This page is dedicated to the memory of my friend Tony Thompson.
Tony is the person that got me from playing in the minor leagues and into the major leagues. We met when he came to play with the disco group Ecstasy, Passion and Pain. He had just left Labelle and was available to tour. I was the Music Director and barely 19 (if that old). He introduced me to Nile Rodgers and Bernard Edwards as they were doing a gig one weekend (just a gig - not Chic yet) and needed a keyboardist. I joined them and loved what they were doing. They said they had something going on with a demo they had done and would keep me in mind if they needed someone to play with them. When they did get signed to Buddha Records as Chic then moved over to Atlantic Records, they did need a keyboardist. I was not their first choice, but I know Tony looked out for me and put my name back in the hat. Once I was in the band, he took me to go shopping for clothes and taught me how to dress the role that I was stepping into (“musician with a ‘big time’ gig”).
What most people don’t realize is that Tony’s musicality was not just limited to Dance Music, Soul, Rock or anything else. He was a jazz head and had extremely open ears. He and I shared a mutual love for drummer Tony Williams. We both drew inspiration from Tony Williams’ ability to hear poly-rhythms and play with a pocket.
When we were jamming at rehearsals, we could go anywhere we wanted…jazz, freestyle, 6/8 time, 5/4 time, whatever. And when it was time to play the songs at hand, it was fun. It was a joyous time for a young cat like me. I felt like I could fly while playing with that outfit of musicians. Working with another keyboardist taught me how to find space in the playing as twenty fingers can get awful busy real quick. But Andy Schwartz and later Rob Sabino were team players and we had a great time. But the pulse began with Bernard Edwards and Tony Thompson.
There was a time where I didn’t have contact information for Tony but when we did reconnect in the past couple of years, it was as if a few days had passed. His humor and wit were as sharp as ever. We worked with DMX earlier this year and it was a momentous occasion. Unfortunately, “X” couldn’t get his ass to “The Tonight Show” for the world to see the powerful backup band he had. But his camp taped our second rehearsal. Hopefully, it will see light of day and show other musicians what can be done with players that allow their selves to fly within the music.
Before he passed, Tony and I were talking about him getting his new band on the road. I had heard them in rehearsal and knew that it was just a matter of time before this unit would become world famous. I understand that their recordings will be released and that our old friend Jason Cosaro is doing the mixes. Tony and I also spoke about him playing more in town. I told him that people don’t know what he could do on any given day.
I last saw Tony at the hospital as he was going through a Dialysis treatment. He looked good outside of the tubes attached to him. His skin was glowing. I looked at the stack of emails from some of his fans. I mentioned to him that most of them were from women. He told me, “stay outta my business!” We joked; I kissed his forehead and told him I loved him. As I got to the elevator, I wept.
My friend looked out for me and I am so honored to have known him for so many years. I will miss him. But I know that when he got the chance to step to the plate, he knocked the ball out of the park. And it is one of the many things I take from his legacy. When you get the chance to shine, go for it and don’t let anyone stop you from showing who you are and what you have to offer.
RAYMOND JONES
There is a short bio on Tony's music at allmusic.com.
In addition, I have included a couple of remembrances by Norma Jean Wright and Luci Martin. I will include more as they become available.
THE FOLLOWING IS FROM NORMA JEAN WRIGHT
I WILL ALWAYS REMEMBER TONY AS BEING ONE OF THE FUNNIEST, MOST COMPASSIONATE, AND CARING GUYS THAT I'VE EVER KNOWN. HE WAS JUST AN ALL AROUND GOOD GUY, WITH A BIG HEART, AND IF THIS WASN'T ENOUGH, HE HAD A SMILE AND PERSONALITY THAT COULD LIGHT UP ANY ROOM!
HE PUT THE CAPITAL C IN CHIC BECAUSE HE WAS JUST SO FASHIONABLE, AND DEBONAIR, AND ON TOP OF THIS HE WAS JUST IMMENSELY TALENTED, AND COULD PLAY THE HELL OUT OF THOSE DRUMS. ALL THE GIRLS LOVED TONY! HE WAS SO STYLISH, THIS MAN KNEW HOW TO WEAR SOME CLOTHES WHAT CAN I SAY, TONY WAS JUST FINE-FINE-FINE!
