Richard Thompson's initial solo outing singled his emergence as a major voice in folk rock music. As his career blossomed, so would the confidence of his voice. However, his unique writing skills were clear from the outset. Tangental, oblique, call it what you will his tack on the emotional world,and the capacity to nail a feeling to a powerful image is all here. At this point of his journey his folk background is more evident. You could picture his themes quite easily as ballads from an earlier epoch. But the concision that has marked his writing ever since is breathtaking.