Linda Peters and Richard Thompson ( see Fairport Convention and R.T. solo ) married in 1972. Richard's first solo album “Henry the Human Fly” , also recorded in 1972, sold poorly. The next album: “I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight” (1974) was credited to "Linda and Richard Thompson". Linda sang on Fairport's album “Rosie” (1973) but was not credited. Two albums followed in 1975: “Hokey Pokey” and “Pour Down Like Silver”. Richard had started to take an interest in Sufism, a mystical form of Islam, in 1973. The album cover of “Pour Down Like Silver” showed him wearing a white turban. After a tour Richard announced that he would never play again, but returned after three years.
Their come-back album was called “First Light” (1978). Richard's writing has a strong thread of disdain for fame, wealth and worldly values and attacks political hypocrisy, often in wildly abstract metaphors. On tours and on the albums, however, Linda was given the slowest, and most melancholy songs to sing.
”Sunnyvista” followed in 1979, and “Shoot Out The Lights” in 1982.
In 1980 after "Sunnyvista" they were ready to record a popular album with Gery Rafferty and Hugh Murphy as producers. The album was recorded but never released. Three of these recording were released on Thompson's anthology "Watching the Dark".
"Shoot Out The Lights" was surprisingly successful in America and the Thompsons, despite the fractured state of their relationship, were offered a long and lucrative tour of the USA. Simon Nicol described the final tour, in the summer of 1982, as "like walking on a tightrope", and that as a result the first thing he did on stage was "look for the exit". The couple were barely speaking to each other.
Despite the emotional problems, however, the music they shared was reputedly astonishing and hearing this their record company arranged a mobile recording studio to record dates for a live album. The recording could not be arranged before the last date of the tour. year.
source: Wikipedia, Richard Thompson boxset etc.
Band Members:
Linda Thompson ( Peters / Pettifer ) : Born 1948. Vocals
Richard Thompson: Born 1949. Songwriter, guitar and vocals
Discography:
1. I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight - Island 1974
Tracks:
1. When I Get To The Border / 2. The Calvary Cross / 3. Withered And Died / 4. I Want To See The Bright Lights Tonight / 5. Down Where The Drunkards Roll / 6. We Sing Hallelujah / 7. Has He Got A Friend For Me? / 8. The Little Beggar Girl / 9. The End Of The Rainbow / 10. The Great Valerio / 11. I Want To See The Bright Lights (Live) / 12. Together Again (Live) / 13. Calvary Cross (Live)
Rating : 9
2. Hokey Pokey - Island 1975
Tracks:
1. Hokey Pokey / 2. I'll Regret It All in the Morning / 3. Smiffy's Glass Eye / 4. Egypt Room / 5. Never Again / 6. Georgie on a Spree / 7. Old Man Inside a Young Man / 8. Sun Never Shines on the Poor / 9. Heart Needs a Home / 10. Mole in a Hole / 11. Wishing [*] / 12. I'm Turning Off a Memory [*] / 13. Heart Needs a Home [*] / 14. Hokey Pokey [Live][*] / 15. It'll Be Me [Live][*]
Rating : 6
3. Pour Down Like Silver - Island 1975
Tracks:
1. Streets of Paradise / 2. For Shame of Doing Wrong / 3. Poor Boy Is Taken Away / 4. Night Comes In / 5. Jet Plane in a Rocking Chair / 6. Beat the Retreat / 7. Hard Luck Stories / 8. Dimming of the Day/Dargai / 9. Streets of Paradise [Live] [*] / 10. Night Comes In [Live][*] / 11. Dark End of the Street [Live][*] / 12. Beat the Retreat [Live] [*]
Rating : 8
4. First Light - Chrysalis 1978
Tracks:
1. Restless Highway / 2. Sweet Surrender / 3. Don't Let A Thief Steal Into Your Heart / 4. The Choice Wife / 5. Dief For Love / 6. Strange Affair / 7. Layla / 8. Pavanne / 9. House Of Cards / 10. First Light
Rating : 7
5. Sunnyvista - Chrysalis 1979
Tracks:
1. Civilization / 2. Borrowed Time / 3. Saturday Rolling Around / 4. You're Going To Need Somebody / 5. Why Do You Turn Your Back / 6. Sunnyvista / 7. Lonely Heart / 8. Sisters / 9. Justice In The Streets / 10. Traces Of My Love
Rating : 7
6. Shoot Out the Lights - Hannibal 1982
Tracks:
1. Don't Renege On Our Love / 2. Walking On A Wire / 3. Man In Need / 4. Just The Motion / 5. Shoot Out The Lights / 6. Back Street Slide / 7. Did She Jump Or Was She Pushed / 8. Wall Of Death / 9. Living in Luxury [*]
Rating : 7
7. One Clear Moment ( Linda solo ) - Edsel 1985
Tracks:
1. Can't Stop The Girl / 2. One Clear Moment / 3. Telling Me Lies / 4. In Love With The Flame / 5. Les Trois Beaux Oiseaux De Paradis / 6. Take Me On The Subway / 7. Best Of Friends / 8. Hell High Water And Heartache / 9. Just Enough To Keep Me Hanging On / 10. Lover Won't You Throw Me A Line / 11. Only A Boy / 12. Talking Like A Man / 13. Shady Lies / 14. Faithful / 15. He May Call You Up Tonight / 16. I'm Blowin' Away
