Eddie James Lusk, Jr. known professionally as Professor Eddie Lusk (September 21, 1948 – August 26, 1992) was an American

Chicago blues Chicago blues is a form of blues music developed in Chicago, Illinois. It is based on earlier blues idioms, such as Delta blues, but performed in an urban style. It developed alongside the Great Migration of the first half of the twentieth cent ...

musician. An ordained minister, Lusk carved out a successful career in the blues and variously worked with

Luther Allison Luther Allison (August 17, 1939 – August 12, 1997) was an American blues singer-songwriter and guitarist. He was born in Widener, Arkansas, although some accounts suggest his actual place of birth was Mayflower, Arkansas. Allison was intereste ...

Buddy Guy George "Buddy" Guy (born July 30, 1936) is an American blues guitarist and singer. He is an exponent of Chicago blues who has influenced generations of guitarists including Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix, Jimmy Page, Keith Richards, Stevie Ray V ...

, Jimmy Johnson,

Koko Taylor Koko Taylor (born Cora Anna Walton, September 28, 1928 – June 3, 2009) was an American singer whose style encompassed Chicago blues, electric blues, rhythm and blues and soul blues. Sometimes called "The Queen of the Blues", she was known for ...

Phil Guy Phil Guy (April 28, 1940 – August 20, 2008) was an American blues guitarist. He was the younger brother of blues guitarist Buddy Guy. Phil and Buddy Guy were frequent collaborators and contribute both guitar and vocal performances on many o ...

Jimmy Dawkins James Henry “Jimmy” Dawkins (October 24, 1936 – April 10, 2013) was an American Chicago blues and electric blues guitarist and singer. He is generally considered to have been a practitioner of the "West Side sound" of Chicago blues. Career ...

Sunnyland Slim Albert Luandrew (September 5, 1906March 17, 1995), "Blues pianist and singer Sunnyland Slim was born Albert Luandrew in Vance, Mississippi, September 5, 1906 (most sources say 1907, but the Social Security Death Index and 1920 census data give t ...

, Michael Coleman, Fenton Robinson,

Syl Johnson Sylvester Johnson (born Sylvester Thompson; July 1, 1936 – February 6, 2022) was an American blues and soul singer, musician, songwriter and record producer. His most successful records included "Different Strokes" (1967), " Is It Because I' ...

, and

Otis Rush Otis Rush Jr. (April 29, 1934 – September 29, 2018) was an American blues guitarist and singer-songwriter. His distinctive guitar style featured a slow-burning sound and long bent notes. With qualities similar to the styles of other 1950s art ...

. ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

'' named Lusk as one of Chicago's most underrated blues players. He committed suicide at the age of 43, following a dire medical prognosis.

Life and career

Eddie Lusk was born in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

, United States, to parents who were ordained ministers in the

Pentecostal Church Pentecostalism or classical Pentecostalism is a Protestant Charismatic Christian movement

. On Chicago's South Side they ran The Lusk Bible Way Center, and once Lusk was old enough he began playing the piano there. The blues music seeping from the nearby Pepper's Lounge proved a big distraction for the young Lusk. He became ordained himself in 1968, and gained a bachelor's degree in business administration at

Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Charte ...

, but his love for the blues saw him installed at the Shiloh Academy. It was this connection that tempted Professor Longhair to bestow the title of 'Professor' on his young music disciple. An accomplished keyboard and piano player, Lusk backed

for three years before his work saw him regularly used as a session and touring musician. Throughout the 1980s and early 1990s, Lusk recorded with

(''

Breaking Out ''Breaking Out'' is the fifth studio album by Buddy Guy. It was released in 1980 on JSP Records. Recordings The original album tracks were recorded at Sound Station, Chicago, IL, in September 1980 with session musicians. They recorded two more ...

