John Michael "Mickey" Thomas (born December 3, 1949 in Cairo, Georgia) is an American rock and blues singer, best known as one of the lead vocalists of Jefferson Starship and Starship.
Thomas was inspired to pursue a career in music after travelling to Atlanta with long time childhood friends Charles Connell and Tommy Verran to see a Beatles performance in 1965. Thomas, Connell, and Verran wound up in their first band together. Verran was the lead vocalist at the time. They split up to go to different colleges but later reformed in the early 1970s along with friend Bud Thomas as the "Jets".
Thomas was the vocalist for the Lords of London, a garage band from Douglas, Georgia for a brief time, along with guitarist Billy Folsom, bassist Bob Hutchinson, keyboardist Billy Corbi, and drummer Troy Blasingame.
While singing lead for the Jets in 1974, Thomas joined the Elvin Bishop Group as a backing vocalist and eventually made it to lead vocals. He sang lead vocals on the 1975 Elvin Bishop single "Silent Night" and the 1976 single "Spend Some Time," but his best known achievement was singing on Elvin Bishop's chart hit "Fooled Around and Fell in Love", a #3 single in 1976.
In April 1979, Thomas was asked to join Jefferson Starship after the departure of Marty Balin and Grace Slick. In 1981 he recorded his second solo album, Alive Alone. Former Elvin Bishop Group drummer Donny Baldwin became drummer for Jefferson Starship two years later when Aynsley Dunbar left.
Thomas spent most of the early eighties as the main vocalist of Jefferson Starship, performing several duets with Slick (who rejoined in 1981) and gaining greater influence in the band. After Paul Kantner left in 1984, Thomas was leader of the band. From 1985 until 1989 the newly dubbed 'Starship' scored three #1 hit songs. When Grace Slick left again in 1988, Thomas sang all lead vocals. But their fortunes as pop music artists soon ran out. A tour was cancelled after Donny Baldwin allegedly attacked Thomas in a bar. The damage was such that it required facial reconstruction surgery. Baldwin was immediately fired after the incident.
The original incarnation of Starship disbanded in 1991. In 1992 Paul Kantner reformed Jefferson Starship without Thomas, and Thomas formed a new touring band called Starship featuring Mickey Thomas. Touring has continued with this title.
source: wikipedia
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