Melba Moore

Beatrice Melba Hill (born October 29, 1945), known by her stage name, Melba Moore is an American singer, actress, voice actress, and entertainer. Moore is the daughter of saxophonist Teddy Hill and R&B singer Bonnie Davis.
==Early life==
Moore was born Beatrice Melba Hill on October 29, 1945, in New York City, New York, to Gertrude Melba Smith (known professionally as Bonnie Davis) and Teddy Hill, and raised in Harlem, New York, until she was 9 and her divorced mother remarried jazz pianist Clement Leroy Moorman. She attended Newark Arts High School in Newark, New Jersey, Graduating in 1958.
Her mother, Bonnie Davis, had a No. 1 R&B hit with "Don't Stop Now", prior to Melba's birth. Although her biological father was Big Band leader and saxophonist Teddy Hill, it was her stepfather Moorman (who played on "Don't Stop Now") who became a prime influence and encouragement in Moore's musical pursuits, insisting that she learn to play the piano. When she graduated from college she worked as a music teacher, but she soon decided to pursue the spotlight.
==Early career==
Moore began her recording career in 1967, cutting the track "Magic Touch" which was left unreleased until 1986. It has become an enormous track on the Northern Soul Scene, eventually leading to Moore performing it live in 2009 at the Baltic Soul Weekender 3 in Germany north of Hamburg.
She began her performing career in 1967 as Dionne in the original cast of the musical Hair along with Ronnie Dyson and Diane Keaton.
Moore replaced Keaton in the role of Sheila. In 1970, she won a Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Musical for her portrayal of Lutiebelle in Purlie. She would not return to Broadway until 1978 when she appeared (as Marsinah) with Eartha Kitt in Timbuktu! but left the show after a few weeks and was replaced by Vanessa Shaw.
Following the success of Purlie, Moore landed two big-screen film roles, released two successful albums, 1970's I Got Love and Look What You're Doing to the Man, and co-starred with actor Clifton Davis in the then-couple's own successful variety television series in 1972. Both Moore and Davis revealed that the show was canceled after its brief run when their relationship ended. When Moore's managers and accountants left her in 1973, she returned to Newark and began singing in benefit concerts. Her career picked up after she met record manager and business promoter Charles Huggins after a performance at the Apollo Theater in 1974. They married in 1975.
==Music career==
In 1975 Moore signed with Buddah Records and released the critically successful R&B album, Peach Melba, which included the minor hit, "I Am His Lady". The following year she scored her first significant hit with the Van McCoy-penned "This Is It", which reached the Billboard Hot 100, the top-20 position on the R&B chart, and top-10 in the UK, becoming her biggest success in that country. 'This is It' also became the number 1 disco track in the UK for that year. It would be 18 years later that Australian singer Dannii Minogue will cover this song and make it to number 10 on the ARIA charts.
In 1976 she scored her third Grammy nomination with the R&B ballad "Lean on Me", which had been recorded originally by Vivian Reed and later by Moore's idol Aretha Franklin who recorded the song as a B-side to her 1971 hit "Spanish Harlem". The song is most notable for Moore's extended long note at the end. In 1983 she re-recorded the song as a tribute to McCoy, who had died four years earlier. Throughout the rest of the 1970s, Moore struggled to match the success of "This Is It" with minor R&B/dance hits. However, her hit 'Pick me up I'll dance' released in May 1979 produced by McFadden & Whitehead and released on Epic Records did have considerable UK disco success, reaching UK chart position 48, along with a further hit that same year, also produced by McFadden & Whitehead with a cover version of the Bee Gees' hit "You Stepped Into My Life", which reached the top 20 on the R&B charts and 47 on the Billboard Hot 100.
In 1981 Moore signed with Capitol Records and reached the top 5 on the R&B charts with the dance-pop/funk single "Love's Comin' At Ya", which also hit the top 20 in the UK (on EMI America EA 146) and became a sizable hit in some European countries for its post-disco sound and followed by "Mind Up Tonight", which was another top 40 hit in the UK reaching position number 22. A string of R&B hits followed, including 1983's "Keepin' My Lover Satisfied" and "Love Me Right", 1984's "Livin' For Your Love", 1985's "Read My Lips"—which later won Moore a fourth Grammy nomination for Best Female Rock Vocal Performance, making her just the third black artist after Donna Summer and Michael Jackson to be nominated in the rock category—and 1985's "When You Love Me Like This".
In 1986, she scored two number 1 R&B hits, including the duet "A Little Bit More" with Freddie Jackson and "Falling". She scored other popular R&B hits including "Love the One I'm With (A Lot of Love)" and "It's Been So Long". In 1986, Moore also headlined the CBS television sitcom Melba; its debut aired the same night as the Challenger explosion and the show was abruptly cancelled, though five episodes aired that summer. Her success began to wane as the decade closed, although she managed two further Top 10 R&B hits, "Do You Really (Want My Love)" and "Lift Every Voice and Sing". Moore had a starring role in the 1990 horror film Def by Temptation.
