RICHARD Thompson s last visit to the Cambridge Corn Exchange was part of an acoustic tour that showcased his exquisite fingerpicking guitar style and his almost paranormal musical empathy with bassist Danny Thompson. Tonight s show was mainly electric – T

RICHARD Thompson's last visit to the Cambridge Corn Exchange was part of an acoustic tour that showcased his exquisite fingerpicking guitar style and his almost paranormal musical empathy with bassist Danny Thompson.

Tonight's show was mainly electric - Thompson accompanied yet again by Danny on bass, but also by the multi-instrumentalist Pete Zorn and the astonishing drumming of Michael Jerome.

The first few tracks introduce us to Thompson's new album, Sweet Warrior, which from a first listen appears to contain some extremely strong material indeed. Take Care The Road You Choose has a particularly classic feel with a beautiful lyric and subtle melody.

Another highlight is a solo acoustic interlude in which Thompson pays tribute to former bandmate Sandy Denny with a beautiful rendition of her song Who Knows Where The Time Goes. I can't think of a song that moves me more - and to hear Thompson perform it so honestly and scarcely was a special moment.

Later, his electric guitar skills reach new heights with an incredible solo - now imagine a theatre of dropped jaws and wide eyes. It leads my friend to describe his playing as "so contemporary -- like Radiohead's Jonny Greenwood" and I have to agree. I tell my friend that Richard Thompson was voted the 19th greatest guitarist of all time by Rolling Stone magazine a few years ago. "That's amazing" my friend replied: "You'd have thought he would have been higher than that."

CHRIS BOLAND