Johnny Moore (singer)

John Alfred Moore (born December 15, 1934 in Selma (Alabama) , † December 30, 1998 in London ) was an American rhythm and blues singer and songwriter who was best known as a member of the band The Drifters .

Life

Moore grew up in Chicago , where he gained experience as a gospel singer at an early age . In 1953 he was a founding member of the Hornets , with whom he only recorded one single. In 1955 he was in Cleveland as a listener at a performance by the Drifters. After the concert, Moore came up to the band and asked if they could audition. The band had problems with their current lead singer David Baughn at the time, so they just took Moore backstage and let them sing. The very next day he got a call that he was now a permanent member of the band. With Moore as lead singer, the Drifters had hits like Aldorable , I Gotta Get Myself a Woman , Fools Fall in Love and Ruby Baby .

But as early as 1957 Moore had to join the military and was stationed in Germany . In 1959 he had finished his service and began making solo recordings for Melic and Sue Records , but there were no hits. The following year he joined the Drapers, who also had little commercial success.

In March 1963 Moore then became a member of the "new" Drifters and shared the lead vocals with Rudy Lewis . When Lewis died suddenly and unexpectedly on May 20, 1964, Moore was the band's sole lead singer again. The next day Under the Boardwalk was recorded and then released; it was to be the last top 10 hit in the US for the band, which hit the US pop charts with a single for the last time in 1967 .

In the 1960s, the Drifters performed regularly. Then in the 1970s there were a number of different bands called Drifters. Moore's band then moved to England , where re-releases of the Drifters classic At the Club and Come on Over to My Place both hit the top 10 on the pop charts . With Tony Macaulay as producer, Roger Cook and Roger Greenaway as songwriter and Moore as lead singer, there were Kissin 'in the Back Row of the Movies , There Goes My First Love , You're More Than a Number in My Little Red Book and three other songs in the top 10 of the UK pop charts.

In 1978 Moore left the Drifters and later led various revival bands, but returned to the band. On December 30, 1998, he died of respiratory failure in London .

Web links

• John Moore at Discogs (English)