Search - Linda Thompson :: One Clear Moment

Uneven first solo effort from Thompson still worthwhile

Wayne Klein | My Little Blue Window, USA | 03/27/2005

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Linda Thompson's solo debut has a number of strong songs on them but it does suffer slightly from the dated 80's production of Hugh Murphy (who co-produced "Baker Street" for Gerry Rafferty). The most pop sounding of Thompson's albums, One Clear Moment has a number of strong tracks. "Can't Stop the Girl" comes across as Celtic-folk merged with 80's pop music with its tiny sythedrum sound. Thompson's clear pure voice shines through the cluttered production which casts Thompson as a folky Til Tuesday. "Telling Me Lies" was closest to Thompson's roots with a lilting melody and spare arrangement.



Although a flawed album, there's a number of honest, powerful songs that highlight this fine album. The best part of the album are the handful of bonus tracks. We get the excellent B-side "Talking Like a Man" (which is also available on the "Dreams Fly Away" anthology) and four rare live tracks with Linda accompanied only by an acoustic guitar. The liner notes give the background of the album. Thompson wrote much of the material with Betsy Cook in the aftermath of her break up with former performing partner and husband Richard Thompson. While there's an undeniable streak of bitterness at the heart of many of these songs, there's also a tremendous amount of heartache and insight as well.



Despite it's imperfections, "One Clear Moment" manages to shine due to Thompson's crystal clear pitch perfect voice and the emotions buried behind her singing. The inclusion of rare bonus tracks makes this a must have for fans of both Richard and Linda Thompson. It's nice to finally have "One Clear Moment" in print again as it makes a fine companion piece to "Fashionably Late" and the Thompson anthology "Dreams Fly Away""