Music That Packs a Punch (Paul Thorn)

In Paul Thorn’s house hangs a photo of Thorn going head-to-head with legendary pugilist Roberto Duran. But while he has photos of him punching Duran available (including the one on the left here), he chose to hang one of Duran punching him.

Needless to say, Thorn, now a singer/songwriter, has a lot of respect for Duran.

His boxing career long gone, Thorn now concentrates on making music and art.

Here’s more of my interview with Thorn, which didn’t make it in today’s Ticket story:


A lot of your music has been covered – Toby Keith, Billy Ray Cyrus and Sawyer Brown.

Yeah, mostly in the country world because I live close to Nashville and I go to Nashville a lot. I don’t set out to be a songwriter for anybody. But my CDs are circulated pretty good in Nashville, and they’re not in some of the other areas of the country. So a lot of these country artists who are looking for songs have just gotten my CDs by chance and have just recorded the songs. I’m not even a country artist, but the way my songs are constructed, they’re like country songs in that they tell stories.

Which artists gets you the most royalty checks?

The ones you like the least. I ain’t calling no names. But it seems like the more mediocre somebody is the more records they sell.

But you’ll take it.

Absolutely. It’s sort of an easy thing, you know. When somebody records your song, all you do is go out to the mailbox and get a check. That’s always fun.

You also do art.

It’s a hobby. When I get old and tired and can’t leave the house, that’s probably what I’ll do – I’ll just continue to do my art.

Boxing and music feature pretty prominently.

Boxing – that’s the thing I’m most glad I did. One thing it taught me is you can’t accomplish anything unless you throw yourself into the fray. When you throw yourself into the fray, it comes with a certain amount of fear. A lot of times fear is what keeps people from trying to do something. And even though I didn’t become a world champion as a boxer, I really left it with something that’s helped me and that’s my willingness to walk forward in the face of fear.

I love on your web site how you have the photos of you and (Roberto) Duran, and before the fight you guys are all chummy with your arms around each other.

Well, that was sincere. He plays the bad guy and everything. But when I was lying in the emergency room, getting stitched up, after he got stitched up, the first thing he did was come into my room and complimented me on my effort and gave me a pat on the back. He was a nice fellow. We were chumming it up. Before the fight, at the weigh-in, I walked up to him and said, ‘Man, I’m a huge fan – you’re my hero. It’s an honor to get to fight you. Can we get a picture together?’ And he was totally cool.

But what he got and what he accomplished was not free. He grew up on the streets. He had to go out and hustle to get a meal every day. He came up hard. And that’s the reason why he became as tough as he did. Me, I grew up watching Saturday morning cartoons. I started crying if the cable went out. It was only right that he kicked my ass.

Do you have a scar to brag about?

I’ve got plenty of them.

On the new album the song “I’m Still Here” is about a guy getting hit by a car. Is that something that happened – did you see somebody get hit by a car?

That first verse is fiction – I made that story up. It’s just to express how lucky we all are to be alive because people are dropping like flies left and right. The second verse, where it talks about when I was 12 years old and failed the sixth grade, that’s all true. That all went down exactly like that. But I’m still here, and everything is good. And the days are brighter every day.

And the song “What have You Done to Lift Somebody Up.” What were you thinking there?

If you turn on your television, nine out of ten shows are all based on making fun of other people. The show “American Idol” for example. I don’t begrudge anybody having success and winning something. But what I don’t like about that show . . . the most watched part of that show is when the people come on that can’t sing and the panel ridicule and make fun of them. That seems to be the most popular part of the show. And subliminally that’s hypnotizing the young culture that’s coming up to think it’s okay to just belittle people.

Were you really discovered at a pizza joint?

Yes, I was. I was working in the factory, I was a boxer, plus I was singing in a little pizza restaurant. I was playing original songs I’d written, and the right person came and heard it. I was sending out demo tapes to Los Angeles and Nashville, hoping somebody would hear it. And what happened was somebody heard my CD that was in the music business – it was Sting’s manager, Miles Copeland – and came down to Tupelo to hear me.

-- Pat P.

Photo: www.paulthorn.com