CHRIS THOMPSON

Rip It Up, Issue 91, 1 February 1985, Page 8

CHRIS THOMPSON

Chris Thompson has been on the road with - his guitar Jsince 1968 and in that time he's made or played on about a dozen albums but you may not have heard of him. You' may. however, be more familar with some of the people he has played with overseas names like Julie Felix, Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee and even members of Led Zeppelin. ± His most high-prof ile|ap[pearance recently has been as opening act for Stevie Ray Vaughan. The prospect of going out in front of a Stevie Ray crowd with just an electric guitar and a batch of folk-blues songs would seem pretty frightening but Thompson says he found it “very exciting". He finds it less hassle to play without a band anyway.. He’s undertaking a North Island

tour this' month, mainly in folk clubs and theatres, the bread and butter for a traditional acoustic performer (see Coruba Calendar for, details). His last LP in this country was The Natural Blues and he's working on another one at the moment, again to go out on Hastings label Country Life, a "grass roots” folk label as he's getting mar : Vied soon this one is turning out * ' to be full of love songs. He has also done a demo for TV with Frank Gibson Jnr and Billy Kristian; electric versions of two songs off his last LP. He has signed up with publishers Southern Music, who as well as trying to sell his new songs to the likes of Don McLean, are chasing up royalties he’s owed from years back.