Search - Richard Thompson & Linda :: Pour Down Like Silver

Historical significance is more important than sound quality

William M. Feagin | Upstate New York, USA | 12/30/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I must also (respectfully) disagree with Gordon from South Africa. It may simply be that I've never heard the original LP masters of Richard & Linda's albums, so have no real basis for comparison, but frankly, I have no problem with the way these CDs sound. And in any case, many of the major labels have made mistakes in remastering certain albums for CD (and some of them have wisely gone back and redone them, more carefully the next time round, and come up aces--witness Sony's recent Dylan remasters first for hybrid SACD, then for regular CD). No matter--the historical significance far outweighs any audiophile concerns I might have (and I'm a big fan of audiophile formats, particularly where CDs are concerned, so that's saying something).



And the historical significance of Pour Down Like Silver (along with Hokey Pokey and Bright Lights) simply cannot be underestimated, for Richard Thompson's Island recordings show the beginnings of RT's development into the musical hero he has become since leaving Fairport Convention in 1971. PDLS is so different from the two albums that preceded it, in its introspection and humbler tone overall. "Streets of Paradise" sounds like the fond wish of any good Muslim, be he newly converted or many years in the faith, to be reaping the rewards of faith in Allah (and it's worth noting that RT, 30 years later, is still a Muslim, albeit a moderate one--witness his scathing indictment of fundamentalism in "Outside of the Inside" on The Old Kit Bag). "Beat the Retreat" could easily be a return to faith, or to a loved one, from a humbled prodigal. "Dimming of the Day" aches with longing (even more so in the mix used on the soundtrack of "Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood," which features a string section), and the solo guitar piece "Dargai," into which "Dimming..." segues, in what sounds like an open-C tuning, adds a quiet Celtic/Middle Eastern-flavoured sigh to the whole piece. Personally, however, my favourite track is "Hard Luck Stories," which shows that Richard & Linda, even in their newfound faith, could still put out a sneeringly sardonic song ("Why don't you grow up?/Why don't you leave town?/Why don't you get a job?/Why don't you settle down?/Even a chicken has to do what it has to do./You don't like one thing/You don't like another/You don't like anything that looks like bother/Everyone don't like something/And we all don't like you."). We have all known somebody just like the whiny, annoying creature the singer is lambasting unmercifully in this song!



So the sound isn't perfect--fair enough. Just enjoy the music and try not to be driven to distraction by the possibly-rushed mixing/mastering job. I think we've all learned by now that catalogue remastering jobs by the major labels tend to be hit-and-miss more often than we'd like. That Island bothered to put these out at all instead of farming them out to another independent (who, to be fair, do often make better-sounding CDs) says somebody at the label understood that there was public demand for these records. Just listen and enjoy."

Classic Thompson recording could sound better but has stella

Wayne Klein | My Little Blue Window, USA | 02/18/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This was Richard and Linda's last statement before disappearing from the music world for three years. 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. 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."

Less Folky and Harder Edge!

Morten Vindberg | Denmark | 06/14/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

""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. 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".



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!"