Robert Moore

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This article is about the jazz musician. For other uses, see Robert Moore (disambiguation).

Robert Moore is a jazz musician and songwriter who was active in Birmingham from the mid 1980s to 2005.

Moore was born in Tallahassee, Florida while his father was serving in the Korean War, and grew up in Atlanta. He sang in church from childhood and started playing the trumpet in fourth grade, picking up the harmonica in high school.

He studied trumpet at the Colorado State University School of Music, going into teaching after graduation. He worked at various levels teaching band, jazz band and choir before returning to school at the University of Oregon in 1980 to obtain a Masters in Music Education. He didn't stay in teaching, however, and moved to Birmingham, where he started to play professionally.

Moore counts Chet Baker as the biggest influence on his trumpet playing, and King Pleasure as his singing muse. He also cites Oliver Nelson, Mark Murphy, Eddie Jefferson, Gerry Mulligan, Louis Jordan and Horace Silver.

He formed Robert Moore and the Wildcats with bassist Cleve Eaton, guitarist Mark Kimbrell and drummer Chris Fryar, earning as much local acclaim as Birmingham offers and touring clubs and festivals around the southeast. In 2000 he was commissioned to create the song "Sweet Birmingham" for the Birmingham Convention and Visitor's Bureau. The official version was performed by Taj Mahal, but Moore's version can be heard on his Cool Blue double album.

He began building custom furniture as a day job.

He frequently visited Portland, recording with Nancy King and other members of the northwest jazz scene. In 2005, after meeting someone, he decided to move there.

Discography

  • Robert Moore (1995) "Wildcat."
  • Robert Moore (1998) Serve You, Ma'am. Orchard
  • Robert Moore (2000) Cool Blue. Orchard

References

  • Rega, Rita (October 2005) "Musician of the Month" Robert Moore" Jazz Society of Oregon.

External links