Pete's Pantheon: Richard Thompson, Incandescence in the Dark

Is there anyone out there who can match Richard Thompson stride for stride as a guitarist, singer and songwriter? Neil? Bruce? Tom?... anyone? Richard seems to have been issued a guitar with notes on it that others can't find or are afraid to play. His bends in the studio version of "Calvary Cross" open holes in reality through which you glimpse an abyss. And he's only deepened as a player since then (compare the playing on his score to Herzog's "Grizzly Man" to his younger but still amazing take on the same material on his "Strict Tempo" recording.) As a prolific songwriter he has created a coherent body of work that ranges from the timeless longing of "Dimming of the Day" the poignant specificity of "Al Bowlly's in Heaven" and the reckless high spirits of "1952 Vincent Black Lightning" Many find his singing an aquired taste. I suggest you acquire it.
Drawn with Sketchbook Pro on iPad

A Cartoonist's Cause

(Click image to enlarge.)

As many of you know, I have Parkinson's Disease. I haven't made much of it on this blog (I have another blog for that, it's here). But I've come across another place where Parkinson's Disease overlaps cartooning. Richard Thompson, a talented cartoonist and the author of the "Cul de Sac" comic strip has announced that he is also in the early stages of the post-diagnosis phase of the disease.

Unfortunately this insidious disease inflicts much damage before it is detectable. Parkinson's Disease is like a slow-moving brain injury that eventually robs its victims of the ability to initiate voluntary movement- to walk, to speak, to draw. There is no cure. However with careful management of the medications, diet, and exercise there is every hope that Richard will be able to produce his beautiful drawings for many years.

In the meantime, Richard's friends have organized a fund-raising effort on behalf of research into Parkinson's Disease through The Michael J. Fox Foundation Cartoonists are asked to contribute artwork for a book and auction to fund the cause. If you're not a cartoonist, but want to help, there is a button there which you can press to donate money.

For the theme of the book, cartoonists are invited to use the Cul de Sac characters as they will in their own artwork, interpreting them freely. My contribution appears above.

Busker's Nightmare

Here's a personal project, a chance to draw some of the greats of the guitar, some well-known, some relatively obscure, (Any Sister Rosetta Tharpe fans out there?) This is a mix of a few personal faves (Richard Thompson, Gatemouth Brown) and some of the inevitable big names (Clapton, Jeff Beck, Frank Zappa) relegated here to mostly supporting roles.