Rating :
8. Watching the Dark ( Richard Thompson Anthology - 3 CD box ) - Hannibal 1993
Linda and Richard Tracks on the CD's:
1. Walking on a Wire / 2. Wall of Death / 3. For Shame of Doing Wrong ( re-recorded ) / 4. Back Street Slide ( early ) / 5. Strange Affair / 6. Wrong Heartbeat ( with L. ) / 7. Borrowed Time/ 8. Jet Plane in a Rocking Chair / 9. Dimming of the Day / 10. Old Man Inside a Young Man / 11. Never Again / 12. Hokey Pokey / 13. A Heart Needs a Home (alt.) / 14. Beat the Retreat / 15. Withered and Died / 16. The Great Valerio + 21 other tracks by Richard
Rating : 8
9. Fashionably Late ( Linda solo ) - Topic 2002
Tracks:
1. Dear Mary / 2. Miss Murray / 3. All I See / 4. Nine Stone Rig / 5. No Telling / 6. Evona Darling / 7. The Banks of the Clyde / 8. Weary Life / 9. Paint and Powder Beauty / 10. Dear Old Man of Mine
Rating :
9. Dreams Fly Away ( comp. + rare ) - Hannibal 2002
Tracks:
1. Lonely Hearts / 2. Walking On A Wire / 3. I Live Not Where I Love / 4. Sometimes It Happens / 5. For Shame Of Doing Wrong / 6. Talking Like A Man / 7. Sisters / 8. Shay Fan Yan Ley / 9. One Clear Moment / 10. First Light / 11. Pavane / 12. Many Dreams Must Fly Away / 13. I Want To See The Bright Lights Tonight / 14. Great Valerio / 15. Insult To Injury / 16. Poor Boy Is Taken Away / 17. Blackwater Side / 18. Telling Me Lies / 19. I'm A Dreamer / 20. Dimming Of The Day
Rating :
Rating :
10. Give Me a Sad Song ( comp. + early ) - Fledgling 2001
Tracks:
1. Story Of Isaac / 2. Down River / 3. Fire And Rain / 4. From A City Balcony / 5. Get Back / 6. Sometimes It Happens / 7. Embroidered Butterflies / 8. After Frost / 9. You Missed The Sunflowers At Their Height / 10. Restless Boy / 11. World Is A Wonderful Place / 12. Abandoned / 13. Hell Highwater And Heartache / 14. Her Father Was A Sailor / 15. When I Mention Love / 16. Give Me A Sad Song / 17. Aimless Love
Rating :
11. Hard Luck Stories - UMC 2020
An extensive 8 CD's Boxset, including their complete albums, a lot of rarities, singles, live-performances and early songs from before "I Want to See the Brigt Lights Tonight"
Rating : 10
Essential Albums!
Original albums as listed and rated on “Rate Your Music” - May 27 - 2007
10 I Want to See The Bright Lights Tonight - 1974
18 Shoot Out the Lights - 1982
53 Pour Down Like Silver - 1975
143 Hokey Pokey - 1975
367 First Light - 1978
359 Sunnyvista - 1979
679 Fashionably Late - 2002
787 One Clear Moment - 1985
Check and Rate Here!
December 25 - "rateyourmusic.com"
My Suggestion For a 80 minutes (app.) Best Of Compilation: ( More tracks will be added eventually!)
1. I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight ( R. Thompson ) I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight
2. When I Get to the Border ( R. Thompson ) I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight
3. Hokey Pokey ( R. Thompson ) Hokey Pokey
4. Withered and Died ( R. Thompson ) I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight
5. End of the Rainbow ( R. Thompson ) I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight
6. Dark End of the Street ( Moman/Penn ) Pour Down Like Silver
7. Jet Plane in a Rocking Chair ( R. Thompson ) Pour Down Like Silver
8. Never Again ( R. Thompson ) Hokey Pokey
9. Cavalry Cross ( R. Thompson ) I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight
10. Hard Luck Stories ( R. Thompson ) Pour Down Like Silver
11. Little Beggar Girl ( R. Thompson ) I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight
12. Poor Boy is Taken Away ( R. Thompson ) Pour Down Like Silver
13. For Shame of Doing Wrong ( R. Thompson ) Pour Down Like Silver
14. Lonely Hearts ( R. Thompson ) Sunnyvista
15. Night Comes in ( R. Thompson ) Pour Down Like Silver
16. Dimming of the Day ( R. Thompson ) Pour Down Like Silver
17. Strange Affair ( R. Thompson ) First Light
18. Walking on a Wire ( R. Thompson ) Shoot Out the Lights
19. Traces of My Love ( R. Thompson ) Sunnyvista
20. Just the Motion ( R. Thompson ) Shoot Out the Lights
21. Did She Jump or was she Pushed ( R. Thompson ) Shoot Out the Lights
22. Wall of Death ( R. Thompson ) Shoot Out the Lights
23. Has He Got a Friend for Me ( R. Thompson ) I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight
24. Restless Highway ( R. Thompson ) First Light
25. Borrowed Time ( R. Thompson ) Sunnyvista
26. Sisters ( R. Thompson ) Sunnyvista
LINKS:
Henry the Human Fly
Official Richard Thompson