Tag: McCollins Thorpe

McCollins Thorpe, Sr., of John Thorpe and Family, passes on

Please join GMF in extending condolences to the family and friends of McCollins Thorpe, Sr., who transitioned yesterday, April 30, after a brief illness.  He was 70 years old.
Thorpe was perhaps one of traditional gospel quartet’s best kept secrets with a versatile vibratic tenor that could drive a quartet scorcher, churn out a soul-drenched hymn arrangement, or croon a melodic ballad.  He was a lead singer in his sibling group John Thorpe and Family and can be heard handling lead chores on “I Trust in God” and “I Don’t Mind,” both on the CDs In His Name and John Thorpe and Family “Live” with Dr. Bobby Jones.  Additionally, every Sunday morning listeners could tune in to WKRX 96.7FM to hear Thorpe along with his brothers, called simply The Thorpe Brothers.  He opened every broadcast with the Sam Cooke-popularized version of “Nearer My God to Thee.”
Thorpe was also a dedicated member of several choirs at his home church, New Hope Person Missionary Baptist Church in Timberlake, NC.
In addition to his 13 brothers and sisters, he is survived by three children and a host of other relatives.

Homegoing arrangements, per sister Joyce Bailey, are as follows:

Visitation, Public Viewing & Musical
Saturday, May 4, 2013
6:30 – 8:30 PM
New Hope Person Missionary Baptist Church
1261 Tom Oakley Road
Timberlake, NC 27583

Homegoing Celebration
Sunday, May 5, 2013
2:30 PM
Greater Cleggs Chapel Community Missionary Baptist Church
2601 Surl-Mt. Tirzah Road
Timberlake, NC 27583


Online condolences can be posted at www.whitesmortuary.net.

"I Trust in God" – John Thorpe and Family

“I Trust in God”
John Thorpe and Family
From the CD, Child Of God (2012)
Available at CD Baby

John Thorpe and Family "Live" with Dr. Bobby Jones art work

Kudos to the groups and choirs of today that reserve spots for a traditional, minimally altered hymn or two in their otherwise trendy, radio-friendly repertoires.

McCollins Thorpe, Sr. solidifies this space for John Thorpe and Family with “I Trust in God,” an arrangement of the W.C. Martin hymn, “My Father Watches Over Me.”  It’s Thorpe, Sr., the eldest brother of the 14 siblings, whose vibratic tenor hinges on the upswings and downward slopes of every note to create a moderately slow but soulful number that baptist pastor Martin himself, were he to overhear from Glory, would give a nod to.

While John Thorpe and Family are a choir that occasionally consists of all 14 brothers and sisters plus a niece and nephew, their material is crafted with a traditional quartet-like vibe—a subgenre in which the Thorpe brothers, who are the primary lead singers, are firmly planted.  This is why Thorpe, Sr. is able to guide them from the flowing expressive verses right into a toe-tapping chorus and vamp with ease, adding just the right amount of spice to the sweetness of the early 20th-century composition.