Richard Thompson Trivia

1. What is the subtitle of the title song?

From Quiz Richard Thompson does the Hokey Pokey

Answer: The Ice Cream Song

A tasty song, giving examples of the dreams of ice cream. From the little boy and girl with "the money tucked up in their hands" to the prisoner dreaming of it, to keep him going through his sentence. "Some like it round, and some like it flat And some like a poke or two But everybody runs for Hokey Pokey It's the natural thing to do." That much is obvious from the lyrics, but as this is a Richard Thompson song, we should consider the darker interpretation. This song could be seen as reflecting the shallowness of human nature, everything else is irrelevant except for personal gratification.

From Quiz The Electric Richard Thompson

Answer: Buxom Betty

A sad tale of unrequited love. The gentleman's attentions are unwelcome, they fall on the stony ground of the song title. He may very well have; "Lost his heart to Buxom Betty. Throwing out the compliments like confetti" but it goes nowhere. Sadly, he doesn't get the hint. What does Betty do next? Well, she gets some contacts to tell Morris the same thing. "Widow's got a brother, henchman too A pair of gorillas from the London Zoo They call on Morris and they tell him what's what" Quite forcefully as the next verse carries on. "Kicked him in the head, poked him in the eyes Shoved him in the gutter and there he lies" But the overall effect is negligible because the last verse ends with; "But he's still dreaming of her you-know-what". Of the other options I would note the Sister Josephine is a burglar, big bad Norman who has been on the run and hiding in a convent for 15 years. According to the song by Jake Thackrey that is. Red-haired Molly appears in the Richard Thompson sing "1952 Vincent Black Lightning".

From Quiz Richard Thompson Appears in a Blue Mirror

Answer: Belfast B

This song is about someone improving their life. Seems a little unlikely for a Richard Thompson song, but here the singer has definitely turned their life around. He is prepared to do whatever it takes to make his Mary happy; "for the sake of Mary". Amongst other things, he has given up drugs, booze and had his last tattoo. He has also given up his job on board ship. The relevant lyric here being: "I was cook first class on the Belfast B But when she sailed, she sailed without me" The general theme of the whole song can be summed up in the last few lines; "I don't want to be the villain again She's had her bad times and it's shook her about I don't want to take the easy way out For the sake of Mary"

From Quiz It's still Richard Thompson

Answer: 100 miles

A song about a woman who is unable to settle down. The title alone describes her as such. Other lines such as; "She could never stay any place too long" and "Too many things she wants to see" all carry on with this theme. The opening verse ends with the lines: "I search around to find her I'm a hundred miles behind her The open road whispered in her ear" Another Richard Thompson song featuring a similarly flighty lady is "Beeswing".

From Quiz Richard Thompson Offers the "Hand of Kindness"

Answer: Arthur Murray

The song is a simple ditty about a relationship that has broken down. For a change the singer isn't bemoaning the fact, but it is the former partner who is upset. Every time the singer is moving on, he receives a "Tear Stained Letter". The lyric relating to the question is: "It was three in the morning when she took me apart She wrecked the furniture, she wrecked my heart She danced on my head like Arthur Murray The scars ain't never going to mend in a hurry" Arthur Murray was an American dancer who conquered his shyness by learning to dance. He eventually opened a chain of dance schools across America.

From Quiz Richard Thompson (more or less)

Answer: green

"Everything you do Everything you do You do for me...." The live version of "Calvary Cross" that first appeared on "(guitar, vocal)" (1976) is probably one of the best showcases of Thompson's guitar talents. The song first appeared on 1974's "I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight".

From Quiz Richard Thompson does the Hokey Pokey

Answer: Whisky

Another song of a broken relationship. Lines such as "I'm so drunk I couldn't care. If that's a wig or your own hair" and "This is no way to exist with some girl who keeps a list. Naming all the boys she's missed" all reflect this theme. The singer repeatedly admits "I'll regret it all in the morning", showing his acknowledgement of the state of the relationship.

