I watched a DVD of The Richard Thompson Band Live in Providence last night. It was made whilst Thompson was touring in support of his The Old Kit Bag (2003).

I was interested as I have an enormous amount of respect for Thompson's work beginning from the Leige and Leif Fairport Convention days; an attempt to give back to the British people their own culture in a form that they could really dance to and appreciate. In his solo career he produces a particularly English idiom for rock, looking to English and Scottish sources and rejecting the blues-based expressions of many of his contemporaries and near-contemporaries.

Live in Providence features old friend Pete Zorn on horns, mandolin, guitar and vocals, and relative newcomers Rory McFarlane on electric and upright bass and drummer/percussionist Earl Harvin, and was filmed at Lupo's in Providence, Rhode Island It is a 13-song, 90-minute performance in which Thompson digs back into his extensive repertoire, performing songs from albums including Shoot Out the Lights, Hand of Kindness, Daring Adventures, Amnesia , Rumour and Sigh and Mock Tudor. I only know the excellent Shoot Out the Lights which features Linda Thompson.

The DVD has some archival footage of Thompson from 1981 to 2001:“The Choice Wife” and the ballad “Just the Motion” from '81; a powerful performance of “Man in Need” from '84 with his little big band from the Old Grey Whistle Test(1984); three tunes from the Across a Crowded Room concert video (1985); and performance with his acoustic trio from an 2001 Austin City Limits broadcast.

Live in Providence presents us with boring visuals and minimal performance--it is a conventional film of a live show--- or more accurately, a straightforward performance video as part of Thompson's 2003 US tour. There is no great camera wizardry as the the emphasis is the music: we have biting and darkly intelligent expressive songwriting, innovative and singular guitar-playing, and a good band, with tasty and subtle base lines that lock in with Harvin's creative and solid rhythms to ground the band enough for Thompson and Zorn to take off. Though the instrumental sound was clear the words were difficult to hear.

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