Peculiar thing about Richard Thompson. Every time he releases a new album, people need to be reminded of just who Richard Thompson is. And that's a shame. Maybe this album will change that and give him the recognition he deserves. Many would say it's time. For the record, he started at age 17 as a founding member of British folk band Fairport Convention adding a powerful rock edge with his acoustic/electric guitar work. In the early 70's, he released many fine albums with former wife, Linda. For the past several years, Richard has been on his own recording several critically acclaimed solo albums but still managing to avoid the ears of the "masses". That's a shame, too. Rumor and Sigh, is almost as good as spending a relaxed, intimate evening with Richard in a small club. His strong, personable presence fills the room with the first note and remains long after the last note fades away. The album opens with "Read about Love" the ode of an incompetent lover who can't apply his reading into the act of love and can't understand his ignorance. On the opposite side of the coin, the hero in "I Feel So Good" can't wait to break a heart in retaliation after being jailed for his deviant ways. Many of the characters in Richard's songs are on the "short end of the stick" in love and life as in "You Dream Too Much," and "Keep Your Distance". Etched with a perpetual sadness, "I Misunderstood" or "Why must I plead" are bleak, painful love songs. Even in the lighter numbers, there's a nagging hint of sorrow and heartache. "Mother Knows Best", a stab at Thatcherism, is one of the albums highlights. A reeling, sarcastic guitar rave-up, it sounds as though the tape ran out during the recording but instead of using another take, the original is here with all its' fury and fire. "1952 Vincent Black Lightning" is the tale of a motorcycle outlaw who dies after a failed bank robbery, leaving his Vincent to the newfound girl of his dreams. "God Loves A Drunk" is a hymn of sobriety that suggests spirituality needn't include "clean shaven faces and polyester suits" to make one right with God. These acoustic ballads are filled with the stark warmth Richard is known for. On the lighter side,"Don't Sit On My Jimmy Shands", a nerd's plea to keep a fat bottomed party-goer from sitting on his precious polka 78's, offers a touch of comic relief, while"Psyco Street", which closes the album, is the "anti-theme" to an Australian soap opera, a wonderfully bizarre, black humored ditty. Real life can often be stranger than fiction. Though Thompson has released many fine albums in the past, with "Rumor and Sigh" the veil that often distances the artist from the listener has been lifted. Many of the tracks were recorded live in the studio without the need of overdubs. The sense of intimacy shines throughout. It seems as though he's finally feeling comfortable with producer Mitchell Froom, allowing him to pour everything into the music and in turn capturing the personable substance that has made Thompson a cult item for years. If this one isn't enough to get the "masses" to sit up and take notice, they deserve to wallow in their ignorance while the rest of us bask in the brilliance that is Richard Thompson. (SC) © 2000 Dr. Rock'n'Roll
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