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Since Richard & Linda Thompson's albums have been available through Hannibal Records for many years, it's easy to forget that they weren't all released by that label originally; in fact, only the last of the duo's six albums, Shoot Out the Lights, was a Hannibal album to begin with. The first three LPs (I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight, Hokey Pokey, and Pour Down Like Silver) came out on Island Records, while the fourth and fifth (First Light and Sunnyvista) were on Chrysalis. This only becomes important when you consider the compilation The Best of Richard & Linda Thompson: The Island Years. That subtitle is important. It means the album collects material from only the first half of the Thompsons' recording career. The selection comes not just from those three Island duo albums, but also from Richard's first solo album, Henry the Human Fly, and from an earlier Thompson compilation, Guitar, Vocal, which featured alternate and live material from the Thompsons. It's hard to argue with the selections from that material made here. Appropriately, the masterful I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight is the source of six cuts, the impressive Pour Down Like Silver provides four, and the weakest of the three albums, Hokey Pokey, only two. There is a good mixture of Linda-sung ballads and more up-tempo material, and "Night Comes In" and "Calvary Cross" feature extended examples of Richard's amazing guitar work. And the compilers have not shied away from featuring the often pessimistic tone of much of Richard's songwriting for the duo, from "Withered and Died" to "Beat the Retreat." But all this means that the album is a great half of a compilation of their career.
© William Ruhlmann /TiVo
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Richard Thompson, Producer, MainArtist, ComposerLyricist - John Wood, Producer, Engineer, StudioPersonnel - John M. Wood, Producer
℗ 1972 Island Records, a division of Universal Music Operations Limited
Richard Thompson, Producer, MainArtist, ComposerLyricist - John Wood, Producer, Engineer, StudioPersonnel - John M. Wood, Producer
℗ 1972 Island Records, a division of Universal Music Operations Limited
Richard & Linda Thompson, MainArtist - John Kirkpatrick, Concertina, AssociatedPerformer - Pat Donaldson, Bass Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Richard Thompson, Producer, Mandolin, Vocals, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - John Wood, Producer, Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Linda Thompson, Vocals, AssociatedPerformer - Richard Harvey, Woodwinds, AssociatedPerformer - Timi Donald, Drums, AssociatedPerformer - Brian Gulland, Woodwinds, AssociatedPerformer
℗ 1974 Island Records, a division of Universal Music Operations Limited
Richard & Linda Thompson, MainArtist - John Kirkpatrick, Concertina, AssociatedPerformer - Pat Donaldson, Bass Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Richard Thompson, Producer, Guitar, Vocals, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - John Wood, Producer, Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Linda Thompson, Vocals, AssociatedPerformer - Timi Donald, Drums, AssociatedPerformer
℗ 1974 Island Records, a division of Universal Music Operations Limited
Richard & Linda Thompson, MainArtist - Pat Donaldson, Bass Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Richard Thompson, Producer, Guitar, Vocals, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - John Wood, Producer, Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Linda Thompson, Vocals, AssociatedPerformer - Timi Donald, Drums, AssociatedPerformer - The CWS Silver Band, Brass Band, AssociatedPerformer
℗ 1974 Island Records, a division of Universal Music Operations Limited
Richard & Linda Thompson, MainArtist - Pat Donaldson, Bass Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Richard Thompson, Producer, Guitar, Piano, Vocals, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - John Wood, Producer, Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Linda Thompson, Vocals, AssociatedPerformer - Simon Nicol, Dulcimer, AssociatedPerformer - Trevor Lucas, Background Vocalist, AssociatedPerformer - Timi Donald, Drums, AssociatedPerformer
℗ 1974 Island Records, a division of Universal Music Operations Limited
Richard & Linda Thompson, MainArtist - Pat Donaldson, Bass Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Richard Thompson, Producer, Guitar, Vocals, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - John Wood, Producer, Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Linda Thompson, Vocals, AssociatedPerformer - Timi Donald, Drums, AssociatedPerformer
℗ 1974 Island Records, a division of Universal Music Operations Limited
Richard & Linda Thompson, MainArtist - Pat Donaldson, Bass Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Richard Thompson, Producer, Guitar, Vocals, Dulcimer, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - John Wood, Producer, Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Linda Thompson, Vocals, AssociatedPerformer - Timi Donald, Drums, AssociatedPerformer
℗ 1974 Island Records, a division of Universal Music Operations Limited
