Richard Thompson, A Solitary Life

Note that this docu was made in 2003. RT has moved to the East coast as of 2019. New Love. Search for "richard-thompsons-winding-road-leads-to-montclair". Saw him with a Fairport reunion in the min 90s, a buhch of times solo, and again in Saybrook CT 2023. Winding road indeed! His writing perfectly illustrates the permutations of the heart and the ineffability of the human soul. and...God I miss Billy Connolly - RIP.

An aside that he was a grammar school boy . Indeed , we were at William Ellis school at the same time . No mention of Paul Ghosh and another boy who’s name escapes me . The story is that the head called him in , berated him for all the guitar “ nonsense “ and warned him not to fail his “A “ levels. Six months later they played the Albert Hall 😂

Really good at explaining the how's and why's of Richard Thompson's life, especially with the esteemed and missed John Peel. (nostalgia my middle name)

Wow! I've always been somewhat a fan, mostly Fairport. This documentary certainly opened my eyes wider. Thanks for posting this.

I’ve always loved that first album! Not saying the ones that followed were disappointing, they were just different is all. It was a phase, I guess. I liked each proceeding album better than the last. Richard was like Lennon / McCartney - always improving, reinventing himself. His songs reflect even these current times we’re living in, especially End of the Rainbow. It really pays to rely on God to help sort it out.
I love Richard’s recordings. He remains my favorite guitar player and his songwriting skills rival the best of them.

California, always California... Dave Mattox had the right idea in settling in Marblehead, Massachusetts, I'm positive New England would be more agreeable to a Brit coming to America. Even the towns have the same names! 😂👍♥️

Thompson is a Scot? That explains a lot.

I discovered Richard and Linda through my niece Tara and then began to go farther back into history exploring his musical history and fell in love with it. To me he is one of the finest guitarists alive with an unforgettable voice. To me Linda added a dimension that was unforgettable just as Sandy Denny’s had earlier. He is a bard in the true tradition and I am glad to have seen him live twice in Austin which was once reputed as Musical Capitol of The World. Having discovered my Scottish ancestry even though part of his is British, I relate to him as my Scottish soulmate♥️.

I have been listening to Richard Thomson forever one of his best songs is stumble on and a brother slips away from the album DREAM ATTIC

Saw him at the central hotel in Southsea about 1983 playing to an audience of about 500. Great gig and all round nice guy.

First saw RT in the original Fairport Convention (Judy Dyble) in London about 67/68 and followed him closely ever since, seeing him live in many different settings. His songwriting and guitar playing are wonderful and his catalogue is amazing. He has been a constant soundtrack to my life. Loved this documentary.

He walked into a little guitar shop in Athens, GA when I was working there, in college. I brought out our best old gear and just sat and listened while he jammed for an hour or so. He didn't buy anything, but I was elated! After he left, the owner asked, "Who was that guy? He was really good!" I answered, "THAT was Richard Thompson!" "Never heard of him," he said. GREAT memory!

Impossible to judge a person. At his worst, he may be an asshole and a fool. But his talent is transcendant, soaring, brilliant. Never better than when harmonizing with Linda, who on her own is also brilliant. Perhaps the holy fool.

Another boy damaged by a prick of a father.

fun fact: the great singer-songwriter hugh cornwell of the stranglers was in a high school band with richard thompson!

Wonder what it's like living with John Denver? got me wonderin' now!

Awesome little documentary & anyone that knows of him knows despite the little quirks he's a musical genius . I wish they had a wee bit more of his thoughts on the time he spent playing with Sandy Deny as that had to be a highlight of a small portion of his career but holy moly they made some fine music with that band . One of the finest players around then & now & Sandy was like the female version of himself . pure talent & genius.

RT left so much of this stuff out of his memoir, which dealt with his life through the mid-70s. This is a terrific documentary largely thanks to Linda and Nancy’s participation.

They didn't invent folk rock! Horslips were playing stuff like this long before

Excellent !!!

Saw his electric trio some years back and I swear it sounded like there were 3 guitars. Mighty, mighty sound, and so melodic. Not to mention the depth in the songwriting.

He's written some great songs and he can play the guitar but he really is a miserable beggar, sneering at everything, ungrateful, blaming everyone else, wife abandoner. He let's himself down.

A balanced man.

12.00 No mention of the wonderful girl vocalist?

Wisdom thanks mate

His version of ‘Woodstock’ at the Joni Mitchell tribute is a performance for the ages.

A road travelled

Saw one of the Shoot Out shows in DC. The tension between him and Linda was thick enough,,, but the performance was sublime. A fan from Fairport days. In school days a group of us once had a mock debate "Resolved: Lord Donald was a sport" (Matty Groves).

Pour Down Like Silver is one of the greatest albums ever.

A very measured and thoughtful man.

the band 'reckless kelly' do a great version of '1952 vincent black lightning.'

His son has a little bit of talent too!...lol

Richard Thompson's shy modesty and self-deprecating humour showcase the nice man behind the musical genius.

Fairport Convention was way before my time. I remember Shoot Out the Lights made a huge impression on me, the first 'adult' record I got into. Recently I was listening to a album he made 2018 I think - very much a rock and roll record. I loved it.

FC didn’t invent folk rock as you state. It had been around since ‘65. But they were fantastic, and RT is awesome

Saw that one and only American tour R & L did in support of the superlative ‘Shoot Out The Lights’ . Before the Internet, info took time to be disseminated, so trouble in the marriage wasn’t really known until the Rolling Stone article some months later. Reflecting, there did seem to be some tension, but nothing overt. Linda sat down on the stage during one of his songs, which seemed to nettle him somewhat.But still a great show!

The Richard and Linda duet at 22 or so minutes showcases some truly terrible singing from both. I'd not expected that.

Even i with my untrained ears can hear The Band in most of Richard's work ! Those guys were more than pretty good influencers , huh !

I love all those early Fairport albums, the first two get overlooked a bit, but they have some great stuff on them.

The Bob Dylan of Great Britain ❤️

a great composer as well

richard thompson is an awesome musician

Thanks for posting. Love Richard.

His son Teddy playing back up guitar on the last song.

Thanks, i just saw him last night.

Modest and a huge rarity in that he is a virtuoso guitarist and a virtuoso songwriter, usually you are one or the other....

As a new parent WHOSE INFANT ONLY LIKES ROCK & ROLL AND NOISEPOP, I can corroborate the oddity of singing "The End of the Rainbow" as a lullaby. Feels wrong, but the song is so damn good.

Very interesting and personal documentary. Learned a lot thank you .