Paul Thorn

Paul Thorn

Thorn at The Grand in Wilmington, Delaware, 2008
Background information
Birth name Paul Wayne Thorn
Born 13 July 1964
Kenosha, Wisconsin, United States
Origin Tupelo, Mississippi, United States
Genres Americana, Southern rock, Country, Blues, Blues rock
Occupation(s) Musician, songwriter, boxer
Instruments Vocals, guitar
Years active 1997–present
Labels A&M Records, Perpetual Obscurity
Website Official website

Paul Wayne Thorn (born July 13, 1964) is an Americana singer-songwriter[1] whose style is a mix of blues and rock music.[2]

Biography

Thorn was born in Kenosha, Wisconsin, but as an infant his family moved and he was raised in Tupelo, Mississippi. He is also the cousin of Stan Thorn, a keyboardist for the band Shenandoah and Kay Bain's Saturday Mornin' Band on the WTVA Saturday morning series, The Mornin' Show.

Before his professional music career began, he was briefly a professional boxer, having fought a nationally-televised fight against former world champion Roberto Durán,[1] and also won the Mid-South Middleweight Championship in Memphis, Tennessee. After a few years of working in a local furniture factory and playing in local clubs, he was discovered by music professional Miles Copeland (brother of The Police drummer Stewart Copeland), was signed to a recording contract with A&M Records and recorded his first album, Hammer & Nail in 1997, followed by seven more albums. In early 2008, he enjoyed national TV performance appearances on Late Night with Conan O'Brien and Jimmy Kimmel Live!.

His album Pimps and Preachers, debuted at No. 83 on the Billboard 200 chart. The album was released on June 22, 2010. It is the highest position he has had on these charts. He is currently on tour promoting the album.[3]

Thorn has toured as an opening act for Huey Lewis & the News, Sting, John Prine, Marianne Faithfull, Mark Knopfler, Robert Cray, Bonnie Raitt, Toby Keith and Jeff Beck, Jerry Jeff Walker

His 2012 album What the Hell Is Going On was the #12 Most Played Album of 2012 on the AMA Chart.[4] What the Hell Is Going On was Thorn's second record to debut on the Billboard Top 100 during its first week of release.[5]

In 2014, Thorn released Too Blessed to Be Stressed, which he described as a collection of "positive anthem songs."[6]

Discography

! scope="row"| "Too Blessed to be Stressed" |

| | |

Studio albums

Title Details Peak chart positions
US
[7]		 US Rock
[8]		 US Heat
[9]		 US Indie
[10]
Hammer and Nail — — — —
Ain’t Love Strange
  • Release date: July 27, 1999
  • Label: Ark Records
 — — — —
Mission Temple Fireworks Stand
  • Release date: August 13, 2002
  • Label: Narada/Perpetual Obscurity
 — — — —
A Long Way from Tupelo 191 — 7 27
Pimps and Preachers
  • Release date: June 21, 2010
  • Label: Perpetual Obscurity
 83 24 — 12
What the Hell Is Goin' On?
  • Release date: May 8, 2012
  • Label: Perpetual Obscurity
 88 31 — 12
"—" denotes releases that did not chart

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Paul Thorn Biography". Artists A to Z. Great American Country. Retrieved 23 July 2010.
  2. ↑ Crossley, Jennifer (24 September 2009). "Ready to jam". Times Daily (Florence, Al: Times Daily). Retrieved 23 July 2010.
  3. ↑ Billboard.com
  4. ↑ "Bernie Williams, Ruthie Foster, Susan Tedeschi and More Join The Allman Brothers Band". Retrieved 30 January 2013.
  5. ↑ Corbett, Stephen (July 18, 2012). "Tupelo’s Paul Thorn". Retrieved 30 January 2013.
  6. ↑ from an interview on the Americana Music Show #212, published September 25th, 2014.
  7. ↑ "Paul Thorn Album & Song Chart History – Billboard 200". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. Retrieved 30 January 2013.
  8. ↑ "Paul Thorn Album & Song Chart History – Rock Albums". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. Retrieved 30 January 2013.
  9. ↑ "Paul Thorn Album & Song Chart History – Heatseekers Albums". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. Retrieved 17 October 2010.
  10. ↑ "Paul Thorn Album & Song Chart History – Independent Albums". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. Retrieved 17 October 2010.

External links