Well, it looks like Teddy Thompson is still sad, and that’s good news for those who love his sad songs. I should say “Teddy Thompson” is still sad, as in the persona; I can’t attest one way or the other to the emotional state of Teddy himself. Either way, the unlucky in love guy, and the just plain bad at love guy, are still much in evidence on his eighth solo studio album Never Be The Same.
As he says in the press material, “People will say, ‘Oh, you poor thing,’ but it’s not that I’ve had more heartbreak than anybody else; I just wrote it down.”
This is Teddy’s first collection of originals since 2020, although he has not been quiet in the interim, of course, having released his critically acclaimed covers album My Love Of Country and Once More, a country duo project with Jenni Muldaur, both in 2023.
This time out he’s mixing it up, a theme that is reflected in the album title, the songs (and their production by the superb David Mansfield, returning from My Love Of Country) reflecting his growing command of the craft of songwriting, inspired by the likes of Chuck Berry, Hank Williams, and Crowded House, and of course his parents Richard and Linda Thompson. Not to mention his singing idols that include the Everly Brothers and George Jones.
I’m finding some absolute gems here, including the first single, the country soul song “So This Is Heartache,” with its simple arrangement of guitar, bass and drums, the emotion heightened by the soaring Hammond organ and horns in the bridge verse.
Following hard on its heels is another gem, the mid-tempo country rocker “Worst Two Weeks Of My Life,” in which the singer laments his bent for self destructive behavior, and wonders if he’ll be able to stick with the program and keep serving up Coca Cola or sweet tea to company. “Will I ever be the same?” he wonders. “You’re Not What I Need” is an absolutely devastating put down song, full of acerbic lines worthy of his father’s misanthropic persona, like “You’re wasting your time, it never gets better than it is right now.” Not much country in this one, more like hard folk rock. “Make Up Your Mind” similarly rocks, with some cool baritone guitar licks, in which the singer admonishes himself to learn to be a little vulnerable if he ever wants real love to come his way. “The Game” is another “she did me wrong” song, this one hearkening back to the Everlys and classic Nashville with touches of piano and strings – I would love to hear this one as a duet.
There’s plenty more, too. The rest leans more into ’80s nostalgia, like “I Remember” and “Baby It’s You.” I’m not sure where to put the closer “Same Old Song,” a kind of chamber folk ballad with some old time synth sounds and dreamy backing vocals, but I like it too.
Teddy will tour the UK in June followed by North America in July and throughout the fall.
(Royal Potato Family, 2026)
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