 "A Fine Introduction." | 2007-06-24 |
| - Reviewed By mvindberg2 |
This 3 CD set covers Richard Thompson recording career through 1969 until 1992. A mixture of early Fairport Convention, his work with his former wife Linda and solo recordings. Many tracks have not been previously released, most of them live-recordings or alternate versions.
Obviously a 3 CD-set will give a pretty good overview of this period of his career, but some might find it a little confusing that there is no strict chronology in the tracklisting. But musically I think it works very well.
The earliest tracks are Fairport Convention recordings; one from "Unhalfbricking", a fine alternate version of "A Sailor's Life" and the catchy 1970 single "Now Be Thankful".
In 1972 Thompson released his first solo album "Henry the Human Fly", which unfortunately did not sell very well. A shame as the album ranks with the very best of his albums; this the 3 tracks from the album here clearly document.
Most of my favourite Thompson recordings come from the period when he worked with his wife Linda. The duo released 6 albums during 1974-82, all of which are represented here; even the two hard to find Chrysalis albums "First Light" and "Sunny Vista". These two albums are often considered their weakest, but a song like "Strange Affair" is simply moving. Great to have the song here.
Thompson's later solo albums vary quite a lot in style and approach, but his strong influence by traditional British folk shines through on most songs.
With a 52 pages booklet with liner notes from Greil Marcus, a fine biography by Leslie Berman and detailed information about each track, this makes a great introduction to one of Britain's finest guitarists and songwriters of at least three decades. |
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| "It's OK by me 4 1/2 ****'s" | 2006-06-27 |
| - Reviewed By sfinefrock |
This three disk set is a perfect dose of Richard Thompson for a modest fan of the singer/songwriter/ guitarist extrodinaire's vast talented career. It falls right in the middle of The Best of Richard and Linda Thompson:The Island Years or Action Packed and the recent mega box set RT; The life and Music of Richard Thompson.
For someone like myself, who owns quite a few Thompson disks, it provides a number of live and alternative takes on some of the classics that I already have in my collecton, as well as fills in the blanks on some of the more obscure albums that I don't yet own, as well as provide some solid songs that are previously unreleased. I can see where some fanatics may have some of these items, thus making it a somewhat redundant package. On the other hand, I can see it frustrating someone who is just beginning to explore Thompson's vast catalog. It does jump around a bit, thus frustrating those who look for continuity of performance.
Nobody should find fault in the numerous great performances included here such as a cathartic version of CAN'T WIN, the sublime WALTZINGS FOR DREAMERS or the haunting A BIRD IN GOD'S GARDEN. This set does a great job of hitting the highlights from the Fairport years through the Richard and Linda era, all the way to his solo works of the early ninties.
As with all box set type compilations, WATCHING THE DARK is not going to be 100% of what one is looking for. You may find that there are too many live cuts and rarities at the expence of original "hits", or complain that certain favorites have been omitted. I know that there are a few songs I'd like to see, but all in all I'm quite happy to enjoy the over three hours of fine music included here. It's not perfect, but then, what is? |
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 "Best Of/Rarities mixture" | 2006-01-12 |
| - Reviewed By a4i |
Although this emerged on Rykodisc's Hannibal label, it includes material first released on Island, Rhino, Capitol, Elixir, Chrysalis and Polydor, and spans the period 1969 to 1992, bringing it up to date at the point of its original release. This means that nothing has been unearthed from Richard Thompson's musical life prior to Fairport Convention (a couple of songs on the eponymous debut album were written during this period) or from Fairport's first, relatively underground couple of years, before they re-invented folk rock.
One major highlight is a long, previously unheard outtake of A Sailor's Life performed by the band alone, with Sandy Denny's wonderful vocal. The official Unhalfbricking version featured a guest appearance on fiddle from future band member Dave Swarbrick, and he is featured on lead vocal and fiddle on their 1970 non-album single Now Be Thankful, in a stereo mix. The other included Fairport track is Genesis Hall, originally the flip of Si Tu Dois Partir and readily available on Unhalfbricking and on compilations.
