What do you get when you cross a father who was a preacher, an uncle who was a pimp, a professional boxing career and an acoustic guitar?
Believe it or not, this isn’t a hypothetical joke from some Catskills comedian’s standup act — it’s the real-life biography Paul Thorn, the second-most famous singer to come out of Tupelo, Mississippi. And while Thorn’s own albums are must-haves in any Americana collection, the real way to experience the guy is live and in person — perfectly complementing his music are Thorn’s well-honed anecdotes, sardonic wit and quick-thinking patter. (I once saw him make three jokes and one life lesson out of a seeing-eye dog in the audience, all in under 30 seconds flat.)
As for his songs, the preacher’s influence shows up (“Mission Temple Fireworks Stand”), as does the shadow of the pimp uncle (“A Long Way From Tupelo”). Sometimes the two converge (“Joanie, the Jehovah’s Witness Stripper”). Even his boxing days crop up now and again — his professional bout with Roberto Duran inspired the wryly titled “I’d Rather Be a Hammer Than a Nail.” But it’s Thorn’s songs about the rockiness of love and relationships that really shine: “I Don’t Want to Know,” “Everybody Looks Good at the Starting Line.” And he knows more than anyone that he ain’t no hero. About an early song called “Resurrection Day,” I once heard him introduce it in his Mississippi drawl:
My first album was all songs I wrote to try and win back a girl who broke up with me because I cheated on her. The story is as simple as that. When the album came out, I thought she would hear the songs and be so overcome that she’d run back to me. But instead of winning her back, they only gave her more power to treat me like dirt. And that’s what she did, for a long time. So here’s a very beautiful song that accomplished nothing.
Thorn’s latest album is Too Blessed to Be Stressed, and plays with his band on Saturday, Jan. 16 at Freight & Salvage in Berkeley and Wednesday, Jan. 20 at the Mystic Theatre in Petaluma.