Musicians Danny Bowes, Harry James, and Luke Morley worked together in the 80s-era [tab]blues outfit Terraplane. After experiencing what Morley has called "a 'eureka' moment", the guys devised a high-energy British rock project directly inspired by the likes of Bad Company, Deep Purple, and Led Zeppelin. The aptly named Thunder spent a year or so in constant touring and gradually built a positive reputation that helped its debut album, named Backstreet Symphony, reach a wide audience. Released 4 April 1990 by EMI / Geffen, it became an international success. The album didn't just get RIAA certified as 'Gold' but earned them a spot on BBC's 'Top of the Pops', playing their hard-edged version of "Gimme Some Lovin'" to a global audience. A well-received performance at Castle Donington's 'Monsters of Rock' event before gigantic crowds brought it home to the guys how far they'd broken through.
After touring with female-fronted rockers Heart and other artists with the same style, the guys prepared the second album, which they ominously titled Laughing on Judgement Day. Despite their deliberately 'retro' sound quite unlike the alternative and post-punk trends of the time (or, in fact, precisely because of their sticking to their guns), their sophomore album achieved even more success. Released on 24 August 1992, it proved an even bigger hit in the U.K. than their debut, reaching the number two slot on the nation's top albums chart. Its singles include "Everybody Wants Her" and "Low Life in High Places", the titles alone showing Thunder's interest in classic rock n' roll hedonism.
Bassist "Snake" Luckhurst left the band citing 'personal differences', a move that wasn't just Thunder's first line-up change but a sign of future turmoil to come. He got replaced by Swedish musician Mikael Höglund, and the band went on to record their third album, 1995's Behind Closed Doors, before facing a dilemma with their label. Finding that "most of the people who'd been there at the beginning of our tenure had moved on", as Morley put it, as well as that talk of a contract extension had terms that they simply couldn't accept, Thunder jumped from EMI.
Despite being championed by U.S. contemporaries such as Aerosmith and Guns n' Roses, the guys still faced a tough time making a lasting impact 'across the pond'. Though focused on pumping out more and more material, Morley later remarked that the mid-90s found Thunder "suffering from 'hamster in the wheel' syndrome". Mikael Höglund was unavailable for recording the band's fourth album, called The Thrill of it All, and so the 1996 release had bass duty left with Morley. For the subsequent tour, the band recruited bassist Chris Childs, who stayed with the band to record their fifth album. Although Giving the Game Away, released in 1999, earned a positive fan response, it had become totally clear how Thunder had disconnected from a record industry whose connected network of radio stations, TV networks, and music magazines dismissed the guys' sort of melodic hard rock as either endangered or extinct.
In Autumn of that year, the group announced an upcoming split, and their final tour concluded in May 2000. Still, Thunder's interest in new technology and the continuing camaraderie felt among the band's members meant that they didn't drop off the radar. After being given a slot in the 2002 'Monsters of Rock' shows, Thunder decided to return in 2003 with a new album, titled Shooting at the Sun, which the guys released on their own record label. Fully embracing the internet's ability to unite hard rock fans across the globe, 2005 resulted in the band's seventh album, aptly titled The Magnificent Seventh! by the guys. It earned praise from many critics, with musicOMH writer Neil Daniels remarking that the "terrific return to form" seemed like "a hard-hitting giant but with fists of steel and cast iron balls".
Feeling vindicated, the group's album managed to produce a return to the top 40 singles charts and spawned a bunch of live performances. After two well-received tours in 2006, with many gigs completely selling out, and two gleeful experiences in Japan, the band captured that live feel in the DVD Thunder Go Mad in Japan. The release included a documentary piece following the band's situation setting everything up and trying to sort out all of the traveling. That year additionally saw the guys releasing their eight studio album, titled Robert Johnson's Tombstone, which featured nods to the musicians' early history before Thunder's very formation. Receiving acclaim from critics and fans alike, some even claimed that the album was Thunder's best studio release yet. A U.K. tour took place at the end of November 2006, with the band extending things into shows in Europe as well.
The 2000s represented not only a period of frequent touring but also increasing musical activities by the guys outside of the band. Thunder's career renaissance continued with a 2008 studio album, which the guys simply titled Bang!, and the group's appearance with Def Leppard and Whitesnake at multiple gigs that same year. The group had found itself coming up to its twenty-year anniversary. Although not experiencing the same kind of personal conflicts or debates about musical direction that many of their contemporaries had, Thunder still appeared to have reached a kind of inflection point. In early 2009, the guys announced plans to split for the second time. Final tours and festival appearances occurred throughout the rest of the year. A well-received compilation album, called simply The Very Best of Thunder, came out as well that year.
Luke Morley stressed "only a fool would say never" when it came to talk of getting back together at some point. Still, he'd gotten focused on other endeavors and particularly dedicated himself to working on The Union, an outfit formed with musician Peter Shoulder (formerly of Winterville). Featuring a blues and soul drenched sound, that band has achieved significant critical acclaim. Other ex-Thunder members perused similar projects. Drummer Gary "Harry" James, for example, played with progressive rockers Magnum (including on their popular 2011 release The Visitation).
Thunder briefly reunited for the 'High Voltage Festival', held in Victoria Park, in 2011. Though expressing their reluctance to formally get back together, the guys agreed to future shows together, including a December performance at Nottingham's 'Rock City' venue. They intermittently took to the stage as the 2010s went on yet remained committed to their alternate projects.