THE FACE THAT STOOD, OUT IN MOST FOLKS MIND WHEN THEY WERE LOOKING FOR THE MAN WITH THE STRIKING PERSONALITY AND DAZZLING LOOKS, (FROM THE GROUP CHIC) IT WAS, MORE OFTEN THAN NOT, TONY'S FACE THAT FILLED THE BILL.
HE JUST STOOD OUT WITH SO MUCH TALENT, CHARISMA - AND MOST OF ALL - WITH SUCH DIGNITY AND CHARACTER. FINALLY, I JUST WANT TO SAY THAT HE WILL BE MISSED FOREVER AND WILL ALWAYS BE LOVED.
YOUR SISTER GIRL, (IN MUSIC) NORMA JEAN
My regret (from Luci Martin)
My biggest regret will always be that I was not able to be present physically to pay honor to my friend, Tony. I am sure by now that all of you have heard about what a great guy he was and how talented. You will have heard of his many accolades and achievements…of his funny personality and, “Oh, my”...that boy could wear some clothes with his fine self, but…
Did you know of his kindness and compassionate heart that would give a piece of himself freely to those who needed without question or self-serving purpose?
Did you know of the kind of respectfulness and strength of character he possessed to accept the responsibility of caring for family needs, regardless of what personal needs may have been neglected to do so? I know Patrice does.
Did you know the man who fell in love and instantly opened his heart to the very thing he always claimed he didn’t want?
Who would talk to me about his kids as though he gave them life, and if they are anything like he described them to be, knew that the love he felt for them was not because of their mom but because of the persons he saw them to be. He loved them as his own yet, amazing to me, he liked them as well.
Did you know the man who loved animals with a paternal sense of caring and who, despite the occasional rants and raves, showed concern for every being he felt love for, regardless of their station in life…rich or poor, young or old, famous or not?
But most importantly, did you know of the man who loved so deeply and loyally that, to him, a friend was more valuable and treasured than all the money in the world? That friendship was the definition of success and who gave his heart to them without compromise.
Did you know, then, how the loss of that friend cut thru him like a sharp knife and that, once betrayed, was more hurtful than the wound itself? His pain went deep and, though not always visible, ate at him like a tumor. Because when Tony trusted you, he accepted you in all your glory and in all your shame. He never judged you for your shortcomings but opened himself up to you in spite of them.
Did you know that he hated hypocrisy in all forms and that his hate ran as deep as his love? That, were he here right now, we both would be in the back snickering and cracking jokes…and not out of a lack of respect, but out of a show of respect for the person that was. The person that was had a great sense of humor and I will miss it endlessly.
I am going on, I know, but there are so many “did you knows” about Tony. Those of you who were blessed to know him can relate to these words. So, I will close these thoughts (though there is much to say) with a thank you to his wife, Patrice.
Patrice, I love you for the gift you gave my friend in loving and teaching love to him. He talked of you so beautifully it made me long for that kind of love. You changed his life and he was blessed to have you. I thank you for being there for him and for loving him as you did. I thank you for supporting him and, most of all, for standing up to him. I respect your strength in caring for him and I weep with you for your pain in losing him. But did you know of the man who would have been lost were it not for you? Who held so much pain and hate inside for the things that were denied him only to get them back through you. Because his talent, his history and his worth can never be erased by the inflated egos of men…men who stand and pretend to know him with empty words and false sympathies. Who, until today, may not have even thought to call until it became beneficial to their cause and who may never understand the role they played in his life.
Lastly, do you know how wonderful he was?
Well, of course you do…and so do I.
Tony was and will always be a brother to me. I miss him and I miss his laughter. And I will be his champion until his goals are acknowledged. He was and will always be special. Not because of what he did in life or who he played with or how many records he sold, but because of whom he was as a man. But then, you know that, too…don’t you?
Luci Martin
My life and times with Tony Thompson by Karen Milne
I was a classical violinist, barely 20 years old, a kid….new to New York City from the mid-west, the autumn of 1977. A typical day…..collecting mail, checking the bulletin board for kittens for sale…….I remember noticing a small handwritten index card, partially hidden by other things. ‘Up and Coming Disco Band looking for Female Violinist’ it said. The rest is history.
