Search - Various Artists :: Hard Cash

Big Richard Thompson fans should have this album

woburnmusicfan | Woburn, MA United States | 06/26/2003

(3 out of 5 stars)

"In late 1990-early 1991, I was constantly listening to new Richard Thompson music, even though he hadn't released a "Richard Thompson" album. There was his soundtrack for the movie "Sweet Talker", French-Frith-Kaiser-Thompson's fantastic "Invisible Means", the Hokey Pokey charity compilation "Circle Dance", and this album. "Hard Cash" was recorded by Peter Filleul and RT for a BBC television series about people struggling to live on minimum wage. It's a semi-compilation -- the songs are performed by a variety of British folk musicians, but the backing band throughout is Thompson and Clive Gregson on guitar, Filleul and Ian Lynn on keyboards, Fairport's Dave Mattacks on drums, and Andy Brown on bass. None of the songs will blow you away, but there are many fine songs from many fine musicians. It's a compilation that is easy to listen through from start to finish, and you can't say that about many compilation albums. Thompson provides the Woody Guthrie-esque "Time to Ring Some Changes" (previously recorded on his "Small Town Romance" live acoustic album) and "Oh I Swear", about a couple that stays together because they can't afford to split up. June Tabor sings the Thompson-penned "Mrs. Rita", about a garment worker and her boss. Jo Ann Kelly does a great job with "Odd Job Man" and Michael Marra with "The Guernsey Kitchen Porter". Gregson and Christine Collister take the employer's viewpoint in "The Great Provider", and Dave Kelly and Hilary Fletcher look at both sides in "Master & Servant". Other British folk luminaries, such as Martin Carthy and the Watersons, also appear. This is a 3-1/2 star album, FAR superior to the similarly themed Richard and Danny Thompson collaboration "Industry".(1=poor 2=mediocre 3=pretty good 4=very good 5=phenomenal)"