Mick Thomas

Michael James Thomas (born 7 February 1960, Yallourn) is an Australian singer-songwriter, producer, guitarist and hotelier. Thomas was the founding mainstay of a folk rock group, Weddings Parties Anything (1984–1998), and leader of Mick Thomas and the Sure Thing. He has also released material as a solo artist.

Biography

Michael James Thomas was born in Yallourn on 7 February 1960 and is the middle child of three. His older brother, Steve, was later a playwright. Their father, Brian Darvall Thomas (2 February 1925 – 12 September 2003), was a World War II naval veteran (23 April 1942 – 17 July 1946) and an electrical engineer with the State Electricity Commission. Brian's family were from Tasmania and his wife, Margaret, was from northern Victoria. They met in Melbourne after Brian returned from his war service.

The family moved with Brian's work, from Gippsland to Colac, Horsham and then Geelong. When Thomas was 15, in Geelong, he started playing folk music, initially as a solo artist. He was a member of Southern Aurora, and from 1978 to 1980 in Never Never Band which issued an independent single, "It Doesn't Mean Anything". Other members of Never Never Band were Brolga, Archie Cuthbertson on drums, Wendy Harrison on bass guitar, and Joe Nadoh on guitar. In 1981 (at age 21) he moved to Melbourne where he fronted a 1960s pop revival group, The Acrobats, from 1982 to 1983. He attended university and completed an arts degree, with majors in history, literature and sociology. With Cuthbertson other members of The Acrobats were David Adams on drums, Joe Colarazo, and Chris Dyson. He spent two years in the local pub rock scene first in 1983 in Where's Wolfgang with Adams and Dyson joined by Shane Day; and then in 1984 in Trial.