Mickey Thomas

John Michael Thomas (born December 3, 1949) is an American rock singer. He is best known as one of the lead vocalists of Jefferson Starship and Starship, the latter of which he is the last remaining original member. Before joining Jefferson Starship, he was a member of Elvin Bishop's band as a backing and occasional lead vocalist. He was the lead singer on Bishop's best-known song, "Fooled Around and Fell in Love".

John Michael Thomas was born in Cairo, Georgia, on December 3, 1949. He was inspired to pursue a career in music after traveling to Atlanta with longtime childhood friends Charles Connell and Tommy Verran to see a Beatles performance in 1965. Thomas, Connell, and Verran formed their first band together; Verran was the lead vocalist. They disbanded while attending 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.

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 Bishop's chart hit "Fooled Around and Fell in Love", a No. 3 single in 1976.

Thomas recorded the solo album As Long as You Love Me in 1976. After leaving the Elvin Bishop Group, he recorded three songs for the 1978 film Skateboard, which also featured a cameo by Jefferson Starship guitarist Craig Chaquico. In April 1979, Thomas was asked to join that group 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.

Biography summary from English Wikipedia, photograph via Wikimedia Commons.