Mock Tudor (album)
Encyclopedia
Mock Tudor is an album by Richard Thompson released in 1999.
For this, his fifth album for Capitol Records
, Thompson teamed up with producers
Tom Rothrock
and Rob Schnapf
, and Mock Tudor had a more straightforward production than his preceding albums on Capitol which had been produced by Mitchell Froom
. In this album Thompson draws predominantly on the musical styles of Sixties England—the time and place of his youth. The lyrics have a nostalgic tinge and are rich with allusion to fairy tales and children's books as well as to Shakespeare and T. S. Eliot
.
Thematically, Mock Tudor is split into three sections: Metroland—comprising the first five songs, "Cooksferry Queen" to "Hard on Me", Heroes In The Suburbs—covering "Crawl Back (Under My Stone)" through "Walking the Long Miles Home", and concluding with Street Cries And Stage Whispers—encompassing the last three songs (on the original release).
Widely regarded by critics and Thompson fans as one of his best works, Mock Tudor was yet another richly acclaimed album that was largely ignored by the public. This was the last album that Thompson recorded for Capitol
and his last to date for a major record label. Subsequent Thompson studio albums would be self-financed and distributed by smaller independent labels.
Mock Tudor was released on Bong Load Records as a double vinyl LP
and with two extra songs
For this, his fifth album for Capitol Records
Capitol Records
Capitol Records is a major United States based record label, formerly located in Los Angeles, but operating in New York City as part of Capitol Music Group. Its former headquarters building, the Capitol Tower, is a major landmark near the corner of Hollywood and Vine...
, Thompson teamed up with producers
Record producer
A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
Tom Rothrock
Tom Rothrock
Tom Rothrock is an international record producer, composer and musician. Tom Rothrock has produced albums with James Blunt, Badly Drawn Boy, R. L. Burnside, Yonder Mountain String Band, Athlete, Sloan and Roman Carter....
and Rob Schnapf
Rob Schnapf
Rob Schnapf is an American record producer and musician. He was the co-producer of Elliott Smith's albums Either/Or, XO , Figure 8 and From a Basement on the Hill, for which he was recruited by Smith's family to complete after Smith's death.Schnapf, along with Rothrock and partner...
, and Mock Tudor had a more straightforward production than his preceding albums on Capitol which had been produced by Mitchell Froom
Mitchell Froom
-Career:Froom began his career as a keyboard player in Sonoma County, California. The band Crossfire featured two keyboards players; Mitchell on one side of the stage and brother David on the other with Gary Pihl on guitar...
. In this album Thompson draws predominantly on the musical styles of Sixties England—the time and place of his youth. The lyrics have a nostalgic tinge and are rich with allusion to fairy tales and children's books as well as to Shakespeare and T. S. Eliot
T. S. Eliot
Thomas Stearns "T. S." Eliot OM was a playwright, literary critic, and arguably the most important English-language poet of the 20th century. Although he was born an American he moved to the United Kingdom in 1914 and was naturalised as a British subject in 1927 at age 39.The poem that made his...
.
Thematically, Mock Tudor is split into three sections: Metroland—comprising the first five songs, "Cooksferry Queen" to "Hard on Me", Heroes In The Suburbs—covering "Crawl Back (Under My Stone)" through "Walking the Long Miles Home", and concluding with Street Cries And Stage Whispers—encompassing the last three songs (on the original release).
Widely regarded by critics and Thompson fans as one of his best works, Mock Tudor was yet another richly acclaimed album that was largely ignored by the public. This was the last album that Thompson recorded for Capitol
Capitol Records
Capitol Records is a major United States based record label, formerly located in Los Angeles, but operating in New York City as part of Capitol Music Group. Its former headquarters building, the Capitol Tower, is a major landmark near the corner of Hollywood and Vine...
and his last to date for a major record label. Subsequent Thompson studio albums would be self-financed and distributed by smaller independent labels.
Track listing
All songs written by Richard Thompson- "Cooksferry Queen" – 4:14
- "Sibella" – 4:15
- "Bathsheba Smiles" – 3:54
- "Two-Faced Love" – 4:03
- "Hard On Me" – 5:55
- "Crawl Back (Under My Stone)" – 3:59
- "Uninhabited Man" – 4:52
- "Dry My Tears And Move On" – 3:48
- "Walking The Long Miles Home" – 4:10
- "Sights And Sounds Of London Town" – 4:54
- "That's All, Amen, Close The Door" – 5:56
- "Hope You Like The New Me" – 5:00
Mock Tudor was released on Bong Load Records as a double vinyl LP
Gramophone record
A gramophone record, commonly known as a phonograph record , vinyl record , or colloquially, a record, is an analog sound storage medium consisting of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove...
and with two extra songs
- "Fully Qualified To Be Your Man"
- "Mr. Rebound"
Personnel
- Richard Thompson - guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
, vocalsSingingSinging is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
, mandolinMandolinA mandolin is a musical instrument in the lute family . It descends from the mandore, a soprano member of the lute family. The mandolin soundboard comes in many shapes—but generally round or teardrop-shaped, sometimes with scrolls or other projections. A mandolin may have f-holes, or a single...
