One of my friends frequently says she'd leave her husband for Teddy Thompson faster than you can say Teddy has the sweetest voice in rock 'n' roll. She's joking, I think, but if I were her husband I'd do everything I could to keep Thompson's latest album, "A Piece of What You Need," away from her.
For one thing, Thompson looks pretty dapper in the photo on the album cover. My friend will take several long looks at it, I'm sure, but she's more of a sucker for a great pop hook. And make no mistake, "A Piece of What You Need" is filled with one great hook after another. "Can't Sing Straight," for example, sounds a lot like a gorgeous reworking of Michael Penn's "Brave New World."
My friend digs funny men, too, and "What's This" is one of the most amusing songs about relationships I've heard in a long time. Then again, Thompson's lyrics are often dark. Moreover, he seems to write a lot of songs about troubled relationships. "In My Arms," for example, is beautiful, to be sure, but are women really looking for a guy who says he's looking for an easy way out of a relationship?
Maybe so, if the guy in question has just recorded the best pop album of the year. I'm just glad I'm single so I can enjoy "A Piece of What You Need" without worrying what effect Teddy Thompson's golden voice would have on my wife.
