Richard Thompson. Esq., OBE

A Songwriter’s Songwriter


You’ll likely note that I’ve been reluctant to dive too deeply into a close reading or textual analysis of RT’s four-verse wonder (I’m still a little intrigued that in the video I linked in the first post this week Thompson miscounts the number of verses).  


I’m not swearing it off for good, and it’s important to take a stand, but I learned a little bit of a lesson with “Pancho and Lefty,” and to a certain extent with “Babylon.”  Pat’s reflection on “an inherent instability of meaning,” should give us a little pause.  In any event, now that I blog about these songs, I read too many of these interpretations.  Some I find edifying or evocative.  Many I find wrong.  Some subtly or not so subtly drain some small bit of magic out of a song.  So, informed as I am by Billy Collins’s “Introduction to Poetry,” I’ll take care, gentle reader, as I move along. Our goal, as always, should be to invite more reflection about the song, not less.


For a general discussion of RT’s perspective on songwriting, and some perspective on the power of story, I highly recommend this article from American Songwriter.

Greg Brown

To the best of my knowledge, the first commercially-available cover of “1952 VBL” appeared on Iowa-based singer-songwriter Greg Brown‘s The Live One in 1995 (recorded in 1994).  


“1952 Vincent Black Lightning” performed by Greg Brown (Spotify)

I think of Brown as a songwriter’s songwriter, and his inclusion of this song and a cover of Van Morrison’s “Moondance” seem fitting tributes, in the tradition of closing concerts with the works of others.  As a side note, Brown kicks off the tradition (continued with the Del McCoury Band) of finding “Box Hill” not suited to American delivery.


Brown is also an adept guitarist, and opts for a flatpicked, strummed arrangement with subtle bass runs through the verses.  The arrangement also puts a lot of its chips in with Brown’s distinctive style of vocal delivery.  Not only does he pull it off, but he gives some hope to lesser guitar talents (um, me…I’m not counting him in that number) that there’s some more manageable path to performing the song with a simpler arrangement, and elevating the strength of the song itself.  

Dick Gaughan

Dick Gaughan follows up with his own cover on his 1996 album Sail On.  In this case, also a mix of Gaughan’s distinctive vocal style, and his Celtic-infused, flat-picked guitar. Gaughan’s is also an effective arrangement to my mind.


“1952 Vincent Black Lightning” performed by Dick Gaughan (Spotify)

And, Gaughan leaves us with this thought, or perhaps a slightly evocative disclaimer, in his on-line notes to the song:


“Yes, I know that the 1952 Vincent Black Lightning didn’t have ignition keys. I’m sure Richard did as well.”


Hmm… Makes you wonder if Sgt. McRae knew that…   Just something to think about.  No, nevermind, completely different point entirely, I’m sure…


There are a few other singer-songwriter versions among the available covers, and I’ll add those into a Spotify playlist in the next post.  


Safety in Numbers?


I find that band arrangements of “1952 Vincent Black Lightning” are harder to pull off. Reckless Kelly’s version in the last post does a good job of building the song.  Other arrangements that ramp things up from the beginning and hold it there, have a tougher time, I think.  Consider, for instance, the Uptown Savages.  Their hard-driving R&B or rock-a-billy take starts out amped up, and has little place to go.  It’s fine on its own terms, I suppose, depending on your tastes, but takes up too much space musically, I think, to reinforce the narrative elements of the song.






“1952 Vincent Black Lightning” performed by the Uptown Savages (Spotify)

Cory Heydon

There are a few other arrangements I’ll put on the Spotify list to see if any of those strike your fancy.  Before closing, though, I’ll add one more.  While I fully expect Murder Ballad Monday to be a Buffett-free zone (intending no disrespect), we might come as close to that here with Key West-based Cory Heydon and the Cory Heydon Band.  This group seems to keep enough space in the song throughout.  Again, perhaps a matter of personal taste, but if you had to imagine yourself on a cruise ship (other than a Cayamo cruise with RT himself) listening to “1952 VBL,” you could do worse.


“1952 Vincent Black Lightning” performed by the Cory Heydon Band (Spotify)


Next up


In one final post for the week, I think, I’ll address the one glaring omission you’ve probably already noted in our exploration of “1952 Vincent Black Lightning.”  Let’s hope I can pull it off.