Artist:   Teddy Thompson
Song:   "Slippery Slope"
Album: A Piece Of What You Need
Label:   Verve Forecast
Year:    2008

Haunting. There is no other word to describe “Slippery Slope.” It’s the dread that overtakes you when you know that life has changed for the worse, at least for now, and there is absolutely nothing to be done about it. Teddy Thompson has that forever quality in his voice, like the truths he sings about are the big ones, the ones that confront us when they’re the last things in the world we want to see. The musicians build a sound that would fit right into a David Lynch movie, like Roy Orbison without the heavy shades but with Brian Eno behind the board. Thompson is a young man, though, and how he arrives at this place of pain is a story worth discovering. His parents, Linda and Richard Thompson, went through a very public breakup on record (Shoot Out The Lights) and onstage, one that must have sunk into their son’s spirit in a way he’s still trying to understand: “Nothing’s ever been the same/I have never loved  again.”  Whoa. This song is for those who think Chris Isaak sounds too happy, or feel Jimmy Scott doesn’t go deep enough. Lou Reed said it best: “Down for you is up,” and Teddy Thompson is taking us to that truthful mirror with everything he’s worth.