Teddy Thompson

Born in London on February 19, 1976, Teddy Thompson grew up at the center of British folk royalty as the son of acclaimed songwriters and vocalists Richard and Linda Thompson, whose string of landmark recordings spanned the 1970s and 1980s. Though his parents parted ways during his childhood, he maintained close musical ties with both, regularly joining them on tour and in the studio. Early on he immersed himself in pre-1960 rock and roll and classic country, deliberately avoiding anything released after 1959 until he reached sixteen; by eighteen he had mastered guitar and assembled his first band.

His recording career began in 1996 when he supplied backing vocals for his father’s album You? Me? Us?, after which he spent several years performing with Richard’s ensemble, opening shows, and contributing to further sessions. One highlight was a live duet on “Persuasion” that surfaced on the Richard Thompson anthology Action Packed. Striking out independently in 2000, he relocated to New York and issued his self-titled Virgin debut, which earned glowing notices yet modest sales and led to a stint touring behind Rosanne Cash’s band.

Frequent collaborations with close friend Rufus Wainwright followed, including appearances on the 2002 album Poses and 2003’s Want One, while 2002 also found him assisting Linda Thompson on her long-awaited return Fashionably Late and accompanying her for a short American tour. A new deal with Verve Forecast yielded 2005’s Separate Ways, and that same year he and Wainwright recorded Roger Miller’s “King of the Road” for the Brokeback Mountain soundtrack; he likewise participated in Kate & Anna McGarrigle’s holiday collection The McGarrigle Christmas Hour.

In 2007 Thompson delivered Upfront & Down Low, an idiosyncratic salute to vintage country material, and again teamed with his mother for Versatile Heart. The following year’s A Piece of What You Need returned him to original pop songwriting and reached number ten on the British Album Charts. He took part in 2010 tribute concerts honoring the late Kate McGarrigle, later documented on Sing Me the Songs: Celebrating the Works of Kate McGarrigle, before releasing 2011’s Bella, produced by David Kahne and featuring the single “Looking for a Girl.”

Two years later he produced the family project Family, credited to “Thompson” and featuring Richard, Linda, sister Kami, half-brother Jack, and cousin Zak Hobbs. Further partnerships emerged with 2016’s Little Windows alongside Kelly Jones, occasional performances by his rockabilly-country trio Poundcake, and production work on Dori Freeman’s self-titled debut that year, followed by 2017’s Letters Never Read and 2019’s Every Single Star. After a five-year gap, 2020 brought the R&B-tinged Heartbreaker Please, and in 2023 he produced and played bass on “Words” from Shamir’s Homo Anxietatem while issuing two country-focused sets: My Love of Country, helmed by David Mansfield, and the duets collection Once More: Jenni Muldaur and Teddy Thompson Sing the Great Country Duets.