Fashionably Late

Linda Thompson

Product Details

• Audio CD (July 30, 2002)
• Original Release Date: 2002
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Rounder / Umgd
• ASIN: B000068GFU
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (32 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #67,432 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
Shortly after her solo debut, One Clear Moment, in 1985, Linda Thompson was stricken with a psychological disorder that left her unable to speak. Seventeen years later, she's found her voice again, and applied that rich, textured instrument to 10 new folk-pop songs largely unforgettable in their depth of human suffering. Morose, quirky, and only occasionally optimistic, they chronicle a homesick prostitute ("On the Banks of the Clyde"), a homeless man at the end of his rope ("No Telling"), a spinster who dies with a close-kept secret ("Miss Murray"), and a woman who "may have to run" for something she's done ("Dear Mary"). Fans who remember Thompson's legendary records with ex-husband Richard (who appears briefly in their first reunion in 20 years) will swear that the closing parlor tune "Dear Old Man of Mine" is a regretful meditation on that relationship. But who's to say? Thompson, who cowrote most of the tunes with her son Teddy, has so much fine company (Van Dyke Parks, Rufus Wainwright, and Martin and Eliza Carthy) that an air of celebration can't help but bubble through the gloom. This is one hell of a comeback. --Alanna Nash

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Marvelous new tunes from a great singer & writer, July 31, 2002

By	William Merrill "eclecticist" (San Antonio, TX United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Linda Thompson's new songs are just as good as the best stuff she did with ex-husband Richard. For example, if you love "Dimming of the Day," you'll soon be equally fond of "Dear Old Man of Mine." I can't fully express how grand it is to have Linda's voice back again. These tunes are extremely well produced and recorded with an ear for the acoustic instruments that fill the spaces behind Linda's beautiful singing. Son Teddy co-wrote many of the songs and he played guitar and sang on most of them. This CD immediately jumps to the top of my list of the best of 2002, and I'll be recommending it to all of my friends and relatives!

20 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars and Beyond!, August 8, 2002

By A Customer

After "Shoot Out the Lights," their monumental and often harrowing final album together, Richard and Linda Thompson went their separate ways both personally and professionally. Richard resumed his critically praised, though commercially nonexistent solo career and Linda recorded a 1985 album called "One Clear Moment." With its polished pop sound and a wonderfully singable lead off shouda-been-a-massive-hit-single track "Can't Stop the Girl," it was highly accessible, held lots of commercial promise, and promptly tanked. A follow-up album was abandoned in the studio and Linda announced her retirement from music and began to build her life with her new husband as co-owner of a jewelry shop in London. One of the loveliest voices in the British folk movement was silenced.

But now, 17 years later it is back, and this comeback album is one of the most impressive to emerge from the British folk movement in many a moon. With mostly acoustic backing from many of the top names of the genre -- names like Martin Carthy,
Dave Mattacks, Kate Rusby, etc. as well as Linda's son Teddy and daughter Kamilia it is not only beautifully sung, but marvelously accompanied. Diehard Richard and Linda fans will revel over the fact that the opening track, "Dear Mary" represents the first recording the two have done together in 20 years.

This is very much a folk based recording. Somber? Yes, but as anyone who really listened to the six albums Richard and Linda recorded together knows, somber is a word that describes the subject matter of many of their classic songs. Cuts here, such as "Dear Mary," "Miss Murray," "Nine Stone Rig," "Dear Old Man of Mine," and the stunning "Banks of the Clyde" all fit into that tradition quite nicely and some fit perfectly within the often harrowing nature of the very Child ballad traditions that are responsible for much of the British folk traditions.

So, if you liked any of the six Richard and Linda Thompson albums, like Fairport Convention and/or Steeleye Span in their heyday this album is for you -- whether you have shoes or not.

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Um, wow, February 25, 2003

By	Donn Hart (Boston) - See all my reviews

Not bad for a woman who lost her voice for 17 years. I am stunned; she sounds exactly like she did on "Shoot Out the Lights," and that was over 20 years ago!

Yes, it's dark. Yes, it's moody. Sure, it can be depressing as all hell. But folk isn't always pretty...lyrically anyway. Often in the best of folk music, the singer is dwelling on their own pain or the pain of others. That's what makes the music what it is; music for the people by the people. Everyone can relate to it.

As a rule I'm not a huge fan of albums that are basically family affairs. But I make an exception in the case of the Thompsons. Why? Because the whole damn family has so much talent as to make many prostrate themselves in homage. It's great that Richard & Linda were able to reconcile enough to work together on "Dear Mary," and Linda wrote half the album with her son Teddy. Standout tracks in my opinion are "Dear Mary," "No Telling," "The Banks of the Clyde," and "Weary Life." Welcome back, Linda.