Heartbreaker Please

For those who, like Thomson, also yearn for the charmingly constructed sounds of classic singles which remain timeless slices of memorable music, and others wanting a taste of those songs in a contemporary setting, Heartbreaker Please finds Teddy Thompson nailing that elusive style with deceptive, impressive ease.

Heartbreaker Please, like much of Thompson’s output, is unshowy yet quietly effective. ... The album can sound a little too cosy, where you’re often yearning for something a bit more raw and less polished. Yet if you’re looking for some timeless, classic-sounding pop, then Thompson does a very good job.

Thompson was a capable performer from the start, and Heartbreaker Please demonstrates he's improved with the passage of time, while his songwriting has also gained a depth that comes from a lived life.

Heartbreaker Please raises one's spirits by accepting the end as a new beginning. He sings about feeling "Brand New", and while his enthusiasm is suspect, there is a sense of relief present. Thompson's not wallowing; he's re-joining the world and out looking for love.

Heartbreaker Please expresses its title in the most literal terms; it's broken and pleading. At the same time, the music provides a through-line to the 43-year-old's singer's past, striking his usual balance between Buddy Holly simplicity and Roy Orbison sweep, with a dash of Memphis horns tossed in. [Jun 2020, p.89]