Hersal Thomas

With the possible exception of Sugar Chile Robinson, few jazz or blues artists have accomplished so much so early in life as Hersal Thomas, the child prodigy pianist and composer who passed away suddenly under somewhat suspicious circumstances at the age of 16. While Robinson jumped onto an existing stylistic bandwagon and was exploited as a comedic boy wonder for a short while before quitting the music business at the age of 12, young Hersal Thomas was among the earliest architects of the boogie-woogie style and funneled his brilliant precocity into a very brief career, manag...