From Quiz The Electric Richard Thompson

Answer: London

This song is once more about a less than perfect relationship. In this song the man is annoyed at himself for having spoilt his relationship, "She should be lying on my pillow. If I wasn't such a hard nose." And "I do better when I'm dreaming. Better than I did last night." The question asked about a train, the details are in the last verse. "Though the rain is pelting down There's a train goes back to London"

From Quiz Richard Thompson Appears in a Blue Mirror

Answer: Fresh from the tomb

Here we are back to a more usual theme for a Richard Thompson song, a broken relationship. In this case every time he goes to sleep, he has nightmares. In his dreams it is almost an inverse of beauty and the beast, the lady starts off looking lovely but rapidly changes. "You smell like something fresh from the tomb You squeeze too hard, you insist on kissing When it seems like half your face is missing And your hair's turned into reptiles hissing"

From Quiz It's still Richard Thompson

Answer: Amsterdam

"Beatnik Walking" is a song about leaving your troubles behind and heading to Amsterdam. Although the refrain is clear about location; "Amsterdam, where good things come in threes. Ease your troubled mind and shoot the breeze", there are other references in the song relating to the Dutch city. "Anne Frank's house" and "Rembrandt's tomb" are plain enough, while "brother Vincent" is presumably Vincent van Gogh. The other options are cities I've visited in the recent past but have nothing to do with this song.

From Quiz Richard Thompson Offers the "Hand of Kindness"

Answer: The Clash

According to the song; "My head was beating like a song by the Clash. It was writing cheques that my body couldn't cash" Of the other options, Richard Thompson played for Fairport Convention 1967-71 before he started his solo career. Singer-songwriter Eric Bogle has written a song "Eric and the Informers" where he claims to have been in a rock and roll band of that name. The Pogues were a English/Irish, punk/folk band from London.

From Quiz Richard Thompson (more or less)

Answer: Down Where the Drunkards Roll

"...You can be Lord Jesus All the world will understand Down where the drunkards roll Down where the drunkards roll" This was the first album that Richard and Linda Thompson made together, and is still one of my favourites. It was released in the US as part of the double album, "Richard Thompson Live (more or less)".

From Quiz Richard Thompson does the Hokey Pokey

Answer: Hit by Slingshot

Poor boy Smiffy, he was still a school boy at the time this took place. "Smiffy was a little boy, different from the rest He had one eye pointing east and one pointing west Ever since Tiny Murphy hit him with a sling Smiffy with his glass eye glittering" Smiffy's life never improves, the end of the song tells us; "Nobody cried when his world fell apart Poor Smiffy died of a broken heart You have to turn a blind eye to that sort of thing Smiffy with his glass eye glittering"

From Quiz The Electric Richard Thompson

Answer: Chassis

The chassis in this case is the human body, not that of a vehicle. The lyric here is: "How many stumpers Can cause such a rumpus With a smile and shake of the chassis" The theme of this song would appear to be a female demagogue in the USA. The lines preceding the quote above are; "The crazies are raving So keep the flag waving It still hypnotises the masses". This is indicative of the political style of the songs subject. But the claim that this is set in America is not yet clear. Back to an earlier section of the lyrics and we find the following. "Now they talk way down south Without moving their mouth And the houses are old antebellum" To me this is clearly USA, antebellum meaning before a war, is generally used in respect of the American Civil War. The subsequent lines return to the description of a political demagogue. "There you'll find supporters Revolutionary daughters Who'll believe everything that you tell 'em" Before trying to identify the subject of this song it is worth noting that the album was recorded in 2013, prior to the current crop of politicians who feature in the news.

From Quiz Richard Thompson Appears in a Blue Mirror

Answer: Racing Green

Here we have a love song, although not a song of misery it is still not your typical song of adulation. This is a love song to a car, the MGB-GT of the title. The lyrics even state; "She's the mistress of my heart now." The song says at one point, "looks like a dream in racing green". Possibly not quite as well known as Richard Thompson's song about a Vincent Black Lightning motorbike which appeared on the 1992 album, "Rumor and Sigh", this is pure idolisation of a particular car.

