Richard Thompson

In 2027, Richard Thompson can say that he has been at the forefront of folk music and folk-rock for 60 years. In 1967, Thompson cofounded Fairport Convention, an amoebic group that honored the traditional sounds from the British Isles but pushed them into strange places of shadow and light, too. Thompson, though, did not stick around long, exiting the group after four years to begin a solo career; to make a handful of astounding records with his first wife, the singer Linda Peters; and generally to begin his trajectory as one of the most accomplished and versatile guitarists to ever exist in the folk-rock pantheon. That’s Thompson you hear on the first song on Nick Drake’s first album, Thompson you hear winding his way through scenes in Werner Herzog’s Grizzly Man, and Thompson you hear on records by Cales John and J.J.

Thompson’s vast discography includes a seemingly endless array of other musicians, bands he builds based on his needs, whether he’s writing songs about World War II or trying to survey a millennium of music in a single evening. But there is perhaps no more striking setting for Thompson than when he is onstage alone with a guitar, as he will be at Big Ears 2026. He is a truly dazzling technician, his hands somehow keeping a heavy rhythm while his fingers trace lithe melodies and athletic solos. He often makes six strings sound like a guitar duo or even a full band. He is a generous solo performer, too, making self-effacing jokes and telling stories about collaborators and friends across his eight decades. A consummate singer-songwriter who still writes, sings, and performs like he has something to prove, Thompson remains a vital force.