Song of the Day
Richard Thompson's 1952 Vincent Black Lightning is the story of a romantic ménage à trois between a boy, a girl and motorcycle
1952 Vincent Black Lightning - Richard Thompson Every concert I've seen by ex-Fairport Convention guitarist Richard Thompson has been closed with
1952 Vincent Black Lightning. It's Thompson's tribute to legendary British motorcycle manufactured by the Vincent Company in 50s and 60s that still is an object of obession for motorcycle enthusiasts all over the globe. Thompson owns three motorcyles, but I'm not sure of the make or vintage of his cycles. His passionate description of the 1952 VBL is surely that of a man who has blazed down an open road on a Vincent on many occasions.
I'm going to let Brett Hartenbach a first rate music critic provide you with the critical
yada yada on Thompson's musical stature:
Quote:
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For years, Richard Thompson resided in relative obscurity, while at the same time garnering vast critical praise for his magnificent guitar work and the dark wit and richness of his extraordinary songwriting. Richard Thompson's wiry guitar work is remarkable, displaying a blazing technical skill that never interfers with his melodic sensibilities
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The song is notable because lyrically
Vincent Black Lightning is as close to pure poetry as contemporary music is ever going to get.
1952 VBL should be included in the same anthology of poetry as Leonard Cohen's
Sisters of Mercy, Bob Dylan's
Tangled Up In Blue, and the Kink's
Waterloo Sunset.
Vincent Black Lightning is the story of a star crossed romantic ménage à trois between a girl named Red Molly, a reckless young outlaw named James Adie and a motorcycle, the 1952 Vincent Black Lightning. Thompon crafts the story with the lyrical elegance of a Chekov short story.
Thompson's skill at capturing the simple the unadorned elegance of an ordinary conversation is referred to by writers as an observer's ear. The most talented poets and writers are avid listeners who listen to the content of the conversation, but also listen to the cadence of the speaker, the colloquialisms used by the speaker, the use of signifiers and even listen to what is being expressed by moments of silence in a conversation.
1952 Vincent Black Lightning captures in four stanzas of poetic verse a story of doomed love as compelling as the epic real life romance of Bonnie and Clyde.
1952 Vincent Black Lightning
Lyrics and Music by Richard Thompson
Said Red Molly to James that's a fine motorbike
A girl could feel special on any such like
Said James to Red Molly, well my hat's off to you
It's a Vincent Black Lightning, 1952
And I've seen you at the corners and cafes it seems
Red hair and black leather, my favorite color scheme
And he pulled her on behind
And down to Box Hill they did ride
Said James to Red Molly, here's a ring for your right hand
But I'll tell you in earnest I'm a dangerous man
I've fought with the law since I was seventeen
I robbed many a man to get my Vincent machine
Now I'm 21 years, I might make 22
And I don't mind dying, but for the love of you
And if fate should break my stride
Then I'll give you my Vincent to ride
Come down, come down, Red Molly, called Sergeant McRae
For they've taken young James Adie for armed robbery
Shotgun blast hit his chest, left nothing inside
Oh, come down, Red Molly to his dying bedside
When she came to the hospital, there wasn't much left
He was running out of road, he was running out of breath
But he smiled to see her cry
And said I'll give you my Vincent to ride
Says James, in my opinion, there's nothing in this world
Beats a 52 Vincent and a red headed girl
Now Nortons and Indians and Greeveses won't do
They don't have a soul like a Vincent 52
He reached for her hand and he slipped her the keys
He said I've got no further use for these
I see angels on Ariels in leather and chrome
Swooping down from heaven to carry me home
And he gave her one last kiss and died
And he gave her his Vincent to ride
That obscure object of desire: The 1952 Vincent Black Lightning