From Quiz It's still Richard Thompson

Answer: Shrunken heads

Back to songs about imperfect relationships. A fertile source for song-writers generally. Richard Thompson's work has featured a good selection of such down the years. In this one the opening verse sets the scene; "Patty don't tell me one thing and change your mind We might be in bed together but the deal's not signed They say you collect shrunken heads, would you like to have mine?" Patty's skill with a deck of cards also gets a mention, "You're so used to skimming the ace and palming the jack". Probably not good prospects for a long-term relationship based on the lyrics.

From Quiz Richard Thompson Offers the "Hand of Kindness"

Answer: Say I loved you

The answer to this one is in the song's refrain; "Oh how I wanted to. Oh how I wanted to. To say I loved you. To say I loved you Oh how I wanted to" Not a huge variety of language, two different phrases used repeatedly constructing a five line chorus. Richard Thompson has written songs called "Beat the Retreat" and "The Money Shuffle", the latter is a protest about the banking scandals and financial crisis of 2009. Another of his compositions is "Lotteryland", which is where the option of winning the lottery comes from.

From Quiz Richard Thompson starring as Henry the Human Fly

Answer: The Poor Ditching Boy

All of these characters are staples of folk songs, although the ditching boy seems to be the lowest of these. The job of keeping ditches dug and cleared seems to be of a lower status than being in charge of animals or the whole farm. In this song not only is the ditching boy low in social ranking, but he has been unlucky in love as well.

From Quiz Richard Thompson (more or less)

Answer: Meet on the Ledge

"Meet on the Ledge", from 1969's "What we did on our Holidays", became something of an anthem for Fairport Convention. Richard Thompson wrote it while he was still in his teens.

From Quiz Richard Thompson does the Hokey Pokey

Answer: The Beefcake Kid

The song opens with the lines "Hobnail Kelly and the Beefcake Kid, just rolled into town from the Land of sown-up faces." They then head off to a nightclub called "The Egypt Room". The main attraction appears to be a lady going by the name of "Princess". The Princess isn't exactly high class, as the second verse starts: "She's a nightclub floozie, nothing but a tramp". But she is a good dancer according to the other lyrics. A third man then joins the party and falls for the dancer. "The man with the cane and Italian shoes. Creeps like a lion looking for a lonely Christian". The footwear alone distinguishes this gentleman from Hobnail Kelly. The wrong answers may seem to be the products of a deranged mind. This could be true but the mind in question isn't mine. They are all from the titles of poems and monologues by Les Barker.

From Quiz The Electric Richard Thompson

Answer: Steel

This song is about a hard working but low paid worker in the steel industry. Working just to survive with no hope of improving themselves. The opening of the song; "The money comes in. The bills go out. Round and round we go again." demonstrate this plainly. The next verse discusses the job. "Another day of punching steel Till my arm's too numb to feel Like a hamster on a wheel I'm stuck on the treadmill" The lyrics carry on in the same theme, worrying about being replaced by a robot, talk of strike action but then the ending completes the circle. "Next year, what'll I be doing? Stuck on the treadmill"

From Quiz Richard Thompson Appears in a Blue Mirror

Answer: Fame and love

The story here is a pair of criminals, who would like to be as famous as Bonnie and Clyde. The opening line; "Shane and Dixie they were two-bit crooks. They wanted to be famous like you read in books." Not being the most successful they, well Shane, decides that a double suicide will get them the fame he craves. Or maybe a murder-suicide, it would end up the same from his point of view. But back to the question, the answer can found by listening to the chorus. "Fame and love, fame and love Fame and love will never die"

From Quiz It's still Richard Thompson

Answer: Twisted up infinity

The subject of this song is a woman with little knowledge of the world outside. "They dress you up and keep you clean Like courtiers around a queen Show you good from bad, right from wrong" Further into the song the lines: "In your face I think I see Twisted-up infinity" Which is what the question asked for.

