FEATURE ALBUM - 15/4/2003

Mick Thomas and the Sure Thing - The Horse's Prayer (Croxton Records)

Mick Thomas reminds us what a real songwriter is. Over the course of 23 songs on two CDs Mick takes us on a journey of things he has seen, heard, thought or read. Releasing 23 songs doesn't necessarily indicate a rush of blood. Some of the songs stretch back to Mick's "Weddos" days, and have taken this long to germinate. Some songs are instantaneous reactions. 'A Tired Young Head' is Mick's comment on the Tampa controversy, watching events at home from offshore. The songs come from all kinds of sources. 'Dancing Man' ponders the fate of the man we've seen dancing down the tram tracks at announcement of the end of WWII. 'Simone Michelle Emma Justine, Maria' wonders about the story of a lonely pregnant girl wandering the streets. Mick Thomas' songs have always been filled with real lives or imagined ones that sound real. Over two albums he's got the luxury of adding songs that others have handed him to finish, or even favourites like Nick Barker's Miles To Go' and the Stone Roses' 'Made Of Stone'. Musically Mick gets more diverse with every post-Weddos album he releases, still with that unmistakable storytelling voice, with DNA stretching back to Irish folk songs. But Mick has just as good an ear for music as he has for a story to tell. If there's one rule it might be that it has to be able to be played live by instruments not machines. You can tell Mick Thomas loves writing songs and performing them. And he's good at it.

Track Listing - Disc 1

Track Listing - Disc 2

Ed.Nimmervoll

Watch an interview with Mick Thomas