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He was originally an altoist playing with Horace Henderson but switched to tenor when he joined Stuff Smith's group. As a star with Lunceford from 1933 until the leader's death in 1947, Thomas had many short but often-memorable solos and took several vocals. After Lunceford's unexpected death, Thomas and pianist Ed Wilcox ran the ghost band for a year. Later, Thomas on his own recorded a variety of R&B-oriented sides, he left music in the mid-'50s to run his father's undertaking business, and from the 1960s on he returned to performing on a part-time basis, cutting a session in 1982 for Uptown. He is not to be confused with the fine swing trumpeter Joe Thomas. ~ Scott Yanow, Rovi