The Dixie Performing Arts & Academic Enrichment Center in Huntingdon will come alive Saturday, October 20 to the toe-tapping, soulful tunes of Paul Thorn – the first show of the Carroll Bank & Trust Concert Series. A little bit rocking, a little bit bluesy and completely Southern American, Paul Thorn’s Mississippi roots guarantee a live show that won’t disappoint.
Raised in Tupelo, steeped in the same culture and influences that nurtured a young Elvis Presley years before, Thorn soaked up some of the best that southern music had to offer. The son of a preacher man, he spent much of his childhood in church, participating in multiple weekly services with his father as well as at neighboring African American congregations, where he became entranced with the music he heard there.
Playing tambourine and singing in churches as early as age three, Thorn has always been tied to music. But as he grew older, Tupelo didn’t offer much for professional musicians. Never one to shy from a challenge, Thorn made ends meet with a full-time job at a furniture factory and regular bouts in the boxing ring as a middleweight contender.
In spite of a respectable boxing career, during which he faced four-time world champion, Robert Duran, Paul Thorn has always been most comfortable on stage with his music and his audience. Talented as both a songwriter and a performer, Thorn has performed on stages with Bonnie Raitt, Huey Lewis & The News, Sting, Mark Knopfler, John Prine and many others.
Thorn has also appeared on “Late Night with Conan O’Brien” and “Jimmy Kimmel Live”, been the subject of numerous national public radio features and charted multiple times on the “Billboard Top 100” and Americana radio charts.
This year, Thorn released an album titled, “Don’t Let the Devil Ride”, which he describes as the culmination of his whole life in music and coming back to his roots. It marks his first time recording gospel music – featuring guests such as the Blind Boys of Alabama, the McCrary Sisters, and Preservation Hall Horns.
Tickets to see Paul Thorn live at The Dixie, Saturday, October 20 at 7:30 p.m. are on sale now at www.DixiePac.net or at The Dixie’s box office, 731-986-2100, M-F 10AM-4PM. Ticket prices are $35, $40, $50.