Tony and I connected almost immediately, despite him laughing and whispering ‘we all promised we weren’t going to get involved with the girls in the band.’ We were companions through all the triumphs and failures: the success and eventual dissolution of Chic, the various projects with Sister Sledge, Madonna, Debbie Harry, Johnny Mathis, Diana Ross and others. I joined him on the tours with David Bowie and Power Station. I was there when they did Robert Palmer’s record in Nassau. Everywhere he went, with or without me, were the parties, fans, celebrities and beautiful women. He was having the time of his life.
We had great times together throughout our relationship and there were horrible, heart-wrenching times as well. We were both very young, had great success and very strong personalities. Early in our relationship we talked about someday getting married, buying a loft in Soho and starting a family. Events in the spring of 1985 forced us to make decisions about the life we had talked about having together. His initial excitement about our situation gave way to him deciding it was not the right time. He wanted nothing to change. ‘We need to wait a few more years,’ he said to me. I believed him. Nothing was ever the same after that.
Live Aid came along months later, in the summer of 1985, when he played with Led Zeppelin. Six months later, in early 1986, he was seriously injured in a car accident while recording with them in England. I vividly remember Jimmy Page calling me early in the morning on January 28 and telling me that Tony was in the hospital. I knew then that our lives would never be the same.
Tony flew straight to Los Angeles from England after being released from the hospital, with barely a word, having established a life that I knew nothing about while there for a Zildjian photo shoot in September of 1985. There was a new apartment, a new girlfriend, a new life. But he denied everything each time he called over the next two years, telling me that he was coming back to New York very soon, that we would be married some day, that we would have children. Perhaps he was convinced that I would ultimately believe him, as I always had in the past. Perhaps he was trying to maintain his tie to me, shocked that after 8 years of providing for him, supporting him and turning my back on his many indiscretions I had finally said ‘enough’.
The next few years were difficult for the both of us, but especially for him. There were many personal, career and financial problems that he struggled to deal with. Years later we never discussed those problems, or our breakup. We did eventually reached a point where we were able to talk and reminisce about our adventures together, our ‘good times’….each of us remembering different tales, our conversations ending in laughter, and sometimes tears.
******
We were shopping in Macy’s one afternoon, in the very early years of Chic. Tony spotted the two guys from ZZTop wandering the same department. Laughing while we hid behind a pile of shirts, like a couple of kids…..T saying ‘I want to meet them’…..me saying ‘they know who you are….go on, introduce yourself.’ He approached them with shyness and respect, after pushing through the middle of a rack of suits. The best part was that they absolutely did know who he was, and he was delighted! ‘Wait ‘til I tell ‘Nard….man, this is so cool!’ He called Bernard as soon as we returned home.
Years into our relationship, after Nile and Bernard let the Chic violin section go because of dwindling record sales and small audiences, we were living together in the same building I keep an apartment in today. With a bed and television in one corner and Tony’s huge drum kit taking up the remainder of floor space, our little town house studio was missing something I told him. That afternoon he returned home with a Siamese kitten in his arms and a glorious smile on his face. We named the kitten Toot. He was a wild boy. Several weeks later I came home with another Siamese kitten, a companion for Toot….I named her Tiffany, Tiff for short. Tony was upset that I named the kitten Tiffany. ‘I wanted to name our first daughter Tiffany,’ he said. Those cats lived for 18 years.
I remember spending time on tour, on those seemingly endless bus trips, teaching him music theory, which he hated. ‘Why do I need to know this?’ he would moan and laugh at the same time. He would carefully practice writing treble clefs on the staff paper….learning the lines and spaces…..’every good boy does fine’ (egbdf) for the lines in treble clef…..hysterically laughing… ‘Why do I need to know this????….why do I need to know if it’s an eighth note or a 16th note, as long as it all works and sounds great? Who’s the idiot that came up with ‘every good boy does fine’????….laughing so hard he would roll off the seat onto the floor of the bus. I finally relented. He was right, to a certain extent. It did all work, for him. We traded the theory books for a deck of cards and spent our time on the bus playing poker and winning Bernard’s money. We had good poker faces…Bernard fell for it, every time.
