Daring Adventures

In 1986, Richard Thompson and his record label of the moment, Polydor, were eager to expand his audience, so Thompson parted ways with his long-time producer Joe Boyd and went into the studio with producer and keyboard player Mitchell Froom. While Froom's approach was noticeably different than Boyd's, he displayed an obvious respect for Thompson's gifts, and though Daring Adventures boasts a bit more aural sheen than the albums that preceded it, Richard Thompson's style as a guitarist and songwriter still shines through clear as day. Froom replaced Thompson's usual rhythm section with top-shelf session players Jerry Scheff on bass and Mickey Curry on drums (Jim Keltner sits on three cuts), and if their style is less idiosyncratic than that of Dave Pegg and Dave Mattacks, they match the material far better than Willie Weeks and Andy Newmark did on First Light. And Froom kept his fondness for tape-loop keyboards and eccentric signal processing in check, giving the sessions an enjoyably warm, organic sound. - ALLMUSIC