A 12-year-old singer-songwriter’s live rendition of a classic Shed Seven track has been watched more than 50,000 times and has won praise from the Britpop band.
Tom Mouse Smith, from Houghton-le-Spring , is no stranger to the stage, having wowed fans at the Mouth of the Tyne Festival during his slot supporting James Bay.
The Kepier School pupil, who has been playing guitar since he was seven, found further success after using Facebook Live to stream his performances.
His latest, a rendition of Shed Seven’s On Standby, clocked up more than 50,000 views since it was first broadcast on Friday.
His Dad, Andy, said Tom is a fan of modern bands like Blossoms and Catfish And The Bottlemen, but he enjoys taking on the classics too.
The 90s tunes in particular have proved popular with his Facebook fanbase.
Andy said: “It’s been working really, really well when he’s been doing them.”
Tom is set to play a sold-out homeless benefit concert at Tynemouth’s Surf Cafe on Saturday, September 24 and a Teenage Cancer Trust gig at Newcastle’s O2 Academy on Saturday, October 15.
“He’s going to try and do three of his own songs there,” added Andy.
Shed Seven - who recorded four top-20 albums in the 90s - posted Tom’s clip on their Facebook page and described his version as “amazing”.
The band’s fans were impressed too.
Writing on Shed Seven’s Facebook page, Mike Moore commented: “12? Amazing talent. Great cover.”
Stephen Mapplebeck added: “Quality performance Tom and what a cracking choice.”
On Thursday, Tom revealed he declined the chance to appear on Britain’s Got Talent and The Voice Kids.
Tom was born with hypoplastic left heart syndrome, which means the left side of his heart is underdeveloped. He has written music about living with the condition.
A post from his Facebook page said: “In the past month I’ve turned down the opportunity to appear on Britain’s Got Talent and The Voice Kids. I think my story might be more important to them than performing.”