Richard Thompson spent much of the ’70s first as a front man for the acclaimed folk-rock group, Fairport Convention, then as a twosome with his wife, Linda. Together they released six albums, including the critically hailed I Want to See the Bright Lights, but it took the turmoil of their 1982 divorce to create their classic album, Shoot Out the Lights. They broke up as a group soon thereafter, and while Richard continued with a solo career throughout the ’80s as a cult figure in some circles, Linda virtually disappeared from music. It wasn’t until earlier this year that Linda released her own solo album, the aptly titled Fashionably Late. It was Shoot Out the Lights, though, that stands out as the duo’s finest work.
The opening track, “Don’t Renege on Our Love,” sets the tone for the entire album. Led by Richard’s snaky guitar work, the song thunders along as he sings about their breakup. The anger and resentment in Richard’s voice is all too apparent; it is as though he were singing right to Linda in every playback.
Almost all of the other songs are dripping with the same kind of emotional baggage. In “Man in Need,” Richard sings, “Who’s going to give you real happiness/ Who’s going to give you contentedness/ Who’s going to lead you/ Who’s going to feed you/ And cut you free?” All the while, Linda has to sing back-up as he rails against her relentlessly.
Linda gets her shots in, too. Her desperate vocals in “Walking on a Wire” fit the lyrics of fatigue and anxiety all too perfectly. This is matched only by Richard’s hallow and painfully emotive guitar. Even though Richard wrote the song, Linda still makes this all her own.
There are very few moments when these two aren’t battling each other, but these prove to be some the best on the album. The slow and dreamy “Just the Motion” is, for the most part, simply Linda on vocals and Richard on guitar. The two forces interplay flawlessly; which tells the beautiful things they were still capable of when they were not at odds.
There cannot be enough said about the guitar play of Richard throughout the entire album. On every track, it slithers in the background until it finally comes to dominate the song during the many solos Richard has. It’s not overbearing, though; it is simply another voice, along with that of Richard and Linda. In many cases, it does more to the emotional effect of the song than any vocal could do. On “Shoot Out the Lights,” the guitar brings a new level of darkness and rage to a song that seemed to have enough to start with.
Sometimes it’s when we are most vulnerable that we finally let out all of our true feelings. Richard and Linda Thompson left nothing to themselves while recording their final album, and because of this Shoot Out the Lights stands as a pinnacle of emotional heartbreak.
