Richard Thompson was only eighteen when he joined Fairport Convention but his reputation as a guitarist started to spread almost immediately. Out of necessity, he also grew quickly as a songwriter, penning some of the band’s most well-known songs. After a horrible crash that killed the band’s drummer and Thompson’s girlfriend, he seems to have taken stock of his lot and decided to leave the band.

Subsequently, he spent most of his time working as a session musician, and continued writing with a solo career as a rather vague goal. Eventually, he released an incredibly eclectic solo album entitled “Henry the Human Fly.” Critics didn’t understand it, so they panned it, and virtually nobody bought it. It was not a particularly rewarding phase in his career, but on a positive note, he started dating a session singer named Linda Peters. They were soon married, and Thompson’s solo career was suddenly a duet, with Linda singing lead on a number of his compositions. They started recording together on a shoestring budget and finished an album’s worth of material quickly, but it sat idle for nearly a year while the record company hemmed and hawed regarding its salability.

Finally released in the Spring of 1974, “I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight” proved to be a curmudgeonly work of genius, conveying a pessimistic worldview and a misanthropic opinion of humanity. Its negativity is so powerful that it can be as entertaining as it is startling, although the general public did not seem to think so, as the album’s sales were miserly. This is a world where songs of worship are actually about yearning for death (“A man is like his father, wishes he never was born…” from “We Sing Hallelujah”), where nurseries elicit vile thoughts (“I feel for you, you little horror, safe at your mother’s breast, no lucky break for you around the corner”, from “End of the Rainbow”), and where peg-legged girls are left to taunt those more fortunate than themselves (“I travel far and wide to do the work that I do ‘cause I love taking money off a snob like you”, from “Poor Little Beggar Girl”)…and yet the album is anything but miserable.

Thompson’s dark tales are wrapped in gorgeous melodies that suit Linda’s voice perfectly, allowing her to convey incredible depth of emotion without ever over-emoting. Her work here is perfectly economical, allowing the words and arrangement to suspend her as she cuts close to the bone, avoiding unnecessary melisma or clichéd romanticism. Her vocal range may be somewhat limited, but her emotional range is startling, leaving me with the impression that she may be one of the most emotionally expressive singers I’ve ever heard. Meanwhile, Richard plays guitar and sings with similar economy, wasting not a note as he weaves wry observations on jealousy, greed, hatred and betrayal. It is deeply gripping stuff, but somehow, it is also immensely entertaining. Maybe music this subtly intense isn’t your ‘bailiwick’, but give it a chance. It took the rest of the world decades to catch on, so maybe all you need to do is listen, and wait for the intensity to sweep you away. 

Featured tracks:

When I Get to the Border

The Calvary Cross

Withered and Died

I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight

Down Where the Drunkards Roll

We Sing Hallelujah

Has He Got a Friend for Me

The Little Beggar Girl

The End of the Rainbow

The Great Valerio

April 1974 – Billboard Did Not Chart