CD Review

Richard Thompson has released several albums over the years, so it's puzzling that this record is a first. However, this enjoyable, folksy, laidback effort is Thompson’s first acoustic studio album of original songs. Thompson takes the opening "Let It Blow" down a route that Mark Knopfler or Canadian folksinger Bruce Cockburn would often travel. "For Whose Sake?" contains less punch but still works thanks to Thompson knack for mixing genres within Celtic folk. But it pales compared to the swaying and lovely traditional arrangement on "Miss Patsy."

It's rare for an album to grow in quality with each song, but Thompson makes "Old Thames Side" soar due to its rather barren approach: guitar and vocal. Still, there are subtle changes in terms of arrangements and tones, and at times they don't work. "My Soul, My Soul" comes across as too fragmented or busy - think Robert Plant's latest album, Mighty Rearranger and this might be best suited for that record.

The true nugget of Front Parlour Ballads is "The Boys Of Mutton Street" which sports an up-tempo pace and is a great toe-tapper. And ditto for the infectious hoedown that emanates from "A Solitary Life.” On the whole, this latest Richard Thompson record may be a first as an acoustic studio release, but it serves as another solid album in a career that has been constant from its inception.