RIP Luther Kent

Posted by tlea (A) on August 23, 2024 at 19:43:49

The great blues/r&b vocalist Luther Kent passed away peacefully a few days ago after a long illness. Outside of New Orleans, he is best known for stepping in as the frontman of Blood Sweat and Tears in the mid-70s while David Clayton-Thomas test drove a solo career. Contractual issues kept Kent from recording with BS&T, but his performances were uniformly well-received.

His big band "Trick Bag" was a local favorite and festival regular around the Southeast for 40 years. Always a tremendous, high-energy act with top-rank players, the band was a workshop and launchpad for emerging local talent. It takes a huge commitment to deal with the finances and logistics of fielding a 16 piece band, but Luther felt that was the best vehicle to showcase his powerful voice. Once you heard the band, you knew he was right. It was always a treat to take visiting friends and musicians to see them and watch the jaws drop. "Why have I never heard of this guy?"

It's gratifying to see artists like Jon Batiste, Wynton Marsalis, and Troy Andrews (Trombone Shorty) getting widespread attention, but New Orleans has always been bursting with talent deserving of wider recognition. Luther Kent was in that category, along with John Boutte, Anders Osborne, and the late, great Johnny Adams. And many, many others. NOLA can be a frustrating place to live at times, but if you love good music there's no place that compares. It's the city with a soundtrack.

Thanks for the memories, Luther. Rest in power.

. . . in theory, practice and theory are the same; in practice, they are different . . .

Luther Kent (Open in New Window)

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Topic - RIP Luther Kent - tlea 19:43:49 08/23/24 (1)

RE: RIP Luther Kent - fantja 01:33:40 08/29/24 (0)

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