Thomson

Thomson may refer to:

Names

Science

Marko Perković

Marko Perković Thompson (born 27 October 1966) is a Croatian musician and has been the lead singer of the band Thompson since 1991.

Early life and War

Marko Perković was born in 1966 in Čavoglave (at the time SR Croatia, SFR Yugoslavia) to Marija and Ante. He rarely saw his father, who worked as a Gastarbeiter in Germany and rarely came home. He finished high school in Split. In 1991, Croatia declared independence from Yugoslavia, prompting the Croatian War of Independence. He joined the Croatian National Guard where he was given the American Thompson gun, which became the nickname given to him by his battlefield comrades.

It was while he was defending his home village that Perković became inspired to write one of the most popular songs during the war: Bojna Čavoglave (Čavoglave Battalion), which launched his music career. In 1992, Perković held numerous humanitarian concerts throughout Croatia, and released his first album the same year. He continued to write songs to raise morale during the war. In 1995 he returned to the Croatian Army and the 142nd Drniš Brigade, and became one of the first soldiers to enter the captured cities of Drniš and Knin during Operation Storm.

Thompson (band)

Thompson is a Croatian rock band, founded by Marko Perković aka "Thompson", often identified with the band itself. "Thompson" is Perković's stage name. He is the songwriter and lead vocalist. The lineup consists of: Tiho Orlić, Ivan Ivanković, Duje Ivić, and Ivica Bilić Ike.

The band name originates from the Thompson submachine gun, a nickname given to Perković while he fought in the Croatian War of Independence. Although predominantly formed in Čavoglave, Thompson is currently based in Zagreb. Thompson came to prominence during the Croatian war in 1991, with the release of the first single "Bojna Čavoglave", which proclaims the Croatian resistance to Yugoslavia and was included in the compilation album Rock za Hrvatsku. This song, with slightly modified lyrics, named "Branitelji Sarajeva", was sung by the BiH Army during the Siege of Sarajevo (Sarajevo zaboravit ne će nikada). During the 1990s Thompson gained popularity in Croatia with the release of the first album Moli mala in 1992. They later regained popularity with the popular hit "Prijatelji" in 1998.