==Current work==
Moore returned to Broadway in 1995 landing a part in Les Misérables. A year later, she started her long-running one-woman show, Sweet Songs of the Soul, later renamed I'm Still Standing. In 2003, Moore was featured in the film, The Fighting Temptations, which starred Cuba Gooding, Jr. and Beyoncé Knowles. In 2007, she landed a role in the Broadway revival of Ain't Misbehavin'. In 2009 independent label Breaking Records released the EP Book of Dreams, in which Moore was featured. That same year Moore told her life story on TV-One's Unsung and later that year released her first R&B album in nearly 20 years, a duet with Phil Perry called The Gift of Love. Her song called "Love Is" debuted on the R&B charts in 2011 at #87.
==Personal life==
Moore, a born-again Christian, engaged in a four-year relationship with television star Clifton Davis. Davis later admitted that the relationship didn't work due to his drug abuse and mistreatment of Moore.
In 1975 Moore married Charles Huggins and the two formed Hush Productions. After 15 years of marriage, in 1991, Huggins abruptly divorced Moore leaving the singer in financial ruins. In 1999, Huggins filed suit against Moore claiming that she had defamed him in the public as she stated that he abused her economically.
==Awards==
In addition to her Tony Award, her music career brought additional accolades. She was nominated for a Grammy Award in 1971 for 'Best New Artist'. Her 1975 second album, Peach Melba, saw her get a Grammy nomination. In 1976, she earned another Grammy nomination for Best Rhythm & Blues Vocal Performance - Female for the song "Lean on Me",.
Moore was also nominated for Best Female Rock Vocal in 1986 for "Read My Lips". Moore is also the 2012 Recipient of the Atlanta Black Theatre Festival Theatre Legend Award. Moore was inducted into the Official Rhythm & Blues Music Hall of Fame on October 4, 2015, in Detroit.
Moore received the prestigious 2015 Sandy Hosey Lifetime Achievement Award during the Artists Music Guild's 2015 AMG Heritage Awards broadcast held on November 14, 2015, in North Carolina.
Ms. Moore stars in the Westcoast Black Theatre Troupe's production of "Lady Day at Emerson's Bar and Grill" to great acclaim in the sold-out run. =Stage work==
* Hair (1967)
* Purlie (1970)
* Timbuktu! (1978)
* Inacent Black (1981) 
* Broadway at the Bowl (1988)
* From the Mississippi Delta (1993, est)
* Les Misérables (1995) 
* Brooklyn (2006)
* Straight 2the Head (2013)
* Great God A'Mighty (2013)
==Filmography==
* Cotton Comes to Harlem (1970) – Singer at the Apollo Theater (uncredited)
* The Sidelong Glances of a Pigeon Kicker (1970) – Model at Party
* All Dogs Go to Heaven (1989) – Whippet Angel (voice)