From Quiz Richard Thompson Offers the "Hand of Kindness"

Answer: Racehorse

I have noted elsewhere that songwriters seem to be enamoured of writing about racehorses. In this song the poor horse has a broken leg when the singer first purchases it. So he puts the leg in a sling, feeds the horse hay and the horse keeps howling all night. I conclude that one end that is burning is the muzzle, the source of the howling. It isn't mentioned but probably the tail end of the horse isn't too happy either. Poor horse, wants some painkillers and a cup of cocoa I reckon. The chorus runs: "Both ends burning, both ends burning. That's how she got her name. Both ends burning, both ends burning. I never will sleep again" In this song the horse enters the race and is a clear winner, no hanging around at the back here. Another of Richard's songs about horses is "The Angels Took my Racehorse Away". Other singer-songwriters with similarly themed songs include Kate Rusby and Steve Knightley.

From Quiz Richard Thompson starring as Henry the Human Fly

Answer: Nancy

Another woman who seems unreliable in relationships, "Shaky Nancy". As the chorus goes; "Here she comes and there she goes Nothing on her fingers, nothing on her toes. Why she comes, nobody knows Here comes Shaky Nancy." There does seem a theme to these songs, a theme of loss and longing. Nancy also seems a popular name with song writers. From the traditional canon there are many such as "Nancy Whisky, "Adieu, Sweet Lovely Nancy" and "The Streams of Nancy". More recently written songs include Leonard Cohen's song "Seems So Long Ago, Nancy" and Eric Bogle, with his song "Leaving Nancy".

From Quiz Richard Thompson does the Hokey Pokey

Answer: Never again

Each verse of the song ends with the phrase "never, oh never, oh never again". The third (and final) verse being a good example of this. "Old man how you tarry, old man how you weep The trinkets you carry and the garlands you keep For the salt-tears of lovers and the whispers of friends Come never, oh never, oh never again" The entire song has the same sense of regret of loss. Of the other options "Turning of the Tide" is a song written by Richard Thompson, but it appears on the album Amnesia, not this one.

From Quiz The Electric Richard Thompson

Answer: Hate

A song about two people who are united by their dislike of each other. Over time they have come to need each other as an enemy, it become their raison d'etre. The last verse demonstrates this: "Now we're just two old men on the brink Each waiting for the other to blink If I should lose you, I'd be left with nothing but fate As I see your life fall apart I should smile but I don't have the heart At the end of the day, it's still too much effort to hate" A slightly different take on a similar situation is the Richard Thompson song "Put it There Pal".

From Quiz Richard Thompson Appears in a Blue Mirror

Answer: Glycerine

The subject of this song is a woman, trying to pretend that she is interested in a relationship. The singer is pointing out the various ways it shows she is not interested in someone despite the woman's best efforts to pretend otherwise. The verse which supplies the answer will demonstrate this. "There's glycerine in the tear. Rouge in the blush. Your artful stammer. A little too rushed. All passion to the eye. All cold to the touch. And then he'll guess. Your mind has drifted in the kiss." At least that is my interpretation it could be seen the other way round except for the way that the song ends, which follows on from the lines above. "There's a chink in your armour. A crack in your defences. When your iron will. Gives way to your senses. Your whispered sweet nothings. All sound like expenses. And that's enough. He won't believe your words of love."

From Quiz It's still Richard Thompson

Answer: Rin Tin Tin

The story relayed in this song is that of a girlfriend who is saving her maidenhead. A concept far more common in traditional songs than those from the current century. About halfway through the song we get to the following: "She wants diamonds on her finger She wouldn't let me in Frothing at the mouth and barking On all fours like Rin Tin Tin My girl Kate she wants me to wait But I got urges, don't I?" An older song with a similar story is "The Bells of Canterbury", where the singer tries to woo a woman with various worldly gifts and fails. Only to succeed when he gives her his heart.

From Quiz Richard Thompson Offers the "Hand of Kindness"

Answer: Double-Dutch

The answer is contained in the first two lines of the third verse; "You tell me you're going to get in touch. You send me a letter that reads like double-Dutch" If the title is not enough of a clue as to the theme of the song, then the chorus which consists of "Is this the way it's supposed to be" twice, followed by the title should make it plain. The entire song carries on in this unpromising theme, the last verse ending with the phrase: "And when I die of shame I won't even know who to thank" Pure negativity, yet it comes over as a rousing song.

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