Almost exactly a decade ago, when he was a flourishing and feisty 60, the superb British guitarist/songwriter Richard Thompson told me his approach on figuring out which songs to play on any given night.

At that point, he'd released close to three dozen solo albums or collaboratons with ex-wife Linda Thompson or with Fairport Convention. In an interview at the time, Thompson told me, "The only limits are my ability to remember songs. Going into any tour, there are 40 songs at the front of my brain and another 100 at the back of my brain. Then there are the 200 I've forgotten. It's fun to go into a show carte blanche and just pull stuff out of my hat ..."

Well, it's 10 years later and Thompson has released seven additional studio recordings, including last year's vibrant "13 Rivers" album, so Thompson has even more stuff in his catalog. Part of the fun, as you'll see when he returns for a solo acoustic show Wednesday to the Katharine Hepburn Cultural Arts Center in Old Saybrook, will be to see what he decided to play now. Other than that, we already know the performances will be excellent.

Richard Thompson, 8 p.m. Wednesday, The Kate, 300 Main St., Old Saybrook; $75; (860) 510-0453.