RICHARD THOMPSON : ACROSS A CROWDED ROOM LIVE AT BARRYMORE'S 1985

Disc One (55:59)

1. Fire In The Engine Room
2. She Twists The Knife Again
3. Shoot Out The Lights
4. You Don't Say
5. Warm Love Gone Cold (Christine Collister)
6. Wall Of Death
7. How I Wanted You
8. Little Blue Number
9. When The Spell Is Broken
10. Did She Jump Or Was She Pushed
11. The Wrong Heartbeat
12. Band Introductions

Disc Two (53:05)

1. Summer Rain (Clive Gregson)
2. For Shame Of Doing Wrong
3. I Want To See The Bright Lights Tonight
4. Nearly In Love
5. Love In A Faithless Country
6. I Ain't Going To Drag My Feet No More
7. Tear-Stained Letter
8. Withered And Died
9. Skull And Cross Bones

Label : Real Gone Music

Venue : Barrymore's, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada

Recording Date : April 10, 1985

Release Date : August 2, 2019

Review (AllMusic) : After Shoot Out the Lights (1982) and Hand of Kindness (1983) transformed Richard Thompson's audience from a tiny cult into a medium-sized cult, he landed a new record deal with Polydor Records, and his first album for the label, Across a Crowded Room, arrived in 1985. This was a time when a growing number of music fans were upgrading their video setups and labels were issuing home video releases on their leading artists, so someone at Polydor got the idea of producing a long-form video of Thompson in concert. A show at Barrymore's, a club in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, was shot with a multi-camera setup and saw release in 1985 in tandem with Pioneer Artists under the title Across a Crowded Room. However, in the United States the concert only appeared on laserdisc, never an especially popular format, and it quickly went out of print, becoming a much sought-after item among Thompson's fans. In 2019, Real Gone Music finally gave the Across a Crowded Room video a re-release...sort of. Across a Crowded Room: Live at Barrymore's 1985 delivers the audio if not the visuals from that 1985 performance, and captures Thompson and his band in great if not exceptional form. The recording and mix sound a bit hollow, as if Thompson and his band are far away from one another on a huge stage, and this performance lacks some of the fire of the recordings that circulate of the Hand of Kindness Big Band that toured in 1983 and 1984. But bringing Clive Gregson and Christine Collister into the road band was an inspired choice; their harmonies are superb, and their rhythm guitar work fills up the sound while leaving plenty of room for Thompson's typically excellent leads. Bassist Rory McFarlane and drummer Gerry Conway are a rock-solid rhythm section, though Conway's playing is noticeably more colorful than McFarlane's. On the night, Thompson was kind enough to let Collister and Gregson each sing lead on a song; while their numbers were edited from the laserdisc release, they appear here, and Gregson's "Summer Rain" is an especially strong performance, with Thompson's guitar subtly accenting the melody. Though the set predictably focuses on material from Thompson's most recent albums, "For Shame of Doing Wrong" and "Withered and Died" are welcome additions to the set, while the band tears through the fast numbers (especially "Fire in the Engine Room" and "Tear Stained Letter") with joyous abandon, bringing the show to a big finish. It would have been nice if the Across a Crowded Room video had been given a second chance on DVD, but Across a Crowded Room: Live at Barrymore's 1985 is a more than reasonable substitute, and it offers another opportunity to hear one of the greatest guitarists in the world work his magic in his natural environment, in front of an appreciative audience.

