Articles → Richard Thompson, Royal Festival Hall, 24 May 2008

Sat 24 May – Richard Thompson, Mary Gauthier

Well worth arriving early to catch Mary Gauthier. She started with I Drink, which was the only one of her songs I knew. It’s one of those country songs about alcoholic families that feels like it ought to have a verse about the dog getting run over and the house burning down. Fortunately, Mary Gauthier turns out to be a friendly spirit and a great songwriter so that rather than wallowing in the sloughs of despair she picks the audience up and takes us with her to somewhere brighter. Highlight of the set was Last Of The Hobo Kings, a great song in the Woody Guthrie tradition.

On to Richard Thompson. This was the first time I’d seen him in twenty years (where the hell had I been?). I admit to feeling a twinge of disappointment when he came on armed only with a single acoustic guitar. “That’s going to limit his set for the evening”, I thought. No such worries – he ranges over more styles in a single gig with just one guitar than most players achieve in a lifetime. What’s more, I realise that when I saw him last, in 1987, he hadn’t yet written some of his best songs.

So we’re treated to an overview of a great career. “Lots of ‘70s tonight” he says at one point but, in truth, the highlights span the decades. From the 60s, a brave attempt at Who Knows Where the Time Goes (he admits his voice is no match for Sandy Denny’s but his version is excellent anyway); ‘70s, his hit (“number 41 in the top 40”), I Want To See The Bright Lights Tonight, from the ‘80s a ferocious She Twists The Knife Again, into the ‘90s with the encores everyone wants – 1952 Vincent Black Lightning and Beeswing and finally up to date with his superb Iraq war song Dad’s Gonna Kill Me.

He deviates from the set list on numerous occasions to play requests, batting the ones he’s not so keen on off with good humour (“you’re weird, only four people bought that album”.)

For the encore he brought on his daughter, Kamila, and after one of her own numbers they finish with A Heart Needs A Home, with her making an excellent job of her mum’s part on the original.

A fantastic gig and I shan’t be leaving it another twenty years to see him again.