This chap Mick Thomas is extremely sentimental, and if you want to get into him, you have to expect to have your heart strings tugged pretty regular. However, if your make up is unashamedly sentimental as mine is, you can really get into this very plain, open and beautiful style of singing.
This one is one of Mick's best - I haven't quite worked out the genders on it (some people think he is singing as a woman in this one) but he certainly takes the place of a rather downtrodden, unconfident person. The chorus is very delicately judged:
I'd have baked a cake
if I knew you were coming
but now that you're here
it's time we did some talking
who'm I trying to kid?
I knew you'd be coming around
The backing is slow, but expressive hawaiian guitars subordinated to the lyrics. Mick's voice itself is incredibly expressive - he's a big old chap, and his voice has a lot of power but also it seems to have the sound of experience behind it. He also has a brilliant range -I've tried to sing this many a time and it's very hard.
from Dust on my shoes (Croxton 007), available on CD
Recommend your favorite
tracks by Mick Thomas and the sure thing