A Piece of What You Need

iTunes Review

As the son of Richard and Linda Thompson, Teddy has quite a legacy to maintain, and over four albums thus far Thompson has proven up to the task. His voice is more naturally musical than his dad's — and every bit as mournful as them both — and his musical decisions are rooted in his family’s folk history but not indebted to it. He’s now learning to smile as he delivers the bad news. A Piece of What You Need sounds like an optimist’s album. It’s filled with powerful, upbeat rhythms and melodies ready to take on the world with open arms (“In My Arms,” “The Things I Do”), but listen closer and the tales take a downward turn. That’s existential angst pinned under the cruising beat of “The Things I Do” and any tune with a title such as “Turning the Gun On Myself” comes with its own self-apparent warning. “Slippery Slope (Easier)” slowly marches with an inevitable weight and “Don’t Know What I Was Thinking” and “What’s This?!!” are well finished compositions worthy of any modern songwriter, with or without an esteemed family pedigree.