Richard Thompson does the Hokey Pokey Quiz

Answer: The Ice Cream Song

A tasty song, giving examples of the dreams of ice cream. From the little boy and girl with "the money tucked up in their hands" to the prisoner dreaming of it, to keep him going through his sentence.

"Some like it round, and some like it flat
And some like a poke or two
But everybody runs for Hokey Pokey
It's the natural thing to do."

That much is obvious from the lyrics, but as this is a Richard Thompson song, we should consider the darker interpretation. This song could be seen as reflecting the shallowness of human nature, everything else is irrelevant except for personal gratification.

Answer: Whisky

Another song of a broken relationship. Lines such as "I'm so drunk I couldn't care. If that's a wig or your own hair" and "This is no way to exist with some girl who keeps a list. Naming all the boys she's missed" all reflect this theme.
The singer repeatedly admits "I'll regret it all in the morning", showing his acknowledgement of the state of the relationship.

Answer: Hit by Slingshot

Poor boy Smiffy, he was still a school boy at the time this took place.

"Smiffy was a little boy, different from the rest
He had one eye pointing east and one pointing west
Ever since Tiny Murphy hit him with a sling
Smiffy with his glass eye glittering"

Smiffy's life never improves, the end of the song tells us;

"Nobody cried when his world fell apart
Poor Smiffy died of a broken heart
You have to turn a blind eye to that sort of thing
Smiffy with his glass eye glittering"

Answer: The Beefcake Kid

The song opens with the lines "Hobnail Kelly and the Beefcake Kid, just rolled into town from the Land of sown-up faces." They then head off to a nightclub called "The Egypt Room". The main attraction appears to be a lady going by the name of "Princess".

The Princess isn't exactly high class, as the second verse starts: "She's a nightclub floozie, nothing but a tramp". But she is a good dancer according to the other lyrics. A third man then joins the party and falls for the dancer.
"The man with the cane and Italian shoes. Creeps like a lion looking for a lonely Christian".
The footwear alone distinguishes this gentleman from Hobnail Kelly.

The wrong answers may seem to be the products of a deranged mind. This could be true but the mind in question isn't mine. They are all from the titles of poems and monologues by Les Barker.

Answer: Never again

Each verse of the song ends with the phrase "never, oh never, oh never again".
The third (and final) verse being a good example of this.

"Old man how you tarry, old man how you weep
The trinkets you carry and the garlands you keep
For the salt-tears of lovers and the whispers of friends
Come never, oh never, oh never again"

The entire song has the same sense of regret of loss.
Of the other options "Turning of the Tide" is a song written by Richard Thompson, but it appears on the album Amnesia, not this one.

Answer: Chevrolet

A song about a happy go lucky girl (Isabel) and her slightly older boyfriend, Georgie. The girl's mother advises: "Isabel, now don't stay out too late. One day they'll throw you out of school, so get yourself a steady date", but Isabel is happy with her Georgie.

The second half of each chorus provides the answer:
"Driving in his Chevrolet I'm perfect company. He's the king and I'm his queen when Georgie's on a spree."

The song is sung by Linda Thompson who was Richard Thompson's wife at the time.
Richard Thompson has written a song with the title MGB-GT but it is not recorded on this album.

Answer: Billy

Of the options only the name Billy appears in this song. The song opens with the line "I was walking down the street when I met with Billy", Billy is world weary, as indicated by his words in the chorus.

"I'm an old man inside a young man
You've got to take it while you can
I'm an old man inside a young man
Take a heart and break it while you can"

The other names all appear in titles of songs on Richard Thompson's album "Henry the Human Fly".

Answer: Poor in the heart

The answer is found at the end of the verse, "But most of the people are poor in the heart. It's the worst king of poor, it's the worst kind of poor you can be."
The whole song revolves around the misery of being in a poverty trap without a way out. As the chorus goes:
"Ting a ling, ting a ling
The Devil he leans on your bell
The future looks black as before
And the sun never shines, the sun never shines on the poor."

Answer: Being alone

All of these lyrics are from songs on this album, but only one of them appears in this song. The full lyric being "I'm sick and weary of being alone". The song is one of longing for a partner, to be able to settle down.

Of the other options, the line about "whores, madams and misses is from "Old Man Inside a Young Man", the full lyric being "He said I'm sick of whores, madams and misses. The only kiss for me is the kiss of a knife".

The phrase "I'm a gambling man but I think I like your system" appears in the song "The Egypt Room", while the line "When I see your smiling face" comes from the song "I'll Regret It All In the Morning".

Answer: Byrds

This is the only track on the album not written by Richard Thompson (although my copy of the album credits him as the writer of all 10 tracks). The song was written by Mike Waterson, part of a well-known family of folk musicians.

Of the other three options, Richard Thompson was a founder member of Fairport Convention. The Clash have no connection with Richard Thompson but the song "A Tear Stained Letter", (which can be found on the album "Heart of Kindness",) does contain the lyric "My head was beating like a song by the Clash".
Eric and the Informers is a song by Eric Bogel and according to the song it was the name of a rock and roll band he (Eric Bogel) sang in when he was young.