Thompson a musical explorer

• By JOHN WIRT
• Music writer
• Published: Nov 6, 2009

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Singer, songwriter and master guitarist Richard Thompson co-founded British folk-rock group Fairport Convention in the 1960s, formed an acclaimed duo with his then wife, Linda, in the ’70s, and carried on through ensuing decades with a solo career that brought him more accolades.

One gauge of a songwriter’s talent being the number and quality of artists who perform his music, Thompson’s songs have been recorded by an eclectic group indeed, including Elvis Costello, the Neville Brothers, Patty Loveless, Buddy and Julie Miller, Graham Nash and X.

Cajun musician Jo-El Sonnier got a Top 20 country hit with a Cajunized rendition of Thompson’s “Tear-Stained Letter,” which originally had a Celtic flavor. A 1994 tribute album, Beat the Retreat, includes Thompson songs performed by Bonnie Raitt, R.E.M., Los Lobos, David Byrne, Shawn Colvin, BeauSoleil and the Blind Boys of Alabama.

Now 60, Thompson is the recipient of numerous career-marking honors, including the BBC Lifetime Achievement Folk Award. He’s also the subject of two CD box sets, the latest being this year’s monumental four-CD set, Walking On A Wire: 1968-2009.

Thompson says awards are fine, but they can be a distraction from the musical work in which he continues to be fully engaged.

“You probably don’t need too much encouragement,” he said recently, “but you need someone to pat you on the back and say, ‘Yep, you’re going along the right way, nice job, keep it up.’ That’s enough and then it’s back to work.”

The singer-songwriter’s reaction to being curated for the career-spanning Walking On A Wire was much the same as his response to awards.

“Well, it’s OK. I mean, they know I’m not dead, there are a few years left in the old dog. It’s a nice sort of a milestone, but there’s a bit of road left. And do a box set of my own music, that’s something I don’t think I can do. So I’m happy for someone else to do it and I just edit it, which is what happened.”

With more miles ahead, Thompson is hungry for his next musical pursuit.

“Yeah, if you don’t have that drive as a musician then you’re wasting your time,” he said. “You have to be curious and excited about what’s around the next bend of the river. You have to think of music as an exploration.”

The composer of 400 songs, Thompson isn’t one to wait for inspiration.

“You have to work at inspiration,” he said. “If you sit around waiting for the bolt of lightning to strike, that can be years.”

When he’s not touring, Thompson opens a window for productivity by writing every day from early morning to early afternoon.