Biography

Richard Paul Thomas — better known to his friends as RpT — has been making music since rock ‘n’ roll was young. And he’s still finding new sources of inspiration each time he picks up a guitar and sits down to write a song.

On his latest album, Wings of My Heart, Thomas whittles his diverse array of influences and lifetime of experiences — including producing environmental festivals for Jacques Cousteau’s Cousteau Society — into a dozen self-penned tunes. Produced by Chris Gage and recorded at Austin’s Moonhouse Studio, it features musical contributions from Gage and his wife, Christine Albert, plus Kristin deWitt, Bruce Logan, Glenn Fukunaga and Steven Bernstein.

Thomas prides himself on exploring a wide range of musical genres — from rock and R&B to jazz and soulful balladry — and emotions that travel from lighthearted and fun to serious and introspective. His thought-provoking examinations of life’s joys and challenges come from the heart and speak to the soul.

Born in Milwaukee, Thomas started playing guitar in 1957, inspired by rising stars such as Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, the Everly Brothers and Roy Orbison. Captured by the British Invasion, he spent his high school years performing covers of the Kinks, the Rolling Stones and the Beatles. He met his first wife, Susan, in a folk group he’d joined; they wound up writing, recording (A Burst of Life) and touring together for 10 years, sharing stages with artists such as Anne Murray, Loggins & Messina, Helen Reddy, Townes Van Zandt, James Lee Stanley, Odetta and Michael Martin Murphey.

In the late ‘70s, Thomas became an associate director for the Cousteau Society, producing festivals meant to raise awareness about environmental issues. During that time, he met his second wife, Linda, and they settled in her hometown of Salado, Texas. They had a son and Thomas built a career as a software consultant.

In 2011, Thomas released the sound track from his one-man musical titled Captured Rainbow, based on the life of a consultant who spends most of his time on the road. The two-act play, performed in Austin, Milwaukee, Chicago and Salado, features stories and songs about his experiences and the people he meets along the way. One of its songs, “Salado,” was adopted by the Village of Salado, which stated in an official proclamation that it “represents our community’s spirit, character and history.”

Thomas calls the experience of recording his latest work with Gage “joyful, fun-filled and humbling.”
The title track reaches back to the days of Buddy Holly and all the songs that “never grow old” — songs that become a part of life’s soundtrack and “sing to the wings of my heart.”