Years later Nile was producing David Bowie’s record, “Let’s Dance’ when Tony was called to play on some tracks. Several days into the sessions we were sitting in the booth listening to the tracks they had just done, David and Nile both thrilled with what they were hearing. They continued chatting, about the next songs they were going to record, and about the tour David was planning. I remember like it was yesterday, hearing David say that he hadn’t chosen a drummer. I remember feeling angry, but not surprised, that Nile did not immediately tell David that Tony would be perfect for the gig.
Tony and I stepped out into the hall and talked about what we had heard. Tony was not aggressive in pursuing work after Chic disbanded. It was a skill that he lacked, but one critical to the staying power of a successful musician, especially when a job ends or a career slows down. But, during this period of his life and career, he was always very lucky that the jobs found him. Everyone was calling Tony and asking him to play on their projects.
He was reluctant to approach Bowie. “He loves what you’re playing. He needs to know that you are available. You’re only telling him that you’re available! You have to do this!” I was relentless, in his face, giving every reason I could think of. He finally admitted that I was right and I stood back as he approached David. They talked about the tracks and the tour. Then Tony, completely nervous on the inside, but confident on the outside, said, ‘I’m available if you’re looking for a drummer….completely available.’ I vaguely remember David saying that he thought Tony was completely busy and involved with other projects. There were other projects, but nothing more important to Tony than touring with Bowie.
The next day Tony was officially on board. Once again, the rest is history. Tony was on cloud nine…his dear friend Carmine Rojas (Pee-Wee) was playing bass, Carlos on guitar. It was the official high point of his career and a rarity in rock and roll…a young African-American man playing drums for a huge rock and roll star….he had shaken the ‘disco’ world and moved into rock and roll, where he felt he belonged. He could not wait to get out on the road.
Months into the tour I vividly remember his excitement when he called from Italy one day telling me he had ‘hooked up’ with the guys from Duran Duran. This meeting, and the resulting strong friendship, opened many doors for Tony and led to his collaboration with Andy and John to form Power Station; then Robert’s project, and, after he left New York, the projects he worked on after 1986 thru the early 90’s.
******
Small events reveal much about a man. He was shy, sweet and never truly secure enough to realize that everyone in the business greatly admired him for his skills. He had faults like the rest of us, many brought on by the sudden fame and fortune he was lucky enough to experience, but too young to handle wisely.
He had a soft spot for little kids, animals, expensive suits and pretty girls. He had remarkable wit, a hysterical, clever sense of humor; he was very generous, kind and loving. He loved his friends. He loved Bernard like a brother and was devastated by his death. He loved and treasured playing with Eddie Martinez and Andy Taylor, and, if he had a choice, Pee-Wee and Bernard would be the only bass players in the world he would ever play with. He admired every other drummer out there and admitted he had something to learn from all of them.
He loved my cooking and wandering our neighborhood and all its’ ethnic food shops. He loved going to his parent’s house on holidays and dancing in the basement with Babs. He loved going uptown to Victor’s for roast sucking pig and black beans and rice. He loved Gingerman cookies and a slice from the pizza shop on the corner of 44th and 9th. He loved walking down 9th Avenue to Magnamaro’s to buy Italian cold cuts and fresh bread, then come home and make a huge sandwich and lie in bed and watch TV. He even loved the 9th Avenue Food Festival where he would sample something on every block between 36th and 57th Street….hot dog in one hand, funnel cake in the other, always a smile on his face.
He loved shopping for suits, shoes and leather pants. He’d come out a dressing room at Barney’s or Charivari after trying on an expensive Italian suit….everyone, male and female, would stop and look at him…he looked amazing in everything he ever tried on. He was relentlessly pursued by beautiful woman, young and old. He was envied by many of his male colleagues and friends for his charisma and good looks. Others close to him looked on with jealously, desperate for the same good looks and natural charm they would never possess.
He loved New York and the energy of this wonderful city during the successful years of his career. He loved going to Soho on Sunday afternoons, stopping in every shop, trying on clothes, stopping to eat at a bistro, then finding a jazz club and listening to music late into the night. He loved walking the streets and running into people who knew him. He loved hanging out at the West Bank Café with our friend Steve, and another bar up on 52nd Street, called ‘Bernard’s’, where he partied with his friend Billy. Everywhere he went fans would recognize him and all of us would sit until the sun came up, drinking, laughing and talking music.
