HOT on the heels of realsing a new album, Lymm singer-songwriter Paul Thompson is set to perform a fundraising concert to help create acccesible facilities at Lymm Methodist Church.
For the past decade singer-singwriter Paul Thompson has been performing sell-out shows at Lymm Festival, singing his own comic songs, as well as classic material by the likes of Tom Lehrer, Flanders and Swann, Victoria Wood and his particular musical hero, Jake Thackray.
Audience feedback has now led him to record his first solo album, Playing with Nadine, a 26-song collection which mixes his own material with his versions of eight long-lost Jake Thackray songs which have never been released before.
“Jake has always been a great inspiration for my writing,” says Paul. “My satirical songs deal with subjects including the shipping forecast, Trump, marriage, relationships with technology, and even the B word. There are also one or two poignant songs in the mix, including one inspired by a moving war memoir.”
Singer-songwriter Paul unearthed the lost Thackray songs in TV, radio and film archives while researching his acclaimed biography, Beware of the Bull – The Enigmatic Genius of Jake Thackray. The book, which he wrote with his friend John Watterson, was included in the Daily Telegraph’s pick of the best music books of 2022.
“These lost Thackray songs range from the amusing to the poignant and darkly cynical,” added Paul. “They are all instantly recognisable as Jake’s work, and some of them are right up there with his very best writing.”
The album has another Thackray connection: Paul plays the songs on a guitar which Jake once owned and named Nadine. Jake bought her in the early seventies, but by the eighties she was in poor condition, and he gave her to a charity to auction off, along with a letter of authenticity which is hilarious because it contains so much fantasy. Nadine’s colourful history is shared in the album’s artwork.
On 21st March singer-songwriter Paul will be appearing on Radio Warrington’s Culture Show, where the whole programme will be devoted to the album. He is also holding a launch concert at The Spread Eagle in Lymm on Saturday 27th April.
All the proceeds will be going to Lymm Methodist Church’s £0.5 million redevelopment project, which aims to enhance the church’s facilities and make them accessible to all.
For more information, visit Paul’s website, www.paulthompsonmusic.co.uk
