the_post_thumbnail Outside the Loop?

Hey Guys,

Can the new image function in WordPress 2.9 “the_post_thumbnail” be used outside the loop?

I want to pull a random post and put it in my sidebar, along with that post i would like to include an image using the new ‘the_post_thumbnail’ code, but cannot find anything about using this outside of the loop.

Any advice would be very gratefully received.
Andrew