See: Teddy Thompson – New tracks, New album, new tour

Amazingly it’s been 20 years since Teddy Thompson delivered his first album. Over the past two decades he’s been carefully honing his craft from folk tinged beginnings to his more recent country style, gradually seeking three- minute pop song perfection. As he admits himself, he is trying to trace that enduring line back to the Everlys, Buddy Holly, Sam Cooke and inevitably Hank.

Now comes his sixth LP ‘Heartbreaker Please’ and another step deeper into his quest. Whereas his last release, 2016’s glowing ‘Little Windows’, explored the emotional and musical possibilities of the duet with LA based singer Kelly Jones, ‘Heartbreaker Please’ has Teddy leading from the front. What you get this time is a set of classic country rock tunes stripped back to an unadorned band sound much like Justin Townes Earle. The title track jangles into gentle chugging action before a cut to the chase ‘Will you come back’ chorus and the slower numbers like ‘Brand New’ pulse effortlessly with heartfelt longing. As always it is Thompson’s voice that lifts everything, clean, true, ringing and yearning at the same time.

So with ‘Heartbreaker Please’ it looks like Teddy Thompson’s allegiance to not getting complicated will pay off yet again. It all makes the prospect of his re-scheduled January/February 2021 UK dates in intimate venues especially enticing and the support slots with John Grant that follow all the more intriguing.