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Maybe someday
45
/100
I Index Overall Rating
Readers
45/100Critics
44/100Scholars
Author:
Richard Thompson
Publisher:
Algonquin Books
Date:
April 6, 2021
A look at the early years of Richard Thompson, one of the world's most influential guitarists and songwriters, following the formation of his band Fairport Convention, his revival of British folk traditions, and his journey through Sufism-all before the age of 26.
What The Reviewers Say
Musician Richard Thompson mentions a lot of names in his new memoir, but you never get the feeling that he's name dropping.
The balancing act of major and minor, strung together by his witty, self-deprecating banter, is the crux of Mr. Thompson’s shows, and that same equipoise between dirge and ditty is the hallmark of Beeswing: It’s everything you’d hope a Richard Thompson autobiography would be, and nothing you’d fear. He is honest and opinionated, forthcoming about both his technique and creative process, but discreet.
... wry, un-ponderous, anti-obligatory. Because the sound Thompson created with Fairport was rooted in centuries-old songs, he isn’t captive to ’60s clichés; and because British electric folk is off the classic-rock grid — as he ruefully observes, 'The niche remained a niche' — the book’s period accent makes it feel fresh and exploratory..
Evidently an earlier draft of Beeswing was more impressionistic—the publisher pushed for more of a chronological take. It was probably the right call, because the book is very readable. Thompson writes exceptionally well, in a droll, understated, very British way. If he doesn’t fully communicate the depths of his heart, well, okay, it’s a tradeoff for a window into an important period—the birth of British folk-rock.
