Dorothy Moore
Encyclopedia
Dorothy Moore is an American
pop
, R&B, and soul
singer best known for her 1976 hit
song
, "Misty Blue
".
, she formed an all-female group called The Poppies with Petsye McCune and Rosemary Taylor. The group recorded
for Epic Records
' Date subsidiary, reaching number 56 on the Billboard Hot 100
chart
in 1966 with "Lullaby Of Love". Abortive solo
singles
for the Avco
, GSF and Chimneyville labels
followed
Her career took off with a series of ballad
s for Malaco Records
. "Misty Blue
" (number 1 R&B
, number 3 Pop
) and "Funny How Time Slips Away
" (the Willie Nelson
penned song, number 7 R&B, number 58 Pop) scored in 1976, while "I Believe You
" (number 5 R&B, number 27 Pop) charted the following year. Moore's recordings in the next few years were not nearly as successful as she succumbed increasingly to the disco
trend.
Moore left the music industry for several years, but in 1986 recorded a gospel set, Givin' It Straight To You, in Nashville
album cover photographed by Kenny Rogers, Tennessee
for the Rejoice
label. It yielded a cover
of Brother Joe May's "What Is This" that became a Top 10 gospel
hit. Moore returned to secular music
in 1988, recording two album
s for the Volt subsidiary of Fantasy Records
. In 1990 she returned to her original label, Malaco, for whom she recorded several albums during the ensuing decade and into the new millennium. The same year she toured the UK
, with Ben E. King
and Eddie Floyd
.
Her own label, Farish Street Records released her holiday album, Please Come Home for Christmas, in 2002.
Moore has four Grammy Award
nominations. Her version of "Misty Blue" appeared on the 2005 compilation album
, Classic Soul Ballads
. She has been inducted into the Mississippi Musicians Hall of Fame
, Lifetime Achievement Award Monterey Bay Blues Festival, Jus Blues Award, Mississippi Arts Commission Achievement Award, Mississippi Blues Trail Markers.
Moore's albums Please Come Home For Christmas, Gittin' Down Live, and I'm Doing Al were released on the label.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
pop
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
, R&B, and soul
Soul music
Soul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
singer best known for her 1976 hit
Hit record
A hit record is a sound recording, usually in the form of a single or album, that sells a large number of copies or otherwise becomes broadly popular or well-known, through airplay, club play, inclusion in a film or stage play soundtrack, causing it to have "hit" one of the popular chart listings...
song
Song
In music, a song is a composition for voice or voices, performed by singing.A song may be accompanied by musical instruments, or it may be unaccompanied, as in the case of a cappella songs...
, "Misty Blue
Misty Blue
"Misty Blue" is a song written by Bob Montgomery in 1966 which has become a hit in the pop, C&W and soul fields through various versions, the most successful being the 1976 pop/soul hit by Dorothy Moore.-C&W hit versions:...
".
Career
Born to Mary Moore and Melvin Hendrex Snr., aka Melvin Henderson of the Mississippi Blind Boys, Dorothy was raised by her great grandmother. She began singing with The New Strangers Home Baptist Church Choir at the age of five, and, eventually, she became a soloist. While attending Jackson State UniversityJackson State University
Jackson State University is a historically black university founded in 1877 in Natchez, MS by the American Baptist Home Mission Society of New York. The Society moved the school to Jackson in 1882, renaming it Jackson College, and developed its present campus in 1902. It became a state supported...
, she formed an all-female group called The Poppies with Petsye McCune and Rosemary Taylor. The group recorded
Sound recording and reproduction
Sound recording and reproduction is an electrical or mechanical inscription and re-creation of sound waves, such as spoken voice, singing, instrumental music, or sound effects. The two main classes of sound recording technology are analog recording and digital recording...
for Epic Records
Epic Records
Epic Records is an American record label, owned by Sony Music Entertainment. Though it was originally conceived as a jazz imprint, it has since expanded to represent various genres. L.A...
' Date subsidiary, reaching number 56 on the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
chart
Record chart
A record chart is a ranking of recorded music according to popularity during a given period of time. Examples of music charts are the Hit parade, Hot 100 or Top 40....
in 1966 with "Lullaby Of Love". Abortive solo
Solo (music)
In music, a solo is a piece or a section of a piece played or sung by a single performer...
singles
Single (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
for the Avco
Avco Records
Avco Records was a record label started in 1968 by Hugo Peretti, Luigi Creatore and Joseph E. Levine as Avco Embassy Records. In the late 1960s, they released a psychedelic rock album by the group Bead Game, titled Welcome. The Embassy name was dropped in 1971 making the label Avco Records...
