Audio CD review:
Richard & Linda Thompson - Pour Down Like Silver

Richard & Linda Thompson - Pour Down Like Silver

Band: Richard & Linda Thompson Title: Pour Down Like Silver Rating: Release Date: 2005-11-01 Media: Audio CD Tracks: 1: Streets of Paradise - Richard Thompson, Thompson, Richard & 2: For Shame of Doing Wrong 3: The Poor Boy Is Taken Away 4: Night Comes In 5: Jet Plane in a Rocking Chair 6: Beat the Retreat 7: Hard Luck Stories 8: Dimming of the Day/Dargai 9: Streets of Paradise - Richard Thompson, Thompson, Richard & 10: Night Comes In 11: The Dark End of the Street - Richard Thompson, Moman, C. 12: Beat the Retreat

Less Folky and Harder Edge! This obviously isn't the case as some of the very best recordings from the duo comes from this album, and as a whole album is easily as good as their great debut "Bright Lights" and much more consistent than their best-selling second "Hokey Pokey". "Pour Down Like Silver" was the third album released for Island Records all within three years, so you could suspect that Richard Thompson was beginning to run dry of new ideas and good new songs. Generelly the album is less folk influenced than its predecessors, and many songs have a harder edge. This becomes obvious with the two openers "Streets of Paradise" and "Shame of doing Wrong". The latter with lead vocals by Linda was also recorded by Sandy Denny on her last album "Rendezvous". Both standouts! "Poor Boys Taken Away" is a more typical Thompson sad country-ballad. Where as the long third track "Night Comes in" is a bluesy thing that gives space for some great guitar-playing from Richard - an impressive live version is among the bonus-tracks. Could be regarded as the title track. "Jet Plane in a Rocking Chair" is an extremely catchy folk-rock thing with great lead vocals from Linda "Beat the Retreat" is another long track with fine acoustic guitar playing - also included in a live-version. "Hard Luck Stories" is almost as catchy as "Jet Plane" and another Linda lead. "Dimming of the Day" which closed the original album is simply tearbreakingly beautiful. Musically and lycally country ( at its best ). Must become an evergreen! Another standout performance is the live cover of "Dark End of the Street" originally written by Moman and Penn. This must be the ultimate version! Highly recommended release!. One of the greats He may have written a bad song or produced a bad album in his long career, but I've never come across it. I have to admit to being a huge fan of almost everything I've heard from Richard Thompson. This album is very moody and almost melancholy, and just the thing to listen to when you're in that mood. I would list the highlights, but almost every song is a shining example of great singing and songwriting. Not to be missed. . achingly georgeous record It's just beautiful, all the way through. All of the early Richard and Linda albums are great, but this one is the best. You must buy this CD! You will never regret it. Note: My copy is the original Carthage/Hannibal release. It's not perfect audiophile sound, but even through my hardcore audiophile stereo (Nakamichi, MacIntosh, Magneplaners, A/D/S sub), it still is one of my all time favorite disks, with a natural, haunting sound. I can understand how extreme audiophiles might find problems with it (it's a tiny bit muddy, and some editing clicks are slightly audible), but just buy it anyway. You won't be sorry! This is one of the best CDs of all time. Silver Turned to Gold They are proficient in any number of styles--folk rock, blues, Cajun, etc. RICHARD & LINDA THOMPSON are prolific artists whose talent has spanned several decades and is still going strong. Both have distinctive, appealing voices and their lyrics convey a refreshing honesty. . Classic Thompson recording could sound better but has stellar bonus tracks While the remastering is far from perfect on this edition of the album (it sounds like they a used copy of the master not the original master), the album itself is a classic. This was Richard and Linda's last statement before disappearing from the music world for three years. Thompson's guitar playing is more restrained here possibly reflecting his new mind set; he and his wife Linda joined a communal Sufi Muslim sect. Either way, the pared down approach of the arrangements works well in favor of the emotional directness of the songs. The mood is dark at times but the melodies and lyrics are compelling. "Streets of Paraidse", the beautiful "Dimming of the Day" and "Night Comes In" all remain just as powerful as when they were first recorded. This remastered edition suffers from a number flaws but that shouldn't detract you from picking up some edition of the album. The mastering is, indeed, flat and, in fact, sounds like it's done from a second or third generation copy of the original mastertape. The sonic detail is decent enough it just doesn't have the depth I expected. The bonus tracks are tacked on at the end almost as an afterthought. While they are great live performances two of them were previously released on "Guitar, Vocal". The two new tracks are worthwhile additions to any Thompson fans collection and sound pretty good given the age of the recordings and the recording conditions. Thompson had wished that Island had not included the bonus tracks or put them on a separate CD allowing the original album to stand alone. As it is they are presented without a gap and begin immediately after the stunning conclusion of the album disrupting the flow of the album. Regardless of these shortcomings Thompson fans will be delighted to pick up the bonus tracks (if they don't already have them in bootleg form). The recording itself sounds good but could sound a lot better. Looking past the remaster itself the strength and power of these powerful songs continue to shine evne if there was a mistake during the mastering process. I urge Island to go back and involve the Thompsons in future reissues of their recordings. . You can see a complete list of all Richard & Linda Thompson discography, or go back to the Richard & Linda Thompson tabs