Pimps & Preachers

Paul Thorn | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (June 21, 2010)
• Original Release Date: 2010
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Perpetual Obscurity
• ASIN: B003KT3O10
• In-Print Editions: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (23 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #39,671 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Among those who value originality, inspiration, eccentricity, and character as well as talent that hovers somewhere on the outskirts of genius, the story of Paul Thorn is already familiar. Now, Thorn reveals another layer of his fascinating history on the album Pimps and Preachers, addressing that subject on the title cut and in the intriguing family portrait he painted for the cover, which highlights his daddy, the preacher and his uncle the pimp.

The cover depicts a teeming street scene, at the unlikely intersection of Redemption Lane and Turn Out Blvd. two figures dominate: a pimp and a preacher, both dressed to the nines beneath broad-brimmed hats, surrounded by streetwalkers, holy rollers and onlookers all on their paths to salvation or perdition. Nearly lost in this tumult is a small boy, banging a tambourine branded with the name of Jesus but backed up against a hooker holding a fistful of greenbacks.

That little boy represents me, says Thorn. I m in the church group but my eyes are looking back to the streets where all the sin is going on. It shows me being intrigued by the broad world. That s why I made this my album cover: It describes who I am.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A new Treasure from Brother Thorn, June 22, 2010

By 

Leslie J. Witten "greeneyedkygirl" (Louisville KY) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Pimps & Preachers (Audio CD)

Having been a Paul Thorn fan for about five years now, I could not wait for this new music to arrive and perk up my summer. Paul sings from the heart and tells tales of his life, and my life and your life as well. The word "authentic" is much overused in today's music, but it definitely fits Paul Thorn. The title cut will linger in your consciousness for quite a while and if you have or have ever had a mother, you will swallow hard at "That's Life", with lyrics completely composed from things his mother has said to him over the years. Other favorites of mine on this new release are the catchy "I Don't Like Half the Folks I Love" and the sultry rocker "Weeds in My Roses". If you don't know who Paul Thorn is, "Pimps and Preachers" will give you a clue, and will probably make you want to find out more. I highly recommend prior releases "Long Way from Tupelo" and "So Far, So Good, Live", both also available on Amazon.

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Walking That Fine Line . . . Between Saint And Sinner, June 23, 2010

By 

Randy "Randy" (Florida) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Pimps & Preachers (Audio CD)

Like most of us, Paul Thorn has always struggled with balancing the good and bad, the dark and the light, the saint and sinner side of himself. On PIMPS & PREACHERS, he finally decides that it's OK for those two sides to c0-exist. After all, he sings in the title track "I owe a debt of gratitude to pimps and preachers." He tells us in "I Hope I'm Doing This Right" that "before I go to bed I kneel and pray every night, I wonder if God's proud of me, I hope I'm doing this right." But then in "You Might Be Wrong," he cautions us that "whatever you believe, you might be wrong." And while he opines that there are "Better Days Ahead," he acknowledges that there are "Weeds In My Roses" and that sometimes you have to drink to kill the pain because "Tequila Is Good For The Heart." He tells us the story a woman with a "Love Scar," a song that contains the best lyric on the album:

"He said, 'If I could be a tear,
Rolling down your cheek,
And dying on your lips,
My life would be complete.'"

So whether he's singing about love scars, weedy roses, pimps or preachers, Paul Thorn has a lot to teach us about life and how to get out of it alive. Buy this record and you'll owe a debt of gratitude to Paul Thorn, pimp and preacher.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Pimps & Preachers, June 24, 2010

By 

Curtis - See all my reviews

This review is from: Pimps & Preachers (Audio CD)

This is now my new favorite PTB CD. A Long Way from Tupelo was pretty amazing but I think Paul and the boys have actually outdone themselves on this one.