Audio By Carbonatix
Besides being a stellar guitarist, Richard Thompson is a superb songwriter and one hell of a witty dude. Over the course of four decades, Thompson has evolved from an above average, British folk rocker to a legendary guitarist plying his craft across several genres.
Speaking from a tour stop in New York City and in anticipation of Saturday’s show at the Granada Theater, Thompson spoke with DC9 about his tremendous new album, Electric, and how people covering your songs can be a good and a bad thing.
I hope it’s not too early for you. You probably don’t do too many interviews at 8 in the morning.
On no, it’s not too early. It’s rock and roll. I usually get up pretty early. Maybe that’s a sign of age.
You turn 64 this week, correct?
Yes, later this week, but I am not a self celebratory person. I just let it quietly slip away and slip past. It’s absolutely true that the older we get, the less we like birthdays.
For the fun of it, I looked up some of the people who share your name. There are many politicians, members of royalty and even a U.S. General from 1926.
I had no idea. That’s strange. I thought I was the only one. That is kind of sad.
Your new album, Electric, is a hell of a effort. Listening to it made me think about the movie Spinal Tap, when the guys had all the amps turned up to 11.
[Laughs] I think that when I make a record, I like it to sound like it’s spontaneous and like it is live. This one mostly was. Everything was recorded very quickly. It was done in a house which is a good way to record. I think it has a certain spirit to it which is something that you always strive for. I’m not sure you always achieve it. I am glad that spirit comes across.
Why record in Nashville?
I wanted to record in a relaxed environment. I wasn’t trying to make a country record. It clearly isn’t that, but I wanted a certain vibe and ambiance.
While you were in Tennessee, did you make it to Graceland?
I didn’t make it to Graceland, but I did make it to the Country Music Hall of Fame. That is quite fun. I did this question and answer thing at the Hall of Fame. When you perform there, they take you back stage. I got to play Chet Atkins guitar. I was looking at these great 78 rpm records and these great artifacts. It was all cool stuff.
The new album starts off with a bang with “Stony Ground.” Did you intentionally lead off with a rocking cut?
Yes, it’s good to start a record off with something mid-paced, something that is not too fast and not too slow. I think that song does that. It’s a slightly intriguing sounding song. It has a sound to it that I don’t think any of the other tracks have. We had a few choices for a lead off track, but we went with that one in the end.
I loved “Stuck on a Treadmill.” It sounds like Fairport Convention meets Black Sabbath.
[Laughs] That’s a marriage made in hell. It’s a sort of a funky version of Fairport.
Is “Good Things Happen to Bad People” autobiographical?
I would say not. If it was autobiographical, it would have to be tongue in cheek. I think it’s about someone else as far as I can tell.
You’ve had so many of your songs covered by artists in a wide variety of genres. Do you ever hear a cover version and think what are these people doing to my song?
Yes. When other people do your songs, it can go either way. Songs are a very personal thing. It’s not like you write them and then you don’t care anymore. You don’t throw them away and you care what happens to them. You can be thrilled to death about a cover version. It can sound beyond anything you could have ever imagined. Sometimes, however, you do wonder what they were thinking. It’s a feeling that people will miss the point of a song or what you thought the point of the song was.
Do you have some that you really think the artist nailed it and took the song to places that you didn’t think it could go?
I think that happens a lot when people take it to an area that you didn’t think it could go. The most covered song I have is called “The Dimming of the Day.” It has been covered by the Blind Boys of Alabama. There is a new version by Tom Jones that is really fun. It takes the song in a direction that I would have never dreamed.
It seems that the people who cover you come from every conceivable genre. Are your songs just that adaptable?
It’s always a surprise because I am not writing to an American audience in particular. I write music that is fairly British oriented. I am glad that it translates. I’ve had a lot of songs covered by country artists. I’ve had a few hits on the country charts. That is a surprise and then it is not a surprise. I think the styles are quite close between British and Appalachian music for example. It’s only a short leap so I think things are adaptable. I think often that people in a genre like country music are looking for something slightly different outside of the genre. A style can become a bit clichéd and people are looking for fresh ingredients.
There is a depth to true Americana music. Real country music is worlds away from what passes for country music today.
I think that is true. I think that is why there is a genre called Americana as opposed to country. Some people feel that country has become more like pop music and it has lost some of that old grit that it used to have.
Have you now lived in California longer than you lived in England?
No, but I am getting there.
Do you feel more American than British?
No, I don’t. It’s not so much of a shift. In Los Angeles, there are some 60,000 Brits that work in the film and music industry. You are surrounded by British culture. Especially these days when you can get BBC radio on your laptop. You can get any newspaper in the world on your computer. It’s not like I am culturally isolated from the UK.
Do you use your laptop to compose songs?
For composing, I absolutely use it. I also use it for music notation. If I am writing scores for other musicians, it is a great short cut for writing out parts for musicians. I tend to write songs in a very old fashioned way, in an analog process. I don’t even use a cassette recorder. I write everything out longhand.
This time you are touring with a band and last time you came through, you were solo acoustic. Do you have a preference?
I like the variety. I like the fact that I can tour solo and then the next year come back with a band. It’s a nice contrast for the audience and also for me. It’s a great change up for me to be able to do both.
You got your honorary Doctorate in 2011. Is your life different as Dr. Thompson?
It makes it easier to get dinner reservations.
You have won numerous awards for your guitar playing. Is there a time where you want to dispense with the awards and just have people but the albums?
Well, I’ve never been award driven. The ones that I have got have just fallen in my lap. I am not really paying attention to tell you the truth. More or less, it makes no difference.
Early in your career, you worked with the late Nick Drake. Recently, Drake’s songs have been used in a number of commercials. What would be the best advertisement for your music?
That is a nice question; probably something like San Pellegrino, something less corporate.
Since you are a practicing Muslim, have you run into negative reactions, especially post 9/11?
Yes, I have. This is a big question that could take two hours to really answer. Some people tend to stick you in the same bracket as Al Qaeda. That’s just crazy and insane. That’s too big of a question to get a real answer. I’ve had a few problems, but the majority of the people are focused on the music and that’s the way it should be.
Richard Thompson performs with Brave Combo on Saturday, April 13, at the Granada Theater.
