Gregory Stephen Perkins (born 28 December 1964), better known by his stage name Tex Perkins, is an Australian singer-songwriter who fronted the Australian rock band The Cruel Sea, but has also performed with the Beasts of Bourbon, Thug, James Baker Experience, The Butcher Shop, Salamander Jim, and Tex, Don and Charlie.

In 1997, a portrait of Tex Perkins by artist Bill Leak won the Packing Room award at the Archibald Prize.

Perkins started his musical career in Brisbane cowpunk outfit Tex Deadly and the Dum-Dums,[1] before moving to Sydney in 1982, garnering considerable attention in the Sydney independent music scene and also touring Melbourne, before the departure of guitarist Mark Halstead ended the band.

Due to touring commitments for Ploog & Salmon, Perkins formed a different line up with Stu Spasm, Lachlan McLeod and Martin Bland.

Thug released two studio albums Mechanical Ape / Proud Idiots Parade in 1987 and Electric Woolly Mammoth in 1988.

The original lineup comprised Perkins, Spencer P. Jones, James Baker, Kim Salmon and Boris Sudjovic.

The band's first album, The Axeman's Jazz, was an underground success, but the group continued to be just a side project until 1988 when it reformed to record Sour Mash, followed by 1990's Black Milk and 1991's The Low Road.

In December 2006 it was announced that Albert Productions had signed an exclusive worldwide recording deal with the band and on 23 April 2007, released a new album Little Animals.

Members were initially Charlie Owen, Joel Silbersher, Murray Paterson and Jim Elliott.

[citation needed] On 10 June 2011, Tex Perkins & The Dark Horses released a new, self-titled album which peaked at number 73.

[13] In 2000, Perkins released his second solo studio album, Dark Horses which peaked at number 24 on the ARIA Charts.

[13] In 2003, Sweet Nothing was released which was credited to Tex Perkins' Dark Horses and peaked at number 34 on the ARIA Charts.

[14] In 2010 and 2011, Tex Perkins and The Tennessee Four (Shannon Bourne, guitar; Shane Reilly, guitar; Steve Hadley, bass; Dave Folley, drums) performed a series of shows in Australia and New Zealand, titled The Man in Black – The Johnny Cash Story, the show featured two hours of Johnny Cash's music interwoven with the story of his rise to stardom, his fight for survival and his eventual redemption.

The track, written by author Matthew Hardy, features The Welsh Choir and a spoken word performance by Australian rules football legend Ron Barassi.