Hayden Childs

The 331/3 series varies in quality, and this is one of the 'meh' ones. When Childs gets down to talking about the music--from describing Richard Thompson's solos and Linda Thompson's voice to comparing this record to the unreleased first version produced by, of all people, Gerry Rafferty of 'Baker Street' fame--he's good. But about a third of the book is a fictionalized parallel narrative about a lover called Bonny and a non-applicable comparison to Dante's Inferno. No matter how hard Childs tries, this comparison never sticks--especially when one reads about the Thompsons' decade following Sufism. Where was the editor in all of this?
However, Childs more than adeptly explores Richard Thompson's lyrics without robbing them of their beauty. An acceptable companion to a sorely underappreciated album, but one is left wanting more.… (altro)