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.
Stay With Me
Thunder Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Don't say you love me
'Cause I'll only kick you out of the door
I know your name is Rita
'Cause your perfume smelling sweeter
Since when I saw you down on the floor
guitar
Won't need to much persuading
I don't mean to sound degrading
But with a face like that
You got nothing to laugh about
Red lips hair and fingernails
I hear your a mean old Jezebel
Lets go up stairs and read my tarot cards
Stay with me
Stay with me
For tonight you better stay with me
Stay with me
Stay with me
For tonight you better stay with me
So in the morning
Please don't say you love me
'Cause you know I'll only kick you out the door
Yea I'll pay your cab fare home
You can even use my best cologne
Just don't be here in the morning when I wake up
Stay with me
Stay with me
'Cause tonight you better stay with me
Sit down, get up, get down
Stay with me
Stay with me
Cause tonight your going stay with me
Hey, whats your name again
Oh no, get down
The lyrics to "Stay With Me" by Thunder featuring Andy Taylor are quite straightforward. The singer leaves no room for the ambiguity when he asks his one-night-stand, Rita, to stay with him for the night. He warns her not to fall in love with him and promises to pay for her cab fare home. The singer is frank and self-aware of his short-term goals and doesn't hesitate to discuss them.
The lyrics also paint an image of a woman who is alluring and tempting but not to be trusted, as indicated in the line "I hear your mean old Jezebel." The mention of reading tarot cards adds a sense of mystic and temptation, giving the listener the impression that the singer likes to live a fast and dangerous lifestyle. The guitar solos give the song a rock-'n'-roll edge and make it easy to dance to.
Overall, "Stay With Me" is an unapologetic and straightforward song about a one-night-stand, with a catchy melody and a rock-'n'-roll vibe.
Line by Line Meaning
In the morning
As the morning breaks, I do not want you to profess love to me.
Don't say you love me
Please don't confess love to me because it won't be reciprocated.
'Cause I'll only kick you out of the door
If you profess love to me, I'll have to cast you away without a second thought.
I know your name is Rita
I'm aware of your name and identity, and it's Rita.
'Cause your perfume smelling sweeter
I know it's you because I smelled your perfume and it smells amazing.
Since when I saw you down on the floor guitar
The moment I spotted you dancing on the floor, I couldn't resist your allure.
Won't need to much persuading
I don't need to put in a lot of effort because you've already got my attention.
I don't mean to sound degrading
I hope I'm not being offensive, but I can't deny what I'm thinking.
But with a face like that
It's a fact that your pretty face is your selling point.
You got nothing to laugh about
Don't be surprised when people's heads turn to look at you, and it's okay to be proud of how you look.
Red lips hair and fingernails
You're adorned with red lipstick, your hair's been styled perfectly, and your painted fingernails caught my eye.
I hear your a mean old Jezebel
I heard people speak ill of you, saying that you have a reputation for being promiscuous.
Lets go up stairs and read my tarot cards
I'm suggesting we proceed to my room to find out what the future holds for us.
Stay with me
I'm beseeching you to stay with me because I enjoy your company.
For tonight you better stay with me
I want you to stay with me tonight because we're having fun, don't leave yet.
So in the morning
As dawn breaks, we'll have to say our goodbyes.
Please don't say you love me
Again, I'm asking you not to say that you love me because the truth is, I can't reciprocate it.
'Cause you know I'll only kick you out the door
If you tell me that you love me and I don't feel the same way, I'll have to send you packing.
Yea I'll pay your cab fare home
I'm willing to cover the costs of your taxi ride back home.
You can even use my best cologne
You can use my most prized cologne to freshen up before you leave.
Just don't be here in the morning when I wake up
I'm not looking for any form of commitment, so please leave before I wake up.
Sit down, get up, get down
Let's keep dancing and enjoying the night, don't slow down or stop.
Hey, what's your name again
Despite meeting earlier and you introducing yourself, I've forgotten your name already. Can you tell me again?
Oh no, get down
Keep dancing, let's not stop the fun just yet.
Lyrics © Peermusic Publishing, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: SIOBHAN MAIRE DEIRDRE FAHEY, MARCELLA LEVY, DAVID ALLAN STEWART
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind