“With a voice that draws comparisons to greats like Marty Robbins, Gordon Lightfoot, and at times, the "Man in Black," Joe Thompson leads a band that swings as hard as a coal-burning iron horse that's running out of track. The Hunting and the Hope is like summer in a small town, a smooth refreshing cocktail of country, folk and rock & roll. But there's also a hint of New York City attitude in these 11 songs that come straight from the gut of an exciting new singer-songwriter. Using the concrete canyons of New York City and the blue-collar values of his native Western Pennsylvania as a backdrop, Joe Thompson combines a passionate, lyrical urgency with deliberate rhythms, wide-open hooks and lilting melodies.” - Mike Roberts,Whisperin’ and Hollerin’

“Often songwriters try to capture the idyllic life. Not so with Joe Thompson. The 'Hunting and the Hope' is written with the passion, intensity, and tenderness of the thousand moods that cross our paths daily. He speaks to each of them with the heart of a poet, in the voice of everyman.” - Torchy Blaine, radio personality and former host of Guitar Town on WDVR FM 89.7 & 91.7, Seargentsville, NJ



“"Comparisons can be a compliment or an albatross; I've certainly been conscious of that danger when comparing artists whose work I've enjoyed to iconic acts like the Beatles and Bruce Springsteen. So it was with at least one eyebrow raised that I read where Joe Thompson's one-sheet rather audaciously suggests he sometimes sounds like Johnny Cash -- and damned if that isn't right on target. There's a depth of tone and resonance and a sense of hard-won experience on several these tracks that grants Thompson a Cash-like authority over the listener's attention.” - Jason Warburg, Editor, The Daily Vault