This pinpoints one of the flaws with this collection, in that it mixes previously unavailable or hard to find material with regular album tracks which Thompson followers are likely to already have. Over one hour 40 minutes, or approximately half of this box set is taken directly from albums, something that needs to be factored in when considering purchase.
Care has been taken to show Richard Thompson's considerable range, both in his songwriting and in his mastery of both acoustic and electric guitars. An explosive live version of Tear Stained Letter has some blistering, giddying guitar solos. He is also shown dabbling in a number of other instruments and, of course, exploring various musical styles. These are less successful when he moves towards the mainstream, as he does latterly in too much of this collection, and at their best when he utilises the fabulous interpretive skills of Linda Thompson, whose vocals on their joint seventies output is just matchless. Almost half of the 16 Richard and Linda Thompson tracks are not taken from their albums and make a strong argument in favour of this box set. Of course, if you are new to his work, and the price is right, there is no need to hesitate. |
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| "Had I Known ????!!!!" | 2006-01-05 |
| - Reviewed By rlb666 |
| Another reviewer gave this collection 2 stars because they were disappointed that many of the tracks were sung by Linda Thompson.Wha...!Did they not know that almost a decade of Richard's career was spent making records with his former wife.Or that many of his finest songs were originally recorded with Linda providing the lead vocal.How could the inclusion of several (previously rare)tracks featuring one of the most lovely and distinctive voices in the history of folk-rock make this set anything less than a treasure.JB, please go back to your Paul McCartney & Al Stewart discs and reel with shock that they suck even though neither artist has made a worthwhile album in decades.Leave Richard (& Linda)Thompson to those who are not tone-deaf. |
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| "A chicken soup approach to Richard Thompson that works" | 2005-02-19 |
| - Reviewed By oxford_direct |
Basically I'm an anarchist. So the comments about the strange order of these songs of others don't really apply for me. I'd hit the random button anyway.
The fact is that there are a lot of fabulous songs on this box set. And the chosen live performances on here are incredibly good. They bring back a lot of great memories of seeing Richard Thompson live.
Richard Thompson is a treasure. If you want one grouping that encapsulates just how good he is, this one does it. He plays guitar like no one else. He writes songs that make the heart ache and the brain fire a billion synapses. Over the years he's learned how to sing decently as well.
He will never be a star. But he's proof that if you're talented enough, you can make a decent, if not great living, writing and performing intelligent pop music. And you can do it for a long, long time. In the world of pop music, he's as good as it gets. Add 30 points to the IQs of Dave Mathews, Damien Rice, or John Mayer and maybe they'd write as smart. But they wouldn't write with as much heart. |
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| "Music to Break Your Bitter Heart" | 2004-02-03 |
| - Reviewed By tdavis276 |
| Richard Thompson can write as sublimely as he plays. Though his themes are tragic, the intensity of his narratives, the sharpness of his wit, and the beauty of his solos are transcendent and uplifting. I have many of Richard's other CDs, and I've seen him play in Seattle several times, but only this set captures the breadth of his work in a variety of settings. It's full of delightful and moving surprises. If this is your first RT purchase, you'll want to go on and pick up later CDs like Old Kit Bag and Mock Tudor, classics like Rumour and Sigh, his duets with Linda, I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight and Shoot Out the Lights, and early work with Fairport Convention. But this is a fine place to start. |
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| "The only RT record I almost never play .." | 2003-01-20 |
| - Reviewed By User: A1OXYQ95ASQS8G |
I hate to say it, but I may be the only RT (+ LT) fan who do not like this box set too much. I can enjoy a few live versions, or RT having fun with experimental tracks such as Bird in God's garden (a French, Frith, Kaiser & Thompson collaboration). I love, too, the booklet - it's well done and very informative - a wonderful document to his contribution. But on the whole, this box set does not really work. First of all, the sequencing is very weird, not to say dumb. Whoever did it probably wanted to be original, but he didn't think of the listener. It's almost impossible to listen to the tracks one after another .. which is a shame, since there are great songs here, but they are not at their best advantage. The main reason for that is that they are mixed up with much weaker tracks. In fact, many of what I now consider as his less shining efforts are included here. For instance, the Fairport material isn't so great (though I suspect the problem comes more from the vocals than from the music itself, especially on Now be thankful). Anyway, it's a pity since the band did come up with good songs at the time. Saddly enough, too, there isn't much material from Rumor and sigh & Amnesia - how come songs like The turning of the tide or I misunderstood have escaped such a retrospective ? What's more, there are plenty of songs from 1983-1985 .. and I usually don't think much of his work from this period - it's far too desolate to my taste and something is sorely missing ( Linda's voice, I think).
