BiografieWhen Mickey Thomas joined Jefferson Starship in 1979, he faced the daunting task of replacing not one but two star singers, Grace Slick and Marty Balin. But Mickey not only proved himself capable of stamping his own imprint on the band, he also played the most significant role in transforming the band into Starship six years later. Mickey grew up listening to gospel music, but was inspired to become a singer after attending a Beatles concert at age 14. His later influences included soul artists Wilson Pickett, Sam & Dave and Otis Redding. In 1974, Mickey joined Elvin Bishop´s band, originally as a backup singer, but eventually gravitating to lead vocals. Mickey´s easy-going tenor on "Fooled Around and Fell in Love" (1976) made the song go to #3 in the U.S. After appearing on four albums with Bishop, Mickey left to go solo. After his 1977 solo debut went nowhere (he also released another solo album in 1981 entitled "Alive Alone"), Mickey received a call, in early 1979, from Jefferson Starship, who were interested in him as lead singer. With the release of "Jane", later that year, Mickey´s soaring falsetto instantly established a bold new direction for Jefferson Starship. The song reached the U.S. top twenty, a success no one could have expected. Mickey served the band equally well on the "Freedom at Point Zero" album, on which he shared lead vocals with Paul Kantner. Jefferson Starship went on releasing another three studio albums ("Modern Times" in 1981, "Winds of Change" in 1982 and "Nuclear Furniture" in 1984) which showcased a more melodic rock direction compared to the previous history of the band. Mickey in particular started to contribute more to the songwriting and pushed the band to a more commercial direction. This led to founding member Paul Kantner departure from the band and after much legal wrangling, Mickey, along with Grace Slick, Craig Chaquico, Donny Baldwin and bassist Pete Sears, continued as Starship. Although most of the members were also songwriters, they opted instead to use outside writers for their next album. The result was the band´s first top ten album in six years: "Knee Deep in the Hoopla" (1985) and two number one hits, "We Built this City" (co-written by Bernie Taupin) and "Sara". Starship´s winning streak continued through 1987, with the hits "Nothing´s Gonna Stop Us Now" (their third number one!) and "It´s Not Over (´Til It´s Over)" and their second album, "No Protection". Grace Slick subsequently left the band in early 1988, because of her own health problems and dissatisfaction with the band´s musical direction. Unfortunately Starship third album, "Love Among the Cannibals" failed to establish the new band identity that Mickey craved. "It´s Not Enough", Starship´s final hit single, would become an ironic epitaph for the band. Within a year of the album´s release, both Craig and Donny would depart, leaving Mickey solely in charge of Starship´s future. From 1992 onwards, he toured as Starship featuring Mickey Thomas, utilizing different backing musicians. Mickey has, however, remained active on other fronts. In 1998, he guested on Sammy Hagar´s "Marching to Mars" and he sang with ex-Toto singer Bobby Kimball on the latter´s "All I Ever Wanted". Outside of music, Mickey has provided the voice of the title character in the cartoon "The Adventures of Kanga Roddy", which won an Emmy in 1999. Mickey Thomas long awaited return happens finally with the Over The Edge project. This time Mickey delights the fans with an amazing collection of songs written by Jack Blades (Aerosmith, Cher, Night Ranger, Damn Yankees, Ozzy etc.), Neal Schon and Jonathan Cain (of Journey), Freddy Curci (of Alias), Steven Cristol (Starship). The album is also featuring a host of great musicians such as Neal Schon himself on guitar on "Surrender", Steve Lukather (Toto) on "Forest For The Trees", Richie Kotzen (Mr. Big, Poison) on "The Man In Between" and many more.
Production is handled by Fabrizio Grossi and the result is nothing else than a wet dream for all melodic rock lovers!Quelle: http://www.nehrecords.com/SHOP/OverEdge.htmDiscografieOver The Edge - Featuring Mickey Thomas (2004)