Watching Some of the Dark
A Richard Thompson Dark-o-spective
One of the many ways to explain my favorite musician is to say that one of the retrospectives of his work is called Watching the Dark. It’s a triple-CD from 1993.
I decided that it would be fun to put together a single album of Richard Thompson and collaborators, selecting for darkness and for me-love-ness. For those of us of a certain age, it should be on vinyl—black, of course—and both sides should fit on one side of a Maxell 100-minute cassette. Here it the track listing. Turn over the record between meeting on the ledge and night coming in—or use the YouTube playlist.
When I Get to the Border (R and Linda)
The Poor Ditching Boy
How Will I Ever Be Simple Again
Killing Jar (French Frith Kaiser Thompson)
Meet on the Ledge (Fairport Convention)
Night Comes In (R and Linda)
Cold Kisses
Can’t Win (live version from Watching the Dark)
The Great Valerio (R and Linda)
Here are the liner notes. My album starts with the opening track, and closes with the closing track, of I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight, my all-time favorite. Then there are a couple of songs about people having a bad time. Then there is a song about a person who had a bad time and then did bad things. Side one closes with the song that closes Fairport Convention’s Cropredy Festival every year.
Side two opens with the track that provides the title for my second-favorite Richard and Linda Thompson album, Pour Down Like Silver. Then there’s splendid song of mundane creepiness. The longest track on my album is a wonderful electric live version of a song about someone who, well, can’t win. The last track is my favorite song by my favorite musician.
For those new(ish) to RT, what do you think? For those not new, what would be on your album?