, GSF and Chimneyville labels
Record label
In the music industry, a record label is a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. Most commonly, a record label is the company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the production, manufacture, distribution, marketing and promotion,...
followed
Her career took off with a series of ballad
Ballad
A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads were particularly characteristic of British and Irish popular poetry and song from the later medieval period until the 19th century and used extensively across Europe and later the Americas, Australia and North Africa. Many...
s for Malaco Records
Malaco Records
Malaco Records is an independent record label based in Jackson, Mississippi. Malaco is and has been the home of various major soul, blues and gospel acts, such as Johnnie Taylor, Bobby Bland, ZZ Hill, Denise LaSalle, Benny Latimore, Dorothy Moore, Little Milton, Shirley Brown, Marvin Sease, and the...
. "Misty Blue
Misty Blue
"Misty Blue" is a song written by Bob Montgomery in 1966 which has become a hit in the pop, C&W and soul fields through various versions, the most successful being the 1976 pop/soul hit by Dorothy Moore.-C&W hit versions:...
" (number 1 R&B
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, is a chart released weekly by Billboard in the United States.The chart, initiated in 1942, is used to track the success of popular music songs in urban, or primarily African American, venues. Dominated over the years at various times by jazz, rhythm and blues, doo-wop, soul,...
, number 3 Pop
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
) and "Funny How Time Slips Away
Funny How Time Slips Away
"Funny How Time Slips Away" is a song written by Willie Nelson and also performed by Willie Nelson. The song was included as a track on Willie Nelson's 1962, debut album, And Then I Wrote.-Cover versions:...
" (the Willie Nelson
Willie Nelson
Willie Hugh Nelson is an American country music singer-songwriter, as well as an author, poet, actor, and activist. The critical success of the album Shotgun Willie , combined with the critical and commercial success of Red Headed Stranger and Stardust , made Nelson one of the most recognized...
penned song, number 7 R&B, number 58 Pop) scored in 1976, while "I Believe You
I Believe You
"I Believe You" is a love ballad composed by Don and Dick Addrisi which was 1977 single for Dorothy Moore; taken from the Dorothy Moore album, "I Believe You" reached #5 R&B and crossed over to the Pop Top 30 at #27. The track also reached #20 UK....
" (number 5 R&B, number 27 Pop) charted the following year. Moore's recordings in the next few years were not nearly as successful as she succumbed increasingly to the disco
Disco
Disco is a genre of dance music. Disco acts charted high during the mid-1970s, and the genre's popularity peaked during the late 1970s. It had its roots in clubs that catered to African American, gay, psychedelic, and other communities in New York City and Philadelphia during the late 1960s and...
trend.
Moore left the music industry for several years, but in 1986 recorded a gospel set, Givin' It Straight To You, in Nashville
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
album cover photographed by Kenny Rogers, Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
for the Rejoice
Rejoice Records
Rejoice Records is a record label subsidiary of Word Records, started in the seventies....
label. It yielded a cover
Cover version
In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
of Brother Joe May's "What Is This" that became a Top 10 gospel
Hot Christian Songs
Christian Songs is a Billboard chart published weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States....
hit. Moore returned to secular music
Secular music
Secular music is non-religious music. "Secular" means being separate from religion.In the West, secular music developed in the Medieval period and was used in the Renaissance. Swaying authority from the Church that focused more on Common Law influenced all aspects of Medieval life, including music...
in 1988, recording two album
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
s for the Volt subsidiary of Fantasy Records
Fantasy Records
Fantasy Records is a United States-based record label that was founded by Max and Sol Weiss in 1949 in San Francisco, California. They had previously operated a record-pressing plant called Circle Record Company before forming the Fantasy label...
. In 1990 she returned to her original label, Malaco, for whom she recorded several albums during the ensuing decade and into the new millennium. The same year she toured the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, with Ben E. King
Ben E. King
Benjamin Earl King , better known as Ben E. King, is an American soul singer. He is perhaps best known as the singer and co-composer of "Stand by Me", a U.S...
and Eddie Floyd
Eddie Floyd
Eddie Lee Floyd is an American soul/R&B singer and songwriter, best known for his work on the Stax record label in the 1960s and 1970s and the song "Knock on Wood".-Biography:...
.
Her own label, Farish Street Records released her holiday album, Please Come Home for Christmas, in 2002.
Moore has four Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
nominations. Her version of "Misty Blue" appeared on the 2005 compilation album
Compilation album
A compilation album is an album featuring tracks from one or more performers, often culled from a variety of sources The tracks are usually collected according to a common characteristic, such as popularity, genre, source or subject matter...
, Classic Soul Ballads
Classic Soul Ballads
Classic Soul Ballads is a 16-volume soul CD-set, released by Time–Life Records in 2005, featuring 264 songs from the 1960s through the 1990s...
