Byrd Moore

Byrd Moore (born April 1889 in Blackwater , Virginia , as William B. Moore ; † 1949 in Wise County ) was an American old-time musician who made numerous recordings as an accompanist and as a leader of his own group.

Life

Due to Moore's nomadic lifestyle, his way of life is unclear. He was probably born in Virginia in 1889. Moore roamed Virginia, Kentucky, and Tennessee all his life . He earned his living as a musician and also worked as a hairdresser. In the early 1920s, Moore lived in Whitesburg , Kentucky for some time , where he married.

A short time later he was living with the von Fiddlin 'Powers family of his own and taught Carrie Belle Powers to play the guitar . In the mid-1920s he played regularly with the banjo player Dock Boggs in Wise County. Overall, Moore was a sought-after accompanist as a guitarist . He often played with Clarence Ashley (guitar / banjo) and Clarence Greene ( fiddle ); both musicians were later part of his string band Byrd Moore and the Hot Shots.

Bed Bugs Makin 'Their Last Go Round & Salty Dog , 1928

On June 22, 1928, Moore made his first recordings in Richmond , Indiana , with an unknown banjo player for Gennett Records . How Moore got hold of Gennett is unclear. Bully of the Town, Careless Lover, Harvey Logan and All Night Long were recorded at this session . A second session in the fall of the year brought the two pieces Snack 'Em Back Blues and Back Water Blues for Gennett.

In April 1929 he made recordings with his friend Melvin Robinette. At the same time he was performing with the duo Burnett and Rutherford in the Monticello , Kentucky area. Overall, Moore made numerous recordings as an accompanist for Clarence Greene, Earl Johnson or Jess Johnston between 1928 and 1932 and held a session with the Hot Shots for Columbia Records in the fall of 1929.

Moore made his last recordings in August 1932 with his Hot Shots, which now consisted of other musicians. Of the four recorded songs, only two (Spring Roses / O Take Me Back) were released on Champion Records . In the early 1930s he lived in Esserville , Virginia with his wife, a black market trader. In the 1940s, Moore's alcohol consumption increased sharply - he probably also had diabetes . His health deteriorated rapidly and he finally gave up music in 1942. He spent his final years in the Wise County Poorhouse, a poor house where he reportedly died after 1949.

Discography

Recordings at Gennett were subsequently released under pseudonyms on Conqueror Records , Challenge Records , Champion Records and Superior Records .

year	title	#	Remarks
Gennett Records
1928	Hobo's Paradise / Harvey Logan	6549
	Mama Toot Your Whistle / Bed Bugs Makin 'Their Last Go Round	6586
	All Night Long / Back Water Blues	6686
	The Bully of the Town / Snatch 'Em Back Blues	6763
	Birmingham Jail / When the Snowflakes Fall Again	6841	as Robinette and Moore
	Flop Eared Mule / Last Days in Georgia	6884	as Robinette and Moore
	Favorite Two Step / That Old Tiger Rag	6957	as Robinette and Moore
	Mama Don't Allow No Hangin 'Around / Careless Lover	6991	as Robinette and Moore
1929	Good Bye Sweetheart / Down on the Farm	7068	B-side by Asa Martin & Fiddlin 'Doc Roberts ; as Robinette and Moore
Columbia Records
	Careless Lover / Three Men Went a-Huntin '	15496-D	as Byrd Moore and his Hot Shots
	Frankie Silvers / The Hills of Tennessee	15536-D	as Byrd Moore and his Hot Shots
Champion Records
	Pig Angle / Cincinnati Rag	16357	as Moore and Greene
	Killin 'Blues / My Trouble Blues	16469	with Jess Johnston
	Spring Roses / O Take Me Back	16498
Superior Records
	Jake Leg Blues / Got the Guitar Blues	2559	as Bert Moss
Unpublished titles
1928	How I Got My Wife Way Down in Florida on a Bum On the Banks of the Old Tennessee	Gennett
1930	Lay Down Baby Blues Pride of the Ball In the Hills of Old Tennessee West Virginia Sally Ann Eagle Rock The Lonesome Valley Frankie Silver's Confession Boatman's Dance The Up North Blues	Gennett
1930	Lovin 'blues Root Hog or Die It Might Have Been Worse	Gennett
1932	Take a Circle Around the Moon When I Walk Into Your Parlor	Gennett

literature

• Kip Lornell: Virginia's Blues, Country and Gospel Records, 1902–1942. University Press of Kentucky, 1989, ISBN 0-8131-1658-9 , pp. 115-119.

Web links

• Photo: Byrd Moore and his Hot Shots (Moore, Greene, Ashley)
• Byrd Moore on Hillbilly-Music.com (English)