Anthony Thistlethwaite

Who is Anthony Thistlethwaite?

Anthony "Anto" Thistlethwaite is a British multi-instrumentalist best known as a founding member of the folk rock group, The Waterboys and later as a long-standing member of Irish rock band The Saw Doctors.

After a year busking in Paris, playing tenor saxophone around the streets of the Latin Quarter, in 1980 Thistlethwaite moved to London and in 1981 he played saxophone on Robyn Hitchcock's Groovy Decay album as well as Nikki Sudden's Waiting on Egypt. Mike Scott heard the saxophone solo on Nikki's "Johnny Smiled Slowly" and invited Thistlethwaite to come and play with his fledgling band "The Red and The Black". Their first record together "A Girl Called Johnny" was to be released as The Waterboys' first single in March 1983 and featured Thistlethwaite's tenor sax howl.

Although Thistlethwaite is mainly known as a saxophonist he has also featured on mandolin, harmonica, Hammond organ, guitar and bass with The Waterboys and other acts. During the 1980s and 90s he also featured on recordings by: World Party, Fairground Attraction, Psychedelic Furs, Sharon Shannon, Bob Dylan, China Crisis, Johnny Thunders, Donovan, The Vibrators, Chris De Burgh, Bruce Foxton, The Mission, and others as a session musician.