Chris Thompson

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1973 cover of the self titled "Chris Thompson" album


Singer/Songwriter/Guitarist Chris Thompson started out in the Kon-Tiki Folk Club in Hamilton, and other coffee houses in 1965, and after some initial success in Auckland with country and blues bands like The Stillwater String Band and The Myers Park Shufflers,in the early seventies he moved to England, where he played in the band of Californian folk singer Julie Felix. and with British folk-blues legends Wizz Jones and Davey Graham. In 1973 he made his first album, which is recognised internationally as an underground classic and is currently in its fifth edition. In New Zealand in 1974 Chris toured with Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee; Chris maintained a lifelong friendship with Brownie, for whom he wrote a song "Letter to Brownie"; the song had a video directed by Adam Hyde, then a student at Waikato Polytech, which was filmed by Wayne Green and screened on TVNZ. In the mid-seventies Chris toured with N.Z.singer/songwriter John Hanlon, backing him up on stage and in the studio, and in the eighties, Chris toured with Texas blues guitarist Stevie Ray Vaughan.Chris married Canadian musician Lynne Bradstock in 1985, and together they have one daughter, Lora, who plays guitar in the Hamilton band Cheshire Grimm, and bass in the Melbourne band Winter Moon.

Chris is an old boy of Southwell School and has spent most of his life in and around Hamilton, where he recorded Hometown Voodoo in 1981; this album contains the song Hamilton, about the city. This song has become widely known due to a version played by Big Muffin Serious Band. Other Hamilton musicians Chris has played with include Tim Armstrong and The Monday Club, Stan Jagger, The Dirt Band, and The Wild Allegations. After some success as a songwriter in America (where San Franciscan singer Meg Baird recorded The River Song, and Fleet Foxes frontman Robin Pecknold recorded Where is my Wild Rose?), Chris retired from touring and now lives in Taupo where he is writing new songs and performing the occaisional concert.In December 2016 Chris recorded a new album called 'On High Street'(by 'Chris Thompson, the Folksinger from Hell') which is released on Bandcamp.com


Releases

Chris Thompson (Anthology) cover art

as Chris and Lynne Thompson:


Compilations:

External Links

White Sapphire cover

Internet

Videos on Youtube:


This Chris Thompson should not be confused with Chris Thompson, the vocalist from Manfred Mann's Earth Band, who also spent time in Hamilton, including attending Hamilton Boys High School.