Missing Pieces

The following three releases are no longer in print, and none should probably be considered "canonical," though one would definitely love to at least hear them. Both FFKT albums would certainly be welcome releases, and Sweet Talker must definitely be heard before any definitive assessment can be made of its relative indispensability.

French Frith Kaiser Thompson: Invisible Means [1990] - This is the second (and to date, final) album from this eclectic-rock supergroup. As with Live, Love, Larf & Loaf, the adventurous listener would simply die to have this come back into print.

Richard Thompson: Doom & Gloom II (Over My Dead Body) [1991] - Thompson’s
second cassette-only installation for his fan club featured primarily live recordings, along with a few demos, both with bands, as well as on acoustic guitar. Most of the material was recently recorded, though some stretches back to Richard and Linda days, and even Fairport Convention. Don’t expect this to re-appear on Amazon any time soon.

Richard Thompson: Sweet Talker (Soundtrack) [1991] - "Sweet Talker is a soundtrack album by Richard Thompson released in 1991. Thompson had worked with composer Peter Filleul on various other soundtrack projects, notably the TV shows "The Life And Loves Of A She-Devil" and "The Marksman". In 1990 film producer Taylor Hackford made the movie Sweet Talker which starred and was written by Bryan Brown. Hackford invited Thompson to submit some ideas for a soundtrack and then asked him to work with Filleul to produce a full sound track for the film. The project was a difficult one, with work having to be revisited as Hackford edited and re-edited the film. At its conclusion Thompson swore that he would never do another soundtrack. The film was not a success. Thompson’s score did little to enhance his reputation, although the instrumental "Persuasion" was subsequently re-written with lyrics by Tim Finn and has featured in Thompson’s live shows over the years. "
- From Wikipedia.com

Obviously, Thompson would later change his mind about doing soundtracks, but one would certainly love to hear this curious gap in his back catalogue. Most of the pieces are instrumentals, but there are some vocal songs as well. The CD was released on Capitol, so perhaps there is a chance that it will be re-released at some point.