Randy Thompson

Randy Thompson's New CD, COLLECTED, Set For Global Release On January 24 Featured Musicians: Mike Auldridge, Rickie Simpkins, Garrick Alden & the late Don Helms "I wanted this to be the album that you'd play in the car when you're driving down Route 66 with the windows wide open." - Randy Thompson Nashville, TN (December 19, 2011) With a Virginia bloodline that traces back to the early 1700s, singer/songwriter Randy Thompson gives true meaning to the term "roots music." Like his musical antecedents, Thompson tends to draw inspiration directly from personal experience, creating starkly drawn musical and lyrical pictures. COLLECTED, set for global release January 24 on Jackpot Records, brings the best of Thompson to disc, and his presentation is glorious in its gritty reality. Fifteen tracks comprise COLLECTED; 12 older songs given new insights, and three new tracks: Twang This, You Can't Talk To Me Like That, Bring On Down The Rain. Randy composed new melodies and altered the lyrics of two old Virginia folk songs (Goin' Down To Lynchburg Town and Ol' 97) to freshen them, and included two outside songs on the disc: Rocksalt & Nails (B. Utah Phillips) and Molly & Tenbrooks (Steve Gillette/Linda Albertano). Combined with Thompson's originals, the project forms a wide-open window to the heart and soul of an American troubadour. For Thompson, the new CD is a humble offering to the fans who, he says, "Chose the songs themselves. These are the tunes that my fans ask for again and again at my shows." There are a few ballads (Don't You Remember, Bring On Down The Rain), but the bulk of the material is more mid to up-tempo Americana country rockers. Regardless of tempo, Thompson's gritty baritone captures the listener, while his unerring guitar work and compelling pen continue to justify his ever-expanding fan base. Thompson gathered top-notch musicians for COLLECTED. Players include: Grammy-winning Mike Auldridge (Seldom Scene, Lyle Lovett) on Steel; the late Don Helms (Hank Williams, Sr.) on Steel (on one of his last sessions); Rickie Simpkins (Emmylou Harris, Robert Plant, Buddy Miller) on Fiddle and Mandolin; Colin Thompson (Randy's son) on Slide, and Garrick Alden (one of guitar great Danny Gatton's favorite pickers) on Lead Guitar. Randy's roots run far and deep, and COLLECTED is a natural evolution from his 2008, FURTHER ON, a disc that pushed Thompson to near-cult status; generating heavy spins on Sirius XM and hundreds of radio stations across the U.S., Europe and Australia. The disc spawned three Top 5 International HotDisc Chart singles, several European tours, national television exposure, a movie soundtrack appearance and an NPR radio special. COLLECTED is available to radio via download at AirPlayDirect.com/randythompsoncollected Programmers can request CDs directly from Jackpot Records: jackpotrecords@hotmail.com.