Richard Thompson has announced his 20th solo studio album, Hippies, Thugs and Heroes, due for release on October 16 via New West Records, according to KLOF Magazine. The album follows Thompson's 2024 release, Ship to Shore, continuing a career that stretches back to the late 1960s. Thompson co-founded the pioneering folk-rock outfit Fairport Convention in 1967 before leaving the band in 1971 to pursue a solo career. Reflecting on the band's origins in a 2021 interview with Hot Press, Thompson said:Advertisement"We had a determination to be a bit different. Hippies, Thugs and Heroes is set for release on October 16 .