With Tony gone these memories pour over me when I am out and about on the streets of New York. As a professional violinist here in New York I regularly play recording sessions at Avatar…. the studio that was once called the “Power Station”. When I am in the ‘big room’, Studio A, with its high, wooden cathedral ceiling, perfect for recording strings, I close my eyes and immediately go back to those first recording sessions with Chic, after I had joined the band. I can still hear Bernard thumping out a bass line in the hallway. I can feel Tony playing in the booth, his monstrous kit taking up the entire space and the 2nd floor quaking each time he hit the drums. I see Bernard coaching Diana Ross and Johnny Mathis. I hear Luther laughing, cracking jokes with Norma Jean and Bernard, wondering where dinner was. I see an inexperienced, eager Madonna leaning over the board asking questions about the arrangements. I hear David Bowie laughing with Nile and Tony. And, each time before I walk down the steps after a session, I see Tony sitting there in the window, as he often did, looking down on 53rd Street, watching the kids in the school playground across the street, using the windowsill as his drum pad.
Everywhere I turn is another reminder of him and of what was lost years ago, and now the ultimate loss on November 12, 2003. My life with him will always be an extraordinary chapter of my life, and, despite the heartbreak, a gift that I will always hold close to my heart.
******
His influence on me, as a professional musician, is significant. He taught me things about music that stay with me today. Coming from different worlds as we did we exposed each other to endless amounts of music that we probably never would have listened to. As a result we heard music and felt music differently, because of each others’ influence. I marvel at what he was able to do, what he was able to hear. He could fit the most incredible fills in the smallest of places, but always in a very musical way…never in an egotistical way (i.e., hey, look what I can do!.......well, maybe once in a while just to irritate Bernard!). But, he played with great restraint while with Chic…constantly being told to hold back, to ‘keep it simple’. It was only during the pre-rehearsal/gig jam sessions with Bernard and Raymond that he really got a chance to play. His great talent was obvious to everyone.
Tony’s expertise in rhythmic complexity and his sheer strength and power, when not confined by a ‘simplistic disco’ beat, exploded in his later work with David Bowie, Power Station and Robert Palmer. Listening to him play leaves me, to this day, wondering if it was something he consciously planned prior to execution, or if it was something that came from deep down inside…not planned, but that pure, virtuosic talent that rendered everything he played the perfect, complex substance that made a simple tune explode into a hit. I believe it was the latter….pure, unbridled virtuosity. Nothing could hold him back.
I wish I could play the violin like that.
I will speak of my love for him. There are two significant loves I have been blessed to experience in my life, my husband, Edward, and Tony. I wish I had known that he was gravely ill. There were many things left unsaid between the two of us. Perhaps now everything is clear to him….perhaps now he knows.
******
After years of sporadic contact it was a very distraught Tony who called and told me of Bernard’s death in 1996. Less than a week later I saw him, which would be for the last time, at Bernard’s funeral. I remember walking into the funeral home and seeing him…impeccably dressed and as handsome as ever, standing alone in a corner, while the other held court.
Despite a bit of lingering sadness and apprehension at the thought of seeing him again, I remember the beautiful smile on his face when he saw me. It was a lovely moment I will never forget.
Karen Milne, Chic Violinist
June 16, 2004
New York City
Note from journalist Charlotte Morgan
I just visited your site to read any news about Tony's benefit. I really enjoyed reading Norma’s and Luci's letters. This is a great time to release some of the music so that followers of real music can celebrate the legacy of not just Chic, but the musicians who comprised Chic. As a music journalist, I know this was a special conglomeration of people. There never was, and never has been, anything like Chic. If you do a tree of Chic's members, you see how they touched every genre of music, leaving an indelible impact where ever they landed.
For me, the pocket was the bomb. It was that deep, delicious groove that was the foundation…the coupling of the drum and bass on top of which scratched a chunky, banjo-strummed guitar, which was shadowed by strings that made Chic everything I ever wanted in music. I bought everything I could with the Chic musicians on it. I can easily say my favorite drummer was Tony Thompson, my favorite bassist was Bernard Edwards, my favorite guitarist was Nile Rogers and my favorite keyboardist was Raymond Jones. I can confess this without hesitation.
