DIANE TREMARCO IN AWE OF …
THE STORY OF JADE THUNDER
I have always greatly admired fellow musicians and creatives and I am thrilled to be able to tell you about those I know well and those I have recently discovered . Please take a look at my Instagram profile for more of the artists I am in awe of .
It gives me great pleasure this month to write about my daughter , Jade Thunder , nee Tremarco .
From a very early age it was evident that Jade had a talent for music . She would sing at every opportunity , no matter where we were , even in a church ( uninvited I may add ) at the age of two !
Jade has been on the local music scene for 24 years starting out with me , singing the odd song here and there and developing into a great musician . She is best known for her work with The Gary Murphy Band , Eclipse – The Pink Floyd Experience , Court & Spark – The Joni Mitchell Experience , and gigging as a cover artist throughout Merseyside in various acts , most notably Next of Kin with me and Glade with Glyn Williams .
Jade has also worked with local legends such as Liverpool Express , Gerry Marsden ( RIP ), The Swinging Blue Jeans , The Undertakers , The Searchers , The Connie Lush Band , and has had the honour of being a backing singer for Captain Beefheart ’ s Magic Band when they came to Liverpool in 2016 .
When the pandemic hit back in 2020 , Jade crossed the line between cover and original artist , and embarked on a new musical adventure creating emotional , raw music that often incorporates nostalgic , real-life experiences .
Drawing from , and blending elements of folk , pop , rock , prog-rock , and jazz , her songs reflect on her feelings about disenchantment , womanhood , romance , trauma , and recovery .
In an interview with WHERE ARE THE GIRL BANDS ? Ella Fradge said “ Jade Thunder ’ s music feels like a hug wrapped up in a 70 ’ s crotchet jumper , filled with soulful melody , and lyrics from the heart ”. Helen Maw from Liverpool Acoustic predicted that “ the album is sure to cement Jade Thunder as a true song writing talent of Liverpool ”.
Jade ' s Songs
‘ Alchemy ’ was released on 22.2.22 on CD only , via Jade ’ s website : www . jadethunder . com . Obviously , I love the album because Jade is my daughter but actually , I have a new found appreciation of her as an original artist . I asked her the meaning behind her songs on the album :
Glasses : This is a song about falling for someone when you don ’ t really want to . Wearing rose-tinted glasses and being in love – which any fool can do ( thank you , Louis de Bernieres ) yet not being completely happy within yourself . It ’ s about learning to love yourself enough so that you can allow others to love you . There ’ s a subtle nod to ‘ higher ’ times and the earthy , spaced-out lifestyle one experiments with in their 20 ’ s ; “ numbing the mind ”, “ climbed higher and higher ”, and that blurred vision the next morning as you ’ re crashing back down to reality , facing how you feel , and delving deeper into that tinted lens .
Trauma : Most of us ( at least in 2022 , post-pandemic ) have sadly been through trauma . When I experienced something painful in the past , I used to bury it until I felt ready to deal with it . That day never came and somehow , I lost sight of who I was . I wrote this song to remind myself that talking about trauma is a key healer . Learning to open-up to someone about everything , not feeling stupid for it , and then ultimately forgiving yourself for everything you ’ ve done that you ’ re not proud of , was powerful . Holding on to anger and hate just spreads more anger and hate . As Elsa said , let it go .
Perfectly Imperfect : Self-acceptance is something that ’ s hard to do in our instagrammable , Kardashian world . We are constantly striving for perfection and ultimately , people are looking more and more like clones of Kylie and Kim . I ’ ve struggled with my image for years and this song is about me celebrating my imperfections - the wobbly bits , the scars , the hyperpigmentations , the dark circles , the hooded eyes , and my beautifully scarred lip and stomach . Learning to love myself was a huge challenge and so I wanted to share my feelings on it in , with the hope that it helps someone out there learn to love themselves too .
Forgiven : Oof . This is a toughie . I was brought up Roman Catholic and went to a Catholic school . My paternal grandfather was heavily religious , and I remember going to church every Sunday as a kid . God was part of my life for the longest time . I went on retreats with the school , and I prayed all the time , privately . As I got older , I questioned my faith – as many do – and found that it didn ’ t sit with who I was any more . There were too many unanswered questions , too many inconsistencies with what I was being told . I was to blindly follow this
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