Starring Henry the Human Fly
Editorial Reviews
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As lead guitarist for Fairport Convention, Richard Thompson had helped steer a band that initially emulated American rockers like Jefferson Airplane into an authentic British folk rock institution, swiftly evolving as a powerful songwriter ready to dip back into his own heritage for models. Thompson's first solo album finds him ranging through ballads, jigs, and reels as comfortably as he once had tackled Dylan and Joni Mitchell, tapping British brass bands and reviving old ballad forms and pre-industrial imagery to make his point. From "Roll Over Vaughn Williams" to the jubilant surfer-at-the-track spree of "The Angels Took My Racehorse Away," he gives ample evidence of the musicianship and intelligence that have since made him a cornerstone of folk rock regardless of nationality. --Sam Sutherland
Starring Henry the Human Fly,Richard Thompson,Hannibal,British Folk,British Folk-Rock,Folk & Traditional,Folk-Rock,Pop,Popular Music,Rock,Singer/Songwriter
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Starring Henry the Human Fly
Richard Thompson Manufacturer: Hannibal ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD  British Folk
| Traditional British & Celtic Folk
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Singer-Songwriters
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Traditional Folk
| Folk
| Styles
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Singer-Songwriters
| Pop
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Folk Rock
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ASIN: B00000063S Release Date: 1991-07-01 |
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Amazon.com
As lead guitarist for Fairport Convention, Richard Thompson had helped steer a band that initially emulated American rockers like Jefferson Airplane into an authentic British folk rock institution, swiftly evolving as a powerful songwriter ready to dip back into his own heritage for models. Thompson's first solo album finds him ranging through ballads, jigs, and reels as comfortably as he once had tackled Dylan and Joni Mitchell, tapping British brass bands and reviving old ballad forms and pre-industrial imagery to make his point. From "Roll Over Vaughn Williams" to the jubilant surfer-at-the-track spree of "The Angels Took My Racehorse Away," he gives ample evidence of the musicianship and intelligence that have since made him a cornerstone of folk rock regardless of nationality. --Sam SutherlandCustomer Reviews:
Addendum to previous review.......2004-06-17
Great Album - but don't buy a used copy just yet.......2004-04-06
The reason? Island Records in the UK is reissuing ALL of the early Richard Thompsons that were part of the Hannibal/Rykodisc catalogue in the US. "Pour Down Like Silver" and some other titles will be available next week, and "Henry the Human Fly" will almost certainly be released by June. All of the new releases will be completely remastered and will come with bonus tracks. You'll be able to buy them through amazon.com, or through its affiliate amazon.co.uk. And best of all, you'll be buying a currently available product, so you'll be putting money into Richard Thompson's pocket, where it belongs, and not lining the pockets of greedy sellers hawking the used CD. Word to the wise - wait a little longer to buy this, and you'll be buying a better quality remastered product AND helping to support one of our greatest recording artists, Richard Thompson.
Richard Thompson begins his distinguished solo career.......2004-01-12
The obvious explanation would be that copies of the albums were never taken out of the boxes and put on the shelves in the record stores (remember those?), because this is an excellent album which showcases both Thompson's songwriting skill and his superb guitar work on mostly acoustic, but still some electric guitar. The songs are still a mixture of the traditional British folk music with contemporary rock 'n' roll, but with more of Thompson's peculiar brand of dark humor coming through than before. The ballad "The Poor Ditching Boy," "The New St. George," and "The Old Changing Way" are very much in the traditional vein, while "The Angels Took My Racehorse Away" (with the great guitar solo) and "Roll Over Vaughn Williams" are clearly representative of the modern folk-rock style. The result is Thompson establishing his own voice as a solo artist.
Also appearing on the album are Sandy Denny and Ashley Hutchings, the former lead singer and co-founder of Fairport Convention respectively, and Linda Peters, whom Thompson would marry. Two years later they would put out their first album together, "I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight," which is even better than this album. Ultimately I think of Richard Thompson as being the male counterpart to Sandy Denny, as pre-eminent British folk singers who accomplished even more after they left Fairport Convention than they did when the group was making great albums like "Unhalfbricking" and "Liege & Leaf."
I'll keep it simple.......2003-08-25
Squashed Bug.......2002-11-02
It's no surpise that he doesn't quite shake off his Fairport trappings. Most of the band can be found in the credits. Yet, Thompson still manages to find his own voice while keeping Fairport's Medievil contrivences at bay. Mordant, playful and arcanely witty, HENRY is a perfect introduction to "rock's best kept secret". Here, Thompson's able to flesh out what was hinted at in his last outing with Fairport. "Poor Will & The Jolly Hangman" was certainly a highlight off of FULL HOUSE and it would have been right at home on HENRY.
While "Roll Over Vaughn Williams" does nothing for Thompson's Doom & Gloom reputation, it's a memorable start. Imagine the reel & jig of Fairport's signature sound cut with early, more acoustic Black Sabbath. If Thompson was concerned with mainstream success, why kick off your first album with a refrain like "live in fear! live in fear!"
"Nobody's Wedding" might come off as a little too cute for it's own good but haunting lines like "why is the wild boy chopping up the floor" come to the rescue. "The Poor Ditching Boy" ranks as one of Thompson's most underrated ballads. Thompson's skill really comes to fore on this one, preceeding later gems like "Beeswing" and "1952 Vincent Black Lightning" by 20 years.
"The Angels Took My Racehorse Away" may have escaped WATCHING THE DARK's retrospective notice but is nevertheless a Thompson classic. Still a staple in his live shows, his solo here will drop your jaw while his words rip out what's left of your heartstings. A near impossible feat in this day & age. Another neglected standout is "Wheely Down". With lyrics that sound swiped from some prophetic Book of Doom, he hints at a personal, almost inconsolable loss. "Mary & Joseph"'s demetented Salvation Army stylings give Tom Waits a run for his money long before SWORDFISH TROMBONES. By the album's end, you're left "sitting in a bar, face down in a jar". The last line you hear is, "something tells me, I'm twisted".
Not only does Thompson surpass his work with Fairport Convention here, he manages to establish a unique voice for himself. A voice precociously ahead of it's time. From his more recent collaborations with Mitchell Froom on down to classics like BRIGHT & SHOOT OUT THE LIGHTS, Thompson travels in a world that is part Dickens, part Poe, and a little Monty Python. And yet, for all of HENRY's tinkers, whores and doomsaying, he still manages to be far more topical than the thousand or so Glam Rock bands of the time. A buried treasure.
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