To this day in my portable CD player you'll find Diana’s Upside Down album, any Chic compilation, Sister Sledge, Sheila and B Devotion. I still play "Saturday" by Norma Jean because every Saturday night back in the day, it was our club anthem. I still can hear everybody singing, "I Just Can't Wait"! This was a hard album to find! It was worth it, though, because of my favorite track, "Sorcerer." This is the classic Chic rhythm section at work - bouncy, funky rhythms shadowed by those sexy, soothing strings. You close your eyes when you dance to this music.
I just cannot find words right now to express how I was impacted by Tony's death. I didn't know him, I just loved his playing. I remember a Chic concert at the Front Row Theatre here in Cleveland and actually seeing how handsome he was in his suit. He was so Cary Grant-like. I remember seeing Luci and Alfa up close for the first time, and seeing how great they looked in their clothes. The clothes were so different from most bands of the period - retro yet contemporary. It amazes me that no one ever wrote a definitive book about the band. I believe it's only because no one really understands their true impact on modern music.
Hip hop dominates the landscape, but this is a generation that has no outstanding keyboard players or guitarists…or drummers. All I know is Tony Thompson WAS The Power Station for me.
Tony Thompson –An Appreciation (by A. Scott Galloway)
If you struck a pose to the punches of Diana Ross’ “I’m Coming Out,” played air drums to the intro of The Power Station’s “Some Like It Hot,” tapped into your inner Marilyn Monroe on Madonna’s “Material Girl,” chanted to “Chic Cheer” by Chic (later sampled by Faith Evans for “Love Like This”), shimmied with your finger to your lips during the “shhhh” part of David Bowie’s “China Girl” or partied hearty at ANY gathering playing Sister Sledge’s “We Are Family” -- whether you knew it or not -- you were being moved by the power of drummer Tony Thompson.
I have a few favorite drummers: Tony Williams, Max Roach, Steve Ferrone, Stewart Copeland, Harvey Mason and Steve Gadd that I’d traditionally say most influenced my styles of playing. But with Tony Thompson, it wasn’t so much about the way he played as the strong, magnetic image that he projected.
Growing up an aspiring drummer in L.A., I first became aware of Tony through his playing with Chic and the many artists they produced, particularly Sister Sledge. I initially respected him greatly for the grace and tightness of his grooves…always just what was needed. You almost didn’t notice him because he was an expert at nailin and sustaining the ever-elusive “pocket.”…and not one beat extra! Then he’d sneak something in on you like the little explosions on “Le Freak,” the slick lil’ hi-hat tricks on “Chic Cheer” or the overall architecture of “My Feet Keep Dancing” (leaving space for The Nicholas Brothers to tap dance all up in between his beat).
It was a whole ‘nother story, though, by the time I saw him slammin’ with The Power Station. It was as if a chillin’ pit bull had snapped from his leash, suddenly liberated to “thrill at will!” “Are you sure that’s the same dude from Chic?” His presence in the videos for “Some Like It Hot” and “Bang A Gong (Get It On)” was incredibly influential not just because he was a brutha throwin’ down with the “white boys,” but -- as a drummer and a man -- Tony was just galvanizing and transfixing. I spent many a night in the garage trying (in vain) to cop his virile demeanor of detached cool.
A memorial concert was held in Thompson’s at the Hard Rock Café in Beverly Hills on December 16, featuring many friends and fellow musicians from throughout his staggering career. Among the highlights were versions of Chic songs led by Nile Rodgers and Raymond Jones of the band, “What Can I Do For You” (originally sung by Labelle, one of Thompson’s first employers) sung by Barbara Wilson, and a KILLIN’ version of Led Zeppelin’s “Kashmir” featuring the all-female string quartet, Siren (Thompson filled the drum chair of the late John Bonham when rock royalty Led Zeppelin reunited for a one-off performance at Live Aid).
The last project Thompson was working on was a new rock band, Non-Toxic, to which he proudly contributed as a founder, writer AND drummer. Several songs were recorded that the surviving members have negotiated for release. From the smooth as glass work he played as a member of Chic (and most of Nile Rodgers’ & Bernard Edwards’ productions) to his powerhouse chops on the rock scene, the buff and bespectacled Tony Thompson was a highly respected industry secret weapon who will be deeply missed.
(ASG)