In 2015, however, Thunder announced a full return with an upcoming studio album of new material. A tongue-in-cheek collective statement cited "a rather silly amount of knob-twiddling and string-pulling" as the final inspiration. The release of Wonder Days earned a warm response from critics and fans alike (the fellows at Classic Rock magazine, for example, naming it one of the year's 11 best albums), and multiple gigs got announced to preform the new material. 2017's Rip It Up was also well-received (the record's #3 spot on the U.K. Albums Chart was the highest the band reached for over two decades). This was followed with an acoustic selection, Please Remain Seated, after which the band promised to return to the "full throttle sound of Thunder" for the next studio record.
Delayed due to the pandemic situation, that full throttle new album was released in March 2021, All The Right Noises.
UK rockers Thunder will be releasing a new double album titled Dopamine on April 29, 2022.
Official Website: http://www.thunderonline.com/
2) - Thunder was additionally used by an obscure funk-based Southern rock band from the U.S. Their 1974 self-tiled album picked up some attention but failed to break through commercially. It's hard to find information about the group, but a bit is known given how it served as a stepping stone in the career of popular Texan singer-songwriter and guitarist John Nitzinger. The 1974 album is described on Discogs.com here.
3) - Thunder is the name of a defunct Pagan Black Metal band from Poland, formed in 1994.
4) - Thunder is the name of a German heavy metal band, that released 'All I Want' in 1984.
Laughing On Judgement Day
Thunder Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
He's got so much, he keeps it under lock and key
And he don't give a damn about the people he turns away
He's too busy making money to give them the time of day
Gonna get a heart attack 'cause he works late all the time
I swear he doesn't know his kids, his wife thinks it's a crime
It's not the way for me, taking life so seriously
Laughing on judgement day
I was thinking 'bout the time when I couldn't afford a beer
And wondering why there's so many women round here
Then the truth stepped up and hit me like a ton of lead
Now the children of the night want to know me
There's a price upon my head
Well you know it makes me laugh 'cause I've been around a while
I ought to make her happy before I'm out of style
'Cause now I've got a dream to sell
She got her feet in the wishing well
Bite the apple and you get to hell
Laughing on judgement day (I'm gonna laugh that day away)
Gonna get a heart attack 'cause he works late all the time
I swear he doesn't know his kids, his wife thinks it's a crime
It's not the way for me, taking life so seriously
When the end comes I wanna be
Laughing on judgement day
'Cause now I've got a dream to sell
She got her feet in the wishing well
Bite the apple and you get to hell
Laughing on judgement day (I'm gonna laugh that day away)
The lyrics of Thunder's song "Laughing On Judgement Day" weave a narrative that juxtaposes two different ways of living life. The first set of lyrics describes a man who lives next to the singer, who has a flashy car and a lot of money but is distant from his family and indifferent to the struggles of those around him. The singer imagines that this man will eventually suffer a heart attack from working too hard and not taking time to enjoy life. In contrast, the singer embraces a different perspective, where he sees life as something that should be enjoyed and not taken too seriously. He reflects on his own experiences of struggling financially and not being noticed by women, but then eventually gaining recognition and a sense of community from people who accept him for who he is, rather than what he has.
The chorus of the song reinforces this perspective, as the singer repeats the idea that he wants to be "Laughing on judgement day". Instead of fearing the day when he will be judged for his actions, he wants to look back on his life with a sense of humor and joy. By choosing this attitude, the singer is rejecting the idea that success and material wealth are the most important things in life. He values relationships, community, and personal fulfillment over status or power.
Overall, Thunder's "Laughing On Judgement Day" is a song that encourages listeners to consider how they approach life and what is truly important to them. It suggests that those who prioritize happiness, love, and laughter are ultimately better off than those who chase after wealth or status at any cost.
Line by Line Meaning
There's a man with a flash car living right next to me
My neighbor has a fancy car and lives close to me.
He's got so much, he keeps it under lock and key
My neighbor has so many possessions that he keeps them locked up.
And he don't give a damn about the people he turns away
He doesn't care about turning people away or rejecting them.
He's too busy making money to give them the time of day
He's more focused on making money than giving people attention.
Gonna get a heart attack 'cause he works late all the time
He's working so hard that it might lead to health problems.
I swear he doesn't know his kids, his wife thinks it's a crime
He's neglecting his family and his wife thinks it's wrong.
It's not the way for me, taking life so seriously
I don't want to take life too seriously.
When the end comes I wanna be
When my life ends, I want to...
Laughing on judgement day
...be able to laugh on the day of judgement.
I was thinking 'bout the time when I couldn't afford a beer
I remember a time when I couldn't even afford a beer.
And wondering why there's so many women round here
I was curious why there were so many women around me.
Then the truth stepped up and hit me like a ton of lead
But then I realized something important.
Now the children of the night want to know me
Now people are interested in me.
There's a price upon my head
But there's also a risk involved.
Well you know it makes me laugh 'cause I've been around a while
It's funny to me because I've been alive for a long time.
I ought to make her happy before I'm out of style
I should make her happy before it's too late.
'Cause now I've got a dream to sell
I have a dream that I want to share.
She got her feet in the wishing well
She has her own dreams.
Bite the apple and you get to hell
But chasing those dreams can be risky.
Laughing on judgement day (I'm gonna laugh that day away)
Still, I plan to laugh on the day of judgement and not take it too seriously.
Gonna get a heart attack 'cause he works late all the time
Once again, this neighbor of mine is working too much and risking his health.
I swear he doesn't know his kids, his wife thinks it's a crime
And his family is suffering because of it.
It's not the way for me, taking life so seriously
But that's not the way I want to live my life.
When the end comes I wanna be
Instead, I want to...
Laughing on judgement day
...laugh on the day of judgement.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: Luke Morley
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind