Concertwire.com

Richard Thompson was born in West London in 1949. His family was very musically diverse, and he grew up listening to everything from jazz to early rock and roll. Artists like Buddy Holly and Les Paul intermingled in his record collection with Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington. As a teenager, Richard became the guitarist in several bands throughout the 1960s, including Fairport Convention (his "breakthrough band"). He remained with the band for three more years, eventually touring America with CSN&Y and Traffic in 1970. Since then, Richard has released an incredible amount of records that are always received famously by his impressively dedicated fanbase. He's collaborated with folks like Peter Filleul and Tim Finn of Crowded House, and has been covered by artists from REM to Bonnie Raitt, to Del McCoury.