Richard & Linda Thompson, MainArtist - John Kirkpatrick, Accordion, AssociatedPerformer - Pat Donaldson, Bass Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Richard Thompson, Producer, Guitar, Vocals, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Linda Thompson, Vocals, AssociatedPerformer - Simon Nicol, Producer - Timi Donald, Drums, AssociatedPerformer - Aly Bain, Fiddle, AssociatedPerformer - Ian Whiteman, Piano, AssociatedPerformer
℗ 1974 Island Records, a division of Universal Music Operations Limited
Richard & Linda Thompson, MainArtist - Pat Donaldson, Bass Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Richard Thompson, Producer, Guitar, Vocals, Dulcimer, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Linda Thompson, Vocals, AssociatedPerformer - Simon Nicol, Producer - Timi Donald, Drums, AssociatedPerformer - Ian Whiteman, Piano, AssociatedPerformer
℗ 1974 Island Records, a division of Universal Music Operations Limited
Richard Thompson, Producer, Vocals, Strings, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - John Wood, Producer, Engineer, StudioPersonnel - John M. Wood, Producer
℗ 1976 Island Records, a division of Universal Music Operations Limited
Richard & Linda Thompson, MainArtist - John Kirkpatrick, Accordion, AssociatedPerformer - Richard Thompson, Producer, Guitar, Vocals, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Dave Mattacks, Drums, AssociatedPerformer - John Wood, Producer - Linda Thompson, Vocals, AssociatedPerformer - Dave Pegg, Bass Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Aly Bain, Fiddle, AssociatedPerformer - Nic Jones, Fiddle, AssociatedPerformer - Clare Lowther, Cello, AssociatedPerformer
℗ 1975 Island Records, a division of Universal Music Operations Limited
Richard & Linda Thompson, MainArtist - Pat Donaldson, Bass Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Richard Thompson, Producer, Guitar, Vocals, Dulcimer, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - John Wood, Producer - Linda Thompson, Vocals, AssociatedPerformer - Timi Donald, Drums, AssociatedPerformer
℗ 1975 Island Records, a division of Universal Music Operations Limited
Richard & Linda Thompson, MainArtist - Pat Donaldson, Bass Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Richard Thompson, Producer, Guitar, Vocals, Dulcimer, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - John Wood, Producer - Linda Thompson, Vocals, AssociatedPerformer - Timi Donald, Drums, AssociatedPerformer - Ian Whiteman, Shakuhachi, AssociatedPerformer
℗ 1975 Island Records, a division of Universal Music Operations Limited
Richard & Linda Thompson, MainArtist - Richard Thompson, Producer, ComposerLyricist - John Wood, Producer, Engineer, StudioPersonnel
℗ 1975 Island Records, a division of Universal Music Operations Limited
Richard & Linda Thompson, MainArtist - John Kirkpatrick, Accordion, AssociatedPerformer - Richard Thompson, Guitar, Vocals, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Dave Mattacks, Drums, AssociatedPerformer - John Wood, Producer - Linda Thompson, Vocals, AssociatedPerformer - Dave Pegg, Bass Guitar, AssociatedPerformer
℗ 1976 Island Records, a division of Universal Music Operations Limited
Album review
Since Richard & Linda Thompson's albums have been available through Hannibal Records for many years, it's easy to forget that they weren't all released by that label originally; in fact, only the last of the duo's six albums, Shoot Out the Lights, was a Hannibal album to begin with. The first three LPs (I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight, Hokey Pokey, and Pour Down Like Silver) came out on Island Records, while the fourth and fifth (First Light and Sunnyvista) were on Chrysalis. This only becomes important when you consider the compilation The Best of Richard & Linda Thompson: The Island Years. That subtitle is important. It means the album collects material from only the first half of the Thompsons' recording career. The selection comes not just from those three Island duo albums, but also from Richard's first solo album, Henry the Human Fly, and from an earlier Thompson compilation, Guitar, Vocal, which featured alternate and live material from the Thompsons. It's hard to argue with the selections from that material made here. Appropriately, the masterful I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight is the source of six cuts, the impressive Pour Down Like Silver provides four, and the weakest of the three albums, Hokey Pokey, only two. There is a good mixture of Linda-sung ballads and more up-tempo material, and "Night Comes In" and "Calvary Cross" feature extended examples of Richard's amazing guitar work. And the compilers have not shied away from featuring the often pessimistic tone of much of Richard's songwriting for the duo, from "Withered and Died" to "Beat the Retreat." But all this means that the album is a great half of a compilation of their career.
© William Ruhlmann /TiVo
About the album
- 1 disc(s) - 16 track(s)
- Total length: 01:17:27
- Main artists: Richard & Linda Thompson
- Composer: Richard Thompson
- Label: Universal-Island Records Ltd.
- Genre: Pop/Rock Rock
© 2000 Universal Island Records Ltd. A Universal Music Company. This Compilation ℗ 2000 Universal Island Records Ltd. A Universal Music Company.
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