page_title: Thunder (band)
section_title: 1996–2002: Second bassist change and breakup
hierarchical_section_title: Thunder (band) / History / 1996–2002: Second bassist change and breakup
caption_attribution_description: English: Chris Childs Bassist
context_page_description: Thunder are an English hard rock band from London. Formed in 1989, the group was founded by former Terraplane members Danny Bowes, Luke Morley and Gary "Harry" James, along with second guitarist and keyboardist Ben Matthews and bassist Mark "Snake" Luckhurst. Originally signed to EMI Records in the UK, the band released their debut album Backstreet Symphony in 1990, which reached number 21 on the UK Albums Chart and number 114 on the US Billboard 200. The 1992 follow-up Laughing on Judgement Day reached number 2, while both albums were certified gold by the British Phonographic Industry. All nine singles released from the two albums reached the UK Singles Chart top 40.
  Luckhurst left the band in late 1992, and was replaced the following February by former Great King Rat bassist Mikael Höglund. The new lineup recorded only one studio album, Behind Closed Doors, which peaked at number 5 in the UK and spawned three UK top 40 singles. The 1995 compilation Their Finest Hour reached number 22 in the UK and was certified silver by the BPI. Höglund left in 1996 and was replaced by Chris Childs, after Morley performed bass on fourth album The Thrill of It All, which reached the UK top 20.
context_section_description: Morley, Matthews and James began writing new material with producer Taylor in January 1996, before entering the studio to record their fourth studio album in April. The album would be the band's first on their own B Lucky label, distributed by Castle Communications, with whom they signed in February that year. Recording took place at Rockfield Studios in Monmouthshire, Wales and saw Morley handling bass duties in addition to guitar due to the absence of Höglund as a result of "family commitments". The album was completed by the end of May, after which Höglund announced that he was to leave Thunder permanently; he was replaced in the autumn by Chris Childs, formerly of Then Jericho. The Thrill of It All was released in Japan on 1 September 1996 through JVC, but was delayed elsewhere due to Matthews's diagnosis of tendinitis, which prevented him from playing guitar. The album was eventually released outside of Japan in February 1997, reaching number 14 on the UK Albums Chart.
  After a Japanese run in January, the Thrill of It All UK Tour started in February and was followed by European dates in March; additional UK shows postponed due to Matthews's injury were rescheduled for April. Some UK dates were pushed back due to Bowes suffering pneumonia and laryngitis, and in July he underwent surgery on his knee which signalled a short break for the group, during which time Childs and James featured in the rock musical Carnaby Street, while Morley toured with Taylor's band The Power Station. Thunder signed with Eagle Records in November 1997, who would release the band's first live album, simply titled Live, the following February. The album reached number 35 on the UK Albums Chart and spawned the top 40 single "The Only One". Live was recorded over the course of four shows in Wolverhampton and London between 12 and 16 November 1997, and were promoted on European and UK tours (in addition to a run supporting Status Quo) in the spring of 1998.
  The band also returned to the studio in April 1998 to record their fifth studio album Giving the Game Away. The first preview of the album was released in the form of the single "Play That Funky Music" in June, which reached the UK Singles Chart top 40. "Just Another Suicide" (renamed "You Wanna Know" for the UK release) was issued as the second single from the album in March 1999, reaching number 49 on the UK Singles Chart, followed a week later by the album which reached the same position on the UK Albums Chart. The band toured the UK in promotion of the album through May and early June, before announcing later in the year that they were due to break up, issuing a statement which outlined that "After a great deal of exploration, discussion and soul searching, we have decided to split up. The reasons are many and complex, but to cut a long story short, we feel we have no choice. We must stress that this decision is due to outside business forces and not down to any personal or musical differences within the band." Speaking about the decision to disband Thunder, Bowes explained that "It was a matter of simple economics. We were finding it increasingly hard to find a record company that would allow us to compete", while Morley added that "There was no way to expand".
  The UK Farewell Tour ran through December 1999, followed by a run in Japan the following March. The final Thunder show took place on 4 May at Dingwalls in London, and featured an acoustic set followed by a regular "electric" set. The final show was recorded for the live album They Think It's All Over... It Is Now, which was released in July 2000; the acoustic set was also later issued as They Think It's All Acoustic... It Is Now in May 2001. After Thunder's breakup, Morley released his debut solo album El Gringo Retro in March 2001, Bad Influence featuring James and Childs released their second studio album One Way Love in May 2001, James joined Magnum in February 2002, and Bowes and Morley released an album together entitled Moving Swiftly Along in May 2002, under the name "Bowes & Morley".
caption: Chris Childs replaced Mikael "Micke" Höglund on bass in 1996, and remains with the band to the current day.
exif: {}