March 30, 201312 yr Chalky you're a star! I'd heard Melba was coming to the UK, but hadn't looked into it. Thanks to you, this site, the beauty of smart phones & 7 mins later I'm £50 down !! 2 lovely tickets purchased :o) Cheers for the info Ali x
March 30, 201312 yr Author It's a pleasure Ali. I don't know who does the promotion for these acts but it ain't very good. Concerts like Melba are what I have come across surfing the web. I saw it the other day and made a note to share. If anyone knows of any artists give Mike or myself a shout and i'll post an article to spread the news a little more.
April 1, 201312 yr Does 'Northern' Soul come much better...... I'll be doing cart wheels (& back flips lol) if she performs this beauty, but I can't see it :o( (hope I'm wrong tho!)
April 5, 201312 yr Recently Melba has been doing gospel shows in the US (I believe she's also working on her biography at present). She's doing a gospel show just outside Albany (New York State) in a fortnights time ....
April 5, 201312 yr Today the legendary "Southport Weekender" that now takes place in Minehead (that I booked & paid for last year) announced the artist line-up, & yep, Melba Moore is one of the headline acts so guess I'll be seeing the lady twice in one week. Hope the Manchester gig makes me want to see lots moore of Miss Moore, I'm sure it will
April 28, 201312 yr Melba just played a big gospel show in New England .......... .... this is what a local newspaper had to say on her performance ........ Miss Melba Moore — four-time Grammy nominee and Tony Award winner came out in a beautiful diva gown of sparkling midnight blue. Singing “Precious Lord, take my hand,” she demonstrated an incredible vocal range and powerful presence that has not diminished with age. She played with extemporaneous vocalizations as she sang, like an artist doodling on the page, which made the audience gasp. With “Power in the Blood,” she danced across the stage, the Sunday-go-to-meeting dance. “I got a new hip and a new knee,” she said, “so I feel like shoutin’.” She then launched into “Lean On Me,” a song written by Van McCoy for Aretha Franklin (not the Bill Withers song). “I’ll take the crumbs from the Queen’s table any day,” she said. She seemed to have fun playing with her higher vocal register and received a standing ovation. For the encore, she returned to the stage with a spectacular deep blue curling ribbon long coat, closing with “Can’t Stop Praising His Name.” Schenectady Mayor Gary McCarthy presented her with a key to the city, and as she departed the stage, she took the mayor’s arm, which charmed the audience. Some good photos are included with the article (including a really fine one of Kenny Hamber who was also on the show) .... ............... http://www.nippertown.com/2013/04/24/live-gospel-jubilee-proctors-41913/
April 28, 201312 yr .............. A youtube clip of Melba's performance .......... (if you wanna see Kenny Hamber's 18 minute long slot you have to watch Part 2 of this 3 Part video of the recent show) ......
May 6, 201312 yr Does 'Northern' Soul come much better...... She sang it last night !!! I was in amongst a crowd of about 400, who were primarily 70's/80's soul lovers, and when she announced she was going to sing a demo that she'd done as a teenager in the 60's the room went quiet ......... apart from me (& maybe a couple of others) whoop whoo-ing !! She performed it tremendously, and had everyone eating out of her hands. Looking forward to seeing her again this Saturday at the Southport Weekender (now in Minehead) as I'm taking my Kent Album for her to sign (not that I'm starstruck or anything ) Ali
May 7, 201312 yr She sang it last night !!! I was in amongst a crowd of about 400, who were primarily 70's/80's soul lovers, and when she announced she was going to sing a demo that she'd done as a teenager in the 60's the room went quiet ......... apart from me (& maybe a couple of others) whoop whoo-ing !! She performed it tremendously, and had everyone eating out of her hands. Looking forward to seeing her again this Saturday at the Southport Weekender (now in Minehead) as I'm taking my Kent Album for her to sign (not that I'm starstruck or anything ) Ali Hi ali, Sadly she didn't do "The Magic Touch" at the Jazz Cafe, but she was pretty good and very energetic for her age, show just over an hour long about 14 songs....Did you get the Mel'isa Morgan warm up? - Fabulous! Got her to sign my copy of B.B.P too and when she saw it she did a double take and said "Oh my Gaaad!!!" I love moments like that :
May 7, 201312 yr She sang it last night !!! I was in amongst a crowd of about 400, who were primarily 70's/80's soul lovers, and when she announced she was going to sing a demo that she'd done as a teenager in the 60's the room went quiet ......... apart from me (& maybe a couple of others) whoop whoo-ing !! She performed it tremendously, and had everyone eating out of her hands. Looking forward to seeing her again this Saturday at the Southport Weekender (now in Minehead) as I'm taking my Kent Album for her to sign (not that I'm starstruck or anything ) AliBlimey Ali, I'm amazed. She wasn't particularly enamoured with it when I did an interview with her in Germany though she performed it there because it was the organisers all time favourite record. She must be softening in her old age. Send her my regards. Ady
May 7, 201312 yr Hi ali, Sadly she didn't do "The Magic Touch" at the Jazz Cafe, but she was pretty good and very energetic for her age, show just over an hour long about 14 songs....Did you get the Mel'isa Morgan warm up? - Fabulous! Got her to sign my copy of B.B.P too and when she saw it she did a double take and said "Oh my Gaaad!!!" I love moments like that : Hi Steve Mel'isa blew me away, gave me goosebumps, she was incredible, with such a powerful & beautiful voice, & I've got to admit, a hard act to follow (even if you are Melba Moore!) Half an hour of Mel'isa wasn't enough!! & it's not often you can say that about a warm up act! No wonder she was taken aback at B.B.P (just had to google it lol as I'm not that familiar with her stuff, but I will be now after Sunday ) Melba was on for about an hour with us as well, great performance for a lady of 67 (I know age shouldn't come in to it, but we all know things can change the more mature we get) She was superb value for money, as she hardly came up for air & gave it her all, The whole show was brilliant from the musicians to the backing singers, especially the guy, they all contributed to a fantastic night
May 7, 201312 yr Blimey Ali, I'm amazed. She wasn't particularly enamoured with it when I did an interview with her in Germany though she performed it there because it was the organisers all time favourite record. She must be softening in her old age. Send her my regards. Ady I was amazed too Ady, and she knew it word for word, not bad for something she recorded just short of fifty years ago (& something she can't have performed that often) For me, it was the best song of the night, but I suppose I am biased I did happen to film it, well about 30 seconds of it, but as I wanted to sing along with her (& not cry ) I had to stop filming, as I couldn't keep my hands still, or my gob shut I will give her your best regards, and I'm still pinching myself that I'm going to get an album signed that I bought when I was 17 (and was a major part of my life) by the lady singing the main song Thank you for bringing The Magic Touch into our lives See you in June Ali
July 12, 201312 yr Melba (along with La La Brooks of the Crystals) singing together on this clip from the 1969 version of Hair .......... ......... Melba & La La are dueting "What a Piece of Work Man Is" ....... check it out at 4 mins 25 secs for a close-up shot) .... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eGx7IBn7HCM
July 12, 201312 yr More vintage Melba .............. she had a TV show (with Clifton Davis) back in 1972 .......... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UZzKklSAQHo Clifton wrote songs for Motown and he also wrote 2 songs she cut for her 1971 Mercury album (the likes of Jimmy Wisner, Bert DeCoteaux & Tom Bell worked with her on that project).
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