Preview: Richard Thompson and his six strings

How do you judge the quality of any particular song? Well, there’s a simple test that provides no room for bluff; does the song sound good when played on solo acoustic guitar?

Stripping away everything so that you are left with just six strings is an effective way of separating the wheat from the chaff.

And there’s no chaff evident in singer-songwriter Richard Thompson’s latest album Acoustic Classics, which sees him reinterpret self-penned songs from his post-Fairport Convention back catalogue when he left the folk-rock pioneers to plough his own musical furrow.

He recorded the album in his home studio in Los Angeles, working in the dead of night to avoid the noise of dogs barking and aircraft flying overhead.

Thompson will be showcasing Acoustic Classics at the Grand Opera House in York on Thursday (August 28) where you can hear him play fresh and vital guitar arrangements of evergreen standards such as Wall Of Death, Valerie, 1952 Vincent Black Lightning, Dimming Of The Day, Beeswing, Down Where The Drunkards Roll and I Want To See The Bright Lights Tonight.

It promises to be a night of acoustic delights.

Also on the bill is folk-rock duo The Rails, featuring Thompson’s daughter Kami and guitarist James Walbourne.