I'm afraid the focus for Watching the Dark was more on the rarity of the tracks than on their quality ... and rarity isn't necessarily the best criterion to judge a song !
Having said that, WTD isn't a bad release, of course. It's just that it could have been much better.
I wouldn't recommend it to people who 've never heard a single RT track. They'll be much better with the end of the rainbow : an introduction .. (for his work with Linda) or Action Packed (for his solo work). Those two compilations are 100 % great. |
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 "52 Pick-Up" | 2002-09-11 |
| - Reviewed By poorhenry1 |
| With his back catalogue becoming increasing rare(awaiting reissue treatment), WATCHING THE DARK is becoming more essential than it should be. As an overview of Thompson's career you can't top it. The live versions of "Calgary Cross" and "Shoot Out The Lights" are stunning to say the least. His live renditions of "Can't Win" and "When The Spell Is Broken" surpass the studio versions. Then there's a treasure trove of rarities from the manic, "Crash The Party" to the breathtaking woe of "Galway To Graceland". So there's certainly alot for fans to chew on and the packaging and lengthy booklet only enhance it's value. So why 4 out of 5 stars? Well, I'm not going to quibble and say they should have put "this" on there instead of "that". It's all great. The only draw back to this grandiose offering is the song order. I know the folks at Ryko may have been going for an impressionistic approach but it all comes off more like 52 Pick-Up than a shuffle of the cards. One minute your in 60's Fairport territory. The next, you're in the 80's dealing with bits of SHOOT OUT THE LIGHTS, interspersed between the odd live performance. Then all of a sudden you're back in 1975. The whole thing could give you whiplash. Perhaps they meant to highlight Thompson's versitility. The end result however, is more hodge-podge than collage. It might seem a lot less random if they'd taken a more conservative route. As it stands, the whole thing is far more overwhelming than it needs to be. With 3 discs at over 70 minutes apiece, you're likely to be glutted rather than sated by this feast. All that being said, if you're drooling for rare tracks like, "Poor Wee Jockey Clarke" and "Bogie Bonnie Belle" my 2-bit criticism won't disuade you. Believe me, they're well worth the buck. I just can't help thinking how better things would be if they thought the sequencing through a bit more. Though a must for fans, those seeking an introduction are better off with THE ISLAND YEARS over this gem. |
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| "GREAT PLACE TO START!!" | 2002-07-17 |
| - Reviewed By garyb04 |
| This box set is a great place to start for those of you that aren't familiar with Richard Thompson.There's something for everyone,if it's folk,ballads or rock.It does have rare tracks from the "Shoot Out the Lights" sessions,live cuts and an unreleased song,"From Galway to Graceland".Check out the guitar solos on Shoot out the lights,calvary cross and Can't Win,just to name a few.Why this guy isn't as popluar as he should be is still a mystery after all these years.... |
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| "I love this box set!!" | 2002-07-16 |
| - Reviewed By garyb04 |
| I?ve been a big fan of Richard Thompson since the early 80's and have everything the man has put out! The reason why I love this box set is because it has live tracks,as well as rare tracks that you can't find anywhere else.If I had to nickpick,it would be not to include tracks from Rumor and Sigh cd,since it came out the same year.I think.Other than that,it?s a great introduction to the newcomers out there that have never heard of him.You want to listen mindblowing guitar solos?Then,check out Can't Win,Shoot Out the Lights,Calvary Cross,just to name a few.Where the guy comes up with those improv solos,I?ll never know.The guy should be more popular than most of the current crop out there now...Check it out!!! |
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