'', 1980), Jimmy Johnson (''North/South'', 1982),

(''Queen of the Blues'', 1985),

(''It's a Real Mutha'', 1985 and ''All Star Chicago Blues Session'', 1994),

(''Feel the Blues'', 1985 and ''Kant Sheek Dees Bluze'', 1992),

(''Be Careful How You Vote'', 1989), Michael Coleman (''Back Breaking Blues'', 1990), and Nate Taylor (''Hard Times'', 1992). Lusk also toured nationally with some of those musicians and backed Fenton Robinson,

, and

on the road. In 1985, Lusk joined Jimmy Dawkins, Eddie C. Campbell,

Lowell Fulson Lowell Fulson (March 31, 1921March 7, 1999) was an American blues guitarist and songwriter, in the West Coast blues tradition. He also recorded for contractual reasons as Lowell Fullsom and Lowell Fulsom. After T-Bone Walker, he was the most imp ...

and Anthony Palmer on ''Can't Sit Down!'' (

JSP Records JSP Records is a British record label, founded in 1978 by John Stedman (John Stedman Promotions), releasing recordings by blues musicians such as Professor Longhair, Buddy Guy, Jimmy Witherspoon, Louisiana Red, Deitra Farr, Charlie Sayles, ...

). With growing confidence and experience, Lusk formed his own band named the Professor's Blues Review, and with the singer Gloria Hardiman, recorded "Meet Me With Your Black Drawers On" for the 1987

Alligator Records Alligator Records is an American, Chicago-based independent blues record label founded by Bruce Iglauer in 1971. Iglauer was also one of the founders of the ''Living Blues'' magazine in Chicago in 1970. History Iglauer started the label using hi ...

compilation album A compilation album comprises Album#Tracks, tracks, which may be previously released or unreleased, usually from several separate recordings by either one or several Performing arts#Performers, performers. If by one artist, then generally the tr ...

, ''New Bluebloods''. On his only solo album, ''Professor Strut'' (1989), Hardiman was replaced by Karen Carroll. His work also later appeared on the various artists compilation, ''Black and Blue, Vol. 2'' (1998). Lusk and Hardiman's version of "Meet Me With Your Black Drawers On" has become a hit in the Carolina

beach music Beach music, also known as Carolina beach music, and to a lesser extent, Beach pop, is a regional genre of music in the United States which developed from rock/ R&B and pop music of the 1950s and 1960s. Beach music is most closely associate ...

scene. He and his band appeared in the 1991 film, ''

V. I. Warshawski Victoria Iphigenia "Vic" "V. I." Warshawski is a fictional private investigator from Chicago who is the protagonist featured in a series of detective novels and short stories written by Chicago author Sara Paretsky. With the exception of "The ...

'', and later that year toured across Europe with Michael Coleman and

Kenny Neal Kenny Neal (born October 14, 1957), is an American blues guitar player, singer and band member. Neal was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, the son of Raful Neal, and he comes from a musical family. He has often performed with his brothers in his ...

. In 1993, Lusk's prior recording entitled, ''Chicago Blues Festival 91'', with Coleman and Neal was released. In mid-1992, Lusk was diagnosed with

colorectal cancer Colorectal cancer (CRC), also known as bowel cancer, colon cancer, or rectal cancer, is the development of cancer from the colon or rectum (parts of the large intestine). Signs and symptoms may include blood in the stool, a change in bowel m ...

, brought on by

AIDS Human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) is a spectrum of conditions caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a retrovirus. Following initial infection an individual m ...

, and in a state of desperation committed suicide by jumping into the

Chicago River The Chicago River is a system of rivers and canals with a combined length of that runs through the city of Chicago, including its center (the Chicago Loop). Though not especially long, the river is notable because it is one of the reasons for ...

Discography

Albums

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lusk, Professor Eddie 1948 births 1992 suicides Musicians from Chicago Chicago blues musicians American blues pianists American male pianists Suicides by jumping in the United States 20th-century American male musicians 20th-century American pianists 1992 deaths Suicides in Illinois