seen RT all the way from Fairport Convention through his duo with his then wife Linda into his solo years and his power trio. And yes A Sailor's Life ,which I requested, featured the then incredibly young Richard on lead guitar. Amazing player, brilliant songwriter
In the not so trivial trivia department, the Vincent Black Lightning, which was produced from 1948 to 1952, was the fastest production motorcycle of its time. Only 31 were built, and just 19 remain. The bike in the famous photo of Rolie Free breaking the speed record at Bonneville (over 150 mph), in the prone position clad only in swim trunks, was the very first Black Lightning. The bike that broke the Australian speed record in 1953 sold in 2018 for nearly $1,000,000, which is the world record for the highest price paid for a motorcycle.
Thanks for the details!
One of my favorite songs. Thanks for getting to it...
Thanks for watching!
A great singer; a brilliant songwriter; a superb guitarist; an extraordinary talent. Get the records, see him live - support great artists.
The 1952 Black Lightning is a motorbike, not a car. He's British and became a key figure of the British folk-rock scene in the 1960s when he helped found the group, Fairport Convention. In the early 70s he went solo and has performed as a solo artist ever since. He is a brilliant musician on both acoustic and electric guitar - one of the best I've ever heard on record or seen live.
Thanks for the info!
His other most-popular work is "Beeswing" - more tender and blue, but a story too
You're my two favorite members of Sight After Dark.
🥰😆 Thanks!
Richard Thompson is the single best British folk guitarist and you've heard him before on A SAILOR'S LIFE by Fairport Convention where they basically invented English Folk Rock which they pulled together on Leige and Lief...
One of Time Magazines top 100 popular songs. Richard is also invariably comfortably in the top 50 best guitarists of most lists.
Great songwriter and amazing guitar player.
for fun, check out his playful cover of Oops! I Did It Again.
From "1000 Years of Popular Music".
check out more Richard Thompson and go down the rabbit hole of Fairport Convention - check out Sloth.
Richard is English .... I dont think you have dug into English folk and folk rock have you :) In the 60's he was a part of Fairport Convention and since then struck with his wife then on his own, and is known as one of the graet singer songwriters, worldwide, mind , a powerful storyteller with a knack for a tune ...check him out
Thanks for the info! We haven't dug as deep as we should!
Well done Chuck. RT is a Brit, born in Notting Hill London. A true Folk hero who arguably has his main market now in the US. That notwithstanding he was a cornerstone of Folkrock masters Fairport Convention for many years then continued acclaim as a husband wife due of Richard and Linda Thompson before embarking on his mega solo career.
Welcome to his world. He is a master guitarist either electric or acoustic and a consummate songwriter. His songs are incredible works of human observation. If you storytelling try ‚Beeswing‘ next, or if something much darker is your thing then ‚Cold Kisses‘, a very clever observation of the sometimes dodgy male psychi.
Whether solo or with a full band RT is a musical Tour de Force!
Thanks Michael! I'm headed off to listen to "Cold Kisses" now, Thanks for the recommendation.
Great choice. I also recommend people listen to "The Calvary Cross", "Beeswing" and "I Misunderstood". Calvary and I Misunderstood have more of a Rock arrangement.
Thanks for the recommendations An Cat!
Superb!!
Richard is the man, check out his electric work with Fairport. XX
About a motorcycle
Thanks!
Had this cassette in the 80s
Song about a outlaw biker and his red haired girl
Great musician
It's a bike ! don't you ride bikes ? en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vincent_Black_Lightning
Wow:))!