Over the course of his 40-plus-year career, guitarist/singer/songwriter Richard Thompson has dabbled musically in much, and mastered most he's attempted.
The Scotsman has recorded scores of albums since his late teens, when he helped found the groundbreaking band Fairport Convention. With that late-'60s outfit, Thompson helped sculpt the sound of British folk rock, drawing as much on ancient balladry as he did Dylan and Donovan.
He left Fairport to record solo, and soon after partnered with Linda Peters, who would later become his wife and take his name (they've since divorced but still work together occasionally). With her smoky voice and his songwriting and playing skills, the duo made a series of albums that solidified his reputation as a full-grown singer-songwriter to be reckoned with.
He has left a mark on many a TV show and movie as well. You may remember his tension-filled version of "Season of the Witch" from the TV show "Crossing Jordan" or his delicate score on the award-winning documentary "Grizzly Man,"
Rolling Stone magazine named him one of the top 20 guitarists of all time. He's also received BBC's Lifetime Achievement Award and the 2010 Mojo Honours List Les Paul Award.
But Thompson has a fun-filled side, too. You need only hear his version of the Britney Spears' hit "Oops! I Did it Again" to recognize that.
Now he has tackled a project few others would dare -- making a live album of brand-new songs, released Aug. 31. You can hear the new live material live yourself, when Thompson brings the "Dream Attic" album, as well as other favorites, to Salt Lake City's The State Room on Monday night.
"It is kind of an insane thing to do, making a live album of all-new material," admitted Thompson, speaking from the road in California. "You lose so much control. You usually go into the studio, and get a version of the song you like -- you can dub, you can change things, wipe things. If you are live, even recording multiple nights, you have to make choices.
"Night three had a better guitar solo, night five had a better vocal, but seven is the best overall track. So you tend to go with seven. It is a compromise -- but I think we did pretty well under the circumstances."
Unflappable band
Almost without exception, when artists preserve live shows, they go with their tried-and-true favorites, perhaps throwing in one tasty new morsel for the die-hards.
Thompson said he didn't set out to make a live album of fresh material when he started writing. And certainly his band had not expected such a thing when they knew the boss was readying new songs.
So, how did Thompson's band (Michael Jerome, drums/vocals; Taras Prodaniuk, bass/vocals; Pete Zorn, multi-instruments/vocals; Joel Zifkin, electric violin/mandolin/vocals) react when he presented the idea?
Thompson laughed. "The idea of doing it live came a little closer to the recording. And they took it in stride when I told them. I did not get too many funny looks."
"They are a great band and they just played fantastically well, with material they were not that familiar with. To learn 13 songs right off the bat, and then play them live, is a big hill to climb for anyone. And they did -- were absolutely up to the task."
Genesis of genius
Thompson's father liked jazz and exposed him to it during boyhood. He also soaked in his older sister's rock 'n' roll records.
"Traditional Scottish music, my sister's music, my father's jazz records -- it is all in there. Maybe if I had to pick a single person who helped shape me, it might be Buddy Holly."
Once Thompson started playing at age 10, he was smitten by The Shadows, an instrumental British guitar band Thompson describes as "sort of our equivalent of The Ventures."
"They had such a great guitar sound. And they had steps! Anyone who picked up a guitar in Britain in 1960 wanted to sound like The Shadows."
Thompson spent his first few years learning the ropes of rock guitar. Then he met the guys who would become Fairport Convention with him, and the focus changed to lyrics and the folkier aspect of music.
"We liked to do Phil Oakes covers, Dylan covers and Richard Fariña covers -- lyric-driven music. Then we started writing our own."
The package
Even though he has been praised for his skill and passion with guitar, as well as his expressive Scottish-accented vocals, Thompson said what truly interests him is making a given song work.
"I suppose I think of myself as a package, is a good way of putting it. But really, whatever skills I have as a singer, as a guitar player, I bring into the song arena. I am not a guitar player who plays instrumental, virtuosic stuff. Instead, I think of myself as an accompanist. If I play a solo, then the solo is an extension of the narrative of the song, and gets to the emotion of it."
His own songs are one thing, but when he approaches a project like "Grizzly Man," he said there is a certain amount of letting go involved.
"If you work on TV or film, you become a servant to the picture, what the picture demands, what that director needs. You leave your ego at the door, and it is a whole different challenge. It is a wonderful challenge."
Though he does not reflect on it often, Thompson finds his career and 40-plus album catalog something of a wonder.
"When you start out as a professional musician at 18, you think, 'Wow, this is great. If I wasn't doing this, I'd be at university, or have a day job. I will do this for the next three months, and then get academic.'
"Then three months turns to six, and as the band gets more successful, you think, 'Oh, a year, perhaps.' But when you are young, you don't think -- well, I didn't think -- 'Career!' But there it is, which is great. I have been very honored making a living doing something I really love."
Watch "Bad Again"
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