. She has been inducted into the Mississippi Musicians Hall of Fame
Mississippi Musicians Hall of Fame
Mississippi Musicians Hall of Fame located in Clinton, Mississippi, honors it's native sons who carried the state's celebrated music heritage. It's a "who's who" of the blues, rock and roll, and jazz from their beginnings to present day.-Blues:...
, Lifetime Achievement Award Monterey Bay Blues Festival, Jus Blues Award, Mississippi Arts Commission Achievement Award, Mississippi Blues Trail Markers.
Farish Street Records
Moore started the record label Farish Street Records in 2002. The label is named to honor the street and neighborhood where Dorothy was raised. Not far from her childhood home, Farish Street was the home to live and juke blues music that filled Dorothy's head and heart even in her early years.Moore's albums Please Come Home For Christmas, Gittin' Down Live, and I'm Doing Al were released on the label.
Albums
- 1966: Lullaby of Love (Epic)
- 1976: Misty Blue (Malaco) - U.S.Billboard 200The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
#29, R&BTop R&B/Hip-Hop AlbumsTop R&B/Hip-Hop Albums is a chart published by Billboard magazine that ranks R&B and hip hop albums based on sales compiled by Nielsen SoundScan. The name of the chart was changed from Top R&B Albums in 1999...
#10 - 1977: Dorothy Moore (Malaco) - US #120, R&B #26
- 1978: Once Moore with Feeling (MalacoMalaco RecordsMalaco Records is an independent record label based in Jackson, Mississippi. Malaco is and has been the home of various major soul, blues and gospel acts, such as Johnnie Taylor, Bobby Bland, ZZ Hill, Denise LaSalle, Benny Latimore, Dorothy Moore, Little Milton, Shirley Brown, Marvin Sease, and the...
) - 1979: Definitely Dorothy (Malaco)
- 1986: I'm Givin' It Straight To You (RejoiceRejoice RecordsRejoice Records is a record label subsidiary of Word Records, started in the seventies....
) - Gospel #23 - 1988: Time Out for Me (Volt)
- 1989: Winner (Volt)
- 1990: Feel the Love (Malaco) - R&B #49
- 1991: Talk to Me (Malaco)
- 1992: Stay Close to Home (Malaco)
- 1996: Misty Blue & Other Hits (Malaco)
- 1996: More of Moore (Malaco)
- 1998: Songs to Love By (601)
- 2002: Please Come Home For Christmas (Farish Street)
- 2005: I'm Doing Alright (Farish Street)
- 2005: Gittin' Down Live (Farish Street)
Singles
- 1974: "Don't Let Go" - single only
- 1976: "For Old Time Sake" - R&BHot R&B/Hip-Hop SongsHot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, is a chart released weekly by Billboard in the United States.The chart, initiated in 1942, is used to track the success of popular music songs in urban, or primarily African American, venues. Dominated over the years at various times by jazz, rhythm and blues, doo-wop, soul,...
#53 - 1976: "Funny How Time Slips AwayFunny How Time Slips Away"Funny How Time Slips Away" is a song written by Willie Nelson and also performed by Willie Nelson. The song was included as a track on Willie Nelson's 1962, debut album, And Then I Wrote.-Cover versions:...
" - U.S.Billboard Hot 100The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
#58, R&B #7, UK #38 - 1976: "Misty BlueMisty Blue"Misty Blue" is a song written by Bob Montgomery in 1966 which has become a hit in the pop, C&W and soul fields through various versions, the most successful being the 1976 pop/soul hit by Dorothy Moore.-C&W hit versions:...
" - US #3, R&B #2, UKUK Singles ChartThe UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...
#5 - 1977: "I Believe YouI Believe You"I Believe You" is a love ballad composed by Don and Dick Addrisi which was 1977 single for Dorothy Moore; taken from the Dorothy Moore album, "I Believe You" reached #5 R&B and crossed over to the Pop Top 30 at #27. The track also reached #20 UK....
" - US #27, R&B #5, UK #20 - 1977: "We Should Really Be In Love" - R&B #74
- 1978: "1-2-3 (You and Me)" - R&B #93
- 1978: "Let The Music Play" - R&B #50
- 1978: "Special Occasion" - R&B #30
- 1978: "With Pen In Hand" - R&B #12
- 1979: "(We Need More) Loving Time" - R&B #81
- 1980: "Talk To Me/Every Beat Of My Heart" - R&B #87
- 1991: "All Night Blue" - R&B #75
See also
- List of soul musicians
- List of disco artists
- List of people from Mississippi
- List of performers on Top of the Pops
External links
- [ Dorothy Moore on AMG]
- Dorothy Moore on Billboard
- Dorothy Moore on Soul Walking
- Farish Street Records