Review (Amazon) : As one of the greatest guitarists of his generation, Richard Thompson has played with some of the worlds most accomplished rock and folk musicians, starting, of course, with his first band, Fairport Convention. But of all the outfits Thompson has led during his sterling, post-Fairport, solo career, perhaps the finest was the unit he took out on the road with him for his 1985 tour supporting his then-current studio release (and first for the Polydor label), Across A Crowded Room. While the albums recording sessions had featured Fairport Convention stalwarts Simon Nicol and Dave Mattacks on rhythm guitar and drums, respectively, for the tour Thompson enlisted the considerable talents of Any Trouble leader Clive Gregson and his creative partner Christine Collister, whose haunting harmonies (and occasional songwriting contributions) beautifully fleshed out the bands live sound. And the rhythm section boasted a member of British folk-rock royalty in the person of former Fotheringay/Pentangle/Cat Stevens drummer Gerry Conway, along with a long-time Thompson collaborator, bassist Rory McFarlane. Fortunately, the tours live shows lived up to the promise of its potent line-up; even more fortunately, one of the shows (at Barrymores, Ottawa, Canada, April 10, 1985) was captured for posterity in studio-quality sound originally for an 18-song laserdisc release. Now, for its premiere on compact disc, weve included all 20 songs from the evenings set, which included such fiery numbers and fan favorites as Wall Of Death, Fire In The Engine Room, I Want To See The Bright Lights Tonight, and Withered and Died, the latter a particularly heartbreaking rendition. And, of course, Thompsons guitar work is nothing short of breathtaking, particularly on Shoot Out The Lights and Tear-Stained Letter. Mastered by Tom Lewis at Studio 1093 in Athens, GA, and produced by Bill Levenson, with liner notes by Scott Schinder and period photos, Across a Crowded RoomLive at Barrymores 1985 is an essential addition to the Richard Thompson discography and offers enduring testimony as to the kind of magic the man can conjure on stage.

Review (American Songwriter) : There's no explanation to why it has taken this superb, professionally recorded, full length Richard Thompson concert over three decades to make it to an audio medium. Originally released on laserdisc and VHS/Beta tape (look 'em up on Wikipedia, kids), this double package captures one full 20-song, nearly two-hour gig on the tour for the titular 1985 Thompson album. An earlier single CD of the show left off five songs from the gig. While Across a Crowded Room isn't considered one of his best works, songs like the tension filled "When the Spell is Broken," the spellbinding ballad "Love in a Faithless Country" and the harder-rocking "Fire in the Engine Room" are important to anyone's Richard Thompson collection. He was still reeling from a contentious divorce from Linda Thompson at the time as titles of those songs and others such as "She Twists the Knife Again" (ouch) make clear. Of course Thompson isn't known for cushy love ditties, but this is yet another example of how his witty, incisive wordplay, stunning guitar work and knack for catchy melodies makes even the edgiest lyrics often sing-along worthy. Thompson always has enormously gifted backing musicians, but this band, which includes the singing/guitar playing duo of Christine Collister and Clive Gregson (they also had a clutch of excellent albums together) along with the great Gerry Conway on drums was one of his finest. Collister's vocals in particular are beautiful and pointed as they substitute for Linda Thompson on reprises of tunes recorded with his ex-wife and revisited here. Gregson is a wonderful second guitarist even if "Summer Rain," his solo moment, slows down the set's momentum as does Collister's eight minute impressive but snoozy "Warm Love Gone Cold." Thompson is searing throughout, whipping off his typically inventive guitar on six-string showcases like "Shoot Out the Lights," "Wall of Death" and especially a spectacular, nearly nine minute, concert closing, pre-encore "Tear Stained Letter." He ramps up the drama on "For Shame of Doing Wrong" with wonderful harmonies from Gregson and Collister, the dark, yearning ballad "How I Wanted To" and a riveting "Love in a Faithless Country," the latter performance alone is worth the price of admission. As a teaser for Thompson fans, the final tune "Skull and Cross Bones" (an obscure rockabilly cover originally by Sparkle Moore) with a typically insane guitar solo, never appeared on a Thompson studio album. With its "you're a jinx to my soul" lyrics, it seems like another kiss-off to his ex-wife. Even with a few too many ballads, this is not only a long awaited expanded title to Thompson's bulging catalog, but an essential addition to any fan's collection and a reasonable place to start for anyone unfamiliar with his now-legendary talents.