Alternative/folk/pop duo Say-So comprised married couple Jim and Kim Thomas. They had actually been making music together for over a decade when their eponymous debut was released in 1997 for Organic Records. The album featured a fresh take on folksy, rootsy, alternative pop-rock that was ‘light’ enough to appeal to fans of CCM, yet unconventional enough to appeal to listeners with more alternative-leaning tastes. The band’s sound sat comfortably with artists like Sixpence None the Richer (especially their earlier material), Rich Young Ruler, and Five O’Clock People.
Part of what set them apart from the CCM pack was a slightly more intellectual, well-read approach to songwriting. At the time, Jim Thomas was leading a C.S. Lewis discussion group in his church and wife Kim Thomas was a visual artist, having worked on several album covers for other acts. Their above-ground musical output essentially consists of two full-lengths for Organic, but if one is willing to dive a little deeper, there are a handful of demos, cassettes, and singles going back into the 1980s, both as Say-So and also as Jim and Kim Thomas.
“Mercy Me” is the lead-off track from the debut album and features a comforting use of the banjo, set to lyrics about the need for and celebration of mercy. Nowadays Jim is a pastor in Nashville, and Kim continues to create visual art as well as being an author.
