If there's a God of Music, then this is a deus ex machina

[slipjig3]

I just heard the news, a bit late perhaps by the standards of some, but I must pass it on now, written in italics, underlined and boldfaced in order to attempt to lend it the weight it deserves: Linda Thompson has a new album. There are miracles, there are glorious miracles, and then there's this. For those not familiar, let me explain: Linda, with her husband Richard Thompson, recorded six of the finest albums of the 70's and early 80's, and (after their nasty, messy divorce) one hard-to-find solo album in '85. Then she was struck hard by a nervous condition that had plagued her on and off before, but this time, it left her totally unable to sing. She has not sung a note in seventeen years. And now she has an album. And to make it even more astonishing: she recorded it with her two children, and guest guitar on one track by her ex-husband. I am floored. I am awed. I am fighting back tears. God, Linda, we've missed you.