Jonathan Richman’s early work was a key influence on what became punk rock, but by the time the Sex Pistols started covering Roadrunner, he’d lost most of his band due to his demands that they get quieter and quieter. He settled into a stripped-down acoustic rock sound, and these days you know more or less what to expect from him.

He occupies such an idiosyncratic place in pop music history that it’s impossible to compare a new Richman album to anything but his own discography. At first this disc sounds pretty typical: ultra-minimal production, that famous childlike wonder at the world, a few songs in languages other than English, and lots of romance. 

However, he is getting more serious with age, as exemplified by the heartbreaking closing track, As My Mother Lay Lying. By Richman’s standards, this is a very dark album, but keep in mind, it’s by a  guy who’s been known to write songs about ice cream and seems to wish he were a children’s singer.

Top track: As My Mother Lay Lying

Jonathan Richman sings his little heart out tonight (Thursday, June 25) at the Great Hall.