Larry "T" Thurston is a

soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun ''soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest attes ...

, R&B, and

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the Afr ...

singer, who sang as the lead vocalist for Matt Murphy's band and the

Blues Brothers The Blues Brothers are an American blues and soul revivalist band founded in 1978 by comedians Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi as part of a musical sketch on ''Saturday Night Live''. Belushi and Aykroyd fronted the band, in character, respective ...

Career

Thurston's musical career began in the early 1980s with St Louis's Soulard Blues Band. His next band was the Blues City Band, followed by The Sounds of The City, which also featured Johnnie Johnson, a collaborator of

Chuck Berry Charles Edward Anderson Berry (October 18, 1926 – March 18, 2017) was an American singer, songwriter and guitarist who pioneered rock and roll. Nicknamed the " Father of Rock and Roll", he refined and developed rhythm and blues into th ...

, and the bassist Gus Thornton. Eventually Thurston began working outside St Louis, performing with

James Cotton James Henry Cotton (July 1, 1935 – March 16, 2017) was an American blues harmonica player, singer and songwriter, who performed and recorded with many fellow blues artists and with his own band. He also played drums early in his career. ...

and Matt Murphy. After

John Belushi John Adam Belushi (January 24, 1949 – March 5, 1982) was an American comedian, actor, and musician, best known for being one of the seven original cast members of the NBC sketch comedy show ''Saturday Night Live'' (''SNL''). Throughout his ca ...

died from a

heroin Heroin, also known as diacetylmorphine and diamorphine among other names, is a potent opioid mainly used as a recreational drug for its euphoric effects. Medical grade diamorphine is used as a pure hydrochloride salt. Various white and brow ...

and

cocaine Cocaine (from , from , ultimately from Quechuan languages, Quechua: ''kúka'') is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant mainly recreational drug use, used recreationally for its euphoria, euphoric effects. It is primarily obtained from t ...

overdose in 1982, Blues Brothers guitarist

Matt "Guitar" Murphy Matthew Tyler Murphy (December 29, 1929 – June 15, 2018), known as Matt "Guitar" Murphy, was an American blues guitarist. He was associated with Memphis Slim, The Blues Brothers and Howlin' Wolf. Early life Murphy was born in Sunflower, Mississ ...

started his own band, with Larry Thurston as lead singer. When the Blues Brothers reunited in 1988, Thurston was chosen to take Belushi's place as lead singer, alongside soul/R&B artists such as

Sam Moore Samuel David Moore (born October 12, 1935) is an American vocalist who was a member of the soul and R&B group, Sam & Dave, from 1961 to 1981. He is a member of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, the Grammy Hall of Fame (for " Soul Man"), and the Voc ...

and

Eddie Floyd Edward Lee Floyd (born June 25, 1937) is an American R&B and soul singer and songwriter, best known for his work on the Stax record label in the 1960s and 1970s, including the No. 1 R&B hit song " Knock on Wood". Biography Floyd was born in ...

. The band started going on world tours, creating the albums '' The Blues Brothers Band Live in Montreux'' and '' Red, White & Blues'' in the process. In 1994, Thurston left the Blues Brothers and was replaced by Tommy "Pipes" McDonnell. He finished college, began working a regular job, and became an associate minister at his church, later founding the New Covenant Christian Church, where he became a pastor. Songwriter Jeff Alexander saw Thurston performing with Johnnie Johnson at Off Broadway in St Louis. In 2001 Alexander began recording ''School For Fools'' and asked Larry to participate. Levon Helm joined on drums, and Johnnie Johnson played piano on two songs. ''School For Fools'' became Thurston's first and only solo album. In 2004 Alexander was producing ''Johnnie Be Eighty. And Still Bad!'', a Johnnie Johnson project. Johnson was unable to sing his best, and Alexander asked Thurston to provide vocals on five of the tracks.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Thurston, Larry American rhythm and blues singers American male singers Living people Year of birth missing (living people) The Blues Brothers members St. Louis blues musicians