, harmoniumHarmoniumA harmonium is a free-standing keyboard instrument similar to a reed organ. Sound is produced by air being blown through sets of free reeds, resulting in a sound similar to that of an accordion...
, hurdy gurdyHurdy gurdyThe hurdy gurdy or hurdy-gurdy is a stringed musical instrument that produces sound by a crank-turned rosined wheel rubbing against the strings. The wheel functions much like a violin bow, and single notes played on the instrument sound similar to a violin...
, dulcimerAppalachian dulcimerThe Appalachian dulcimer is a fretted string instrument of the zither family, typically with three or four strings. It is native to the Appalachian region of the United States... - Mitchell FroomMitchell Froom-Career:Froom began his career as a keyboard player in Sonoma County, California. The band Crossfire featured two keyboards players; Mitchell on one side of the stage and brother David on the other with Gary Pihl on guitar...
- keyboardsKeyboard instrumentA keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments... - Atom EllisAtom EllisAtom Ellis, , is a bass guitarist from San Francisco, California. Atom was a founding member of the Thrash Funk band Psychefunkapus from 1986-1992 and a member of the San Francisco band Dieselhed from 1993-2000...
- bass guitarBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick.... - Dave MattacksDave MattacksDave Mattacks is a rock and folk drummer. Best known for his work with Fairport Convention, Mattacks has also worked both as a session musician, and as a performance artist...
- drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
, percussionPercussion instrumentA percussion instrument is any object which produces a sound when hit with an implement or when it is shaken, rubbed, scraped, or otherwise acted upon in a way that sets the object into vibration... - Judith OwenJudith OwenJudith Owen is a Welsh singer-songwriter. Her first North American album, Emotions on a Postcard, was released in 1996, and has since been followed by five additional releases...
- backing vocals on Uninhabited Man & Two-Faced Love - Danny ThompsonDanny ThompsonDaniel Henry Edward 'Danny' Thompson is an English multi-instrumentalist best known as a double bassist and businessman...
- double bassDouble bassThe double bass, also called the string bass, upright bass, standup bass or contrabass, is the largest and lowest-pitched bowed string instrument in the modern symphony orchestra, with strings usually tuned to E1, A1, D2 and G2... - Teddy ThompsonTeddy ThompsonTeddy Thompson is a British folk and rock musician. He is the son of folk-rock musicians Richard and Linda Thompson and brother of singer Kamila Thompson...
- guitar and backing vocals - David McKelsy - harmonicaHarmonicaThe harmonica, also called harp, French harp, blues harp, and mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used primarily in blues and American folk music, jazz, country, and rock and roll. It is played by blowing air into it or drawing air out by placing lips over individual holes or multiple holes...
- Jeff Turmes - baritone saxophoneBaritone saxophoneThe baritone saxophone, often called "bari sax" , is one of the largest and lowest pitched members of the saxophone family. It was invented by Adolphe Sax. The baritone is distinguished from smaller sizes of saxophone by the extra loop near its mouthpiece...
- Charles Davis – cornetCornetThe cornet is a brass instrument very similar to the trumpet, distinguished by its conical bore, compact shape, and mellower tone quality. The most common cornet is a transposing instrument in B. It is not related to the renaissance and early baroque cornett or cornetto.-History:The cornet was...
- Leslie Benedict – tromboneTromboneThe trombone is a musical instrument in the brass family. Like all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player’s vibrating lips cause the air column inside the instrument to vibrate...
- Randall Aldcroft – trombone
- Larry Hall - cornet
- Joey WaronkerJoey WaronkerJoseph "Joey" Waronker is an American drummer and music producer. He is the son of record producer Lenny Waronker and singer/actress Donna Loren; his younger sister is musician Anna Waronker; and his grandfather is record executive and professional violinist Simon Waronker. He has three other...
- extra drums on Bathsheba Smiles - Lovely Previn - violinViolinThe violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
on Mr. Rebound - John Bergamot - percussionPercussion instrumentA percussion instrument is any object which produces a sound when hit with an implement or when it is shaken, rubbed, scraped, or otherwise acted upon in a way that sets the object into vibration...
on Mr. Rebound - Tom RothrockTom RothrockTom Rothrock is an international record producer, composer and musician. Tom Rothrock has produced albums with James Blunt, Badly Drawn Boy, R. L. Burnside, Yonder Mountain String Band, Athlete, Sloan and Roman Carter....
, Rob SchnapfRob SchnapfRob Schnapf is an American record producer and musician. He was the co-producer of Elliott Smith's albums Either/Or, XO , Figure 8 and From a Basement on the Hill, for which he was recruited by Smith's family to complete after Smith's death.Schnapf, along with Rothrock and partner...
– producers, recordists, mixers - Dan Thompson – recordist
- Don Tyler – mastering