* The Fighting Temptations (2003) – Bessie Cooley
==Discography==
===Albums===
Year 	Album 	Chart positions 	Chart positions 	Certifications
Year 	Album 	US 	US R&B 	Certifications
1970 	I Got Love
* Released: June 9, 1970
* Label: Mercury 	— 	— 	
1971 	Look What You're Doing to the Man
* Released: January 29, 1971
* Label: Mercury	157 	43 	
1972 	Melba Moore Live!
* Released: July 21, 1972
* Label: Mercury	— 	— 	
1975 	Peach Melba
* Released: June 10, 1975
* Label: Buddah	176 	49 	
1976 	This Is It
* Released: April 13, 1976
* Label: Buddah	145 	32 	
1976 	Melba '76
* Released: December 2, 1976
* Label: Buddah	177 	30 	
1977 	A Portrait of Melba
* Released: November 6, 1977
* Label: Buddah	— 	— 	
1978 	Melba '78
* Released: September 29, 1978
* Label: Epic	114 	35 	
1979 	Burn
* Released: September 21, 1979
* Label: Epic 	— 	71 	
1980 	Closer
* Released: July 20, 1980
* Label: Epic 	— 	— 	
1981 	What a Woman Needs
* Released: October 12, 1981
* Label: EMI America	201 	46 	
1982 	The Other Side of the Rainbow
* Released: October 10, 1982
* Label: Capitol	152 	18 	
1983 	Never Say Never
* Released: November 14, 1983
* Label: Capitol	147 	9 	
1985 	Read My Lips
* Released: March 22, 1985
* Label: Capitol	130 	30 	
1986 	A Lot of Love
* Released: July 18, 1986
* Label: Capitol	91 	7 	
1988 	I'm in Love
* Released: June 1, 1988
* Label: Capitol	— 	45 	
1990 	Soul Exposed
* Released: March 26, 1990
* Label: Orpheus / Capitol	— 	52 	
1999 	Solitary Journey
* Released: February 23, 1999
* Label: Encore Music Group	— 	— 	
2001 	A Very Special Christmas Gift
* Released: October 23, 2001
* Label: Believe Music Works / Lightyear	— 	— 	
2002 	A Night in St. Lucia
* Released: June 25, 2002
* Label: Image	— 	— 	
2003 	I'm Still Here
* Released: February 25, 2003
* Label: Shout Glory	— 	— 	
2004 	Nobody But Jesus
* Released: August 31, 2004
* Label: Believe Music Works / Lightyear	— 	— 	
2009 	The Gift Of Love (with Phil Perry)
* Released: September 29, 2009
* Label: Shanachie	— 	— 	
2016 	Forever Moore
* Released: April 10, 2016
* Label: Muzikk Matrixx	— 	— 	
"—" denotes release did not chart or was not released	"—" denotes release did not chart or was not released	"—" denotes release did not chart or was not released	"—" denotes release did not chart or was not released	"—" denotes release did not chart or was not released
===Compilation===
Year 	Album 	Chart positions 	Chart positions 	Certifications
Year 	Album 	US 	US R&B 	Certifications
1979 	Dancin' With Melba
* Released: 1979
* Label: Buddah 	— 	— 	
1995 	This Is It: The Best of Melba Moore
* Released: March 21, 1995
* Label: CEMA / Razor & Tie	— 	— 	
1997 	The Magic of Melba Moore (A Little Bit Moore)
* Released: January 28, 1997
* Label: EMI	— 	— 	
"—" denotes release did not chart or was not released	"—" denotes release did not chart or was not released	"—" denotes release did not chart or was not released	"—" denotes release did not chart or was not released	"—" denotes release did not chart or was not released
===Singles===
Year 	Single (A-side, B-side)Both sides from same album except where indicated 	Chart positions 	Chart positions 	Chart positions 	Chart positions 	Album
Year 	Single (A-side, B-side)Both sides from same album except where indicated 	US 	US R&B 	US Dance 	UK 	Album
1966 	"Don't Cry Sing Along with the Music"b/w "Does Love Believe in Me" 	— 	— 	— 	— 	Non-album tracks
1969 	"I Messed Up a Good Thing"b/w "I'll Do It All Over Again" (Non-album track) 	— 	— 	— 	— 	Living to Give
1969 	"We're Living to Give (To Give to Each Other)"b/w "The Flesh Failures (Let the Sun Shine In)" 	— 	— 	— 	— 	Living to Give
1970 	"Black Enough"b/w "My Salvation" 	— 	— 	— 	— 	Cotton Comes to Harlem various artists soundtrack
1970 	"Time and Love"b/w "Facade" 	— 	— 	— 	— 	Living to Give
1970 	"I Got Love"b/w "I Love Making Love to You" (from Living to Give) 	111 	— 	— 	— 	I Got Love
1970 	"We're Living to Give (To Give to Each Other)"b/w "Purlie" (from I Got Love) 	— 	— 	— 	— 	Living to Give
1970 	"Look What You're Doing to the Man"b/w "Patience Is Rewarded" 	— 	— 	— 	— 	Look What You're Doing to the Man
1971 	"Loving You Comes So Easy"b/w "If I Had a Million" 	— 	— 	— 	— 	Look What You're Doing to the Man
1971 	"Take Up a Course in Happiness"b/w "He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother" (from Look What You're Doing to the Man) 	— 	— 	— 	— 	Non-album tracks
1972 	"I Ain't Got to Love Nobody Else"b/w "Love Letters" 	— 	— 	— 	— 	Non-album tracks
1975 	"I Am His Lady"b/w "If I Lose" 	— 	82 	— 	— 	Peach Melba
1975 	"Must Be Dues"b/w "Natural Part of Everything" 	— 	— 	— 	— 	Peach Melba
1976 	"This Is It"b/w "Stay Awhile" 	91 	18 	2 	9 	This Is It
1976 	"Lean on Me"b/w "One Less Morning" 	— 	17 	— 	— 	This Is It
1976 	"Free" 	— 	— 	14 	— 	Dancin' with Melba
1976 	"Make Me Believe in You" 	— 	— 	6 	— 	Dancin' with Melba
1976 	"Play Boy Scout" 	— 	— 	14 	— 	Dancin' with Melba
1977 	"Good Love Makes Everything Alright" 	— 	— 	36 	— 	Melba (Buddah)
1977 	"The Long and Winding Road"b/w "Ain't No Love Lost" 	— 	94 	— 	— 	Melba (Buddah)
1977 	"The Way You Make Me Feel"b/w "So Many Mountains" 	108 	62 	— 	— 	Melba (Buddah)
1977 	"The Greatest Feeling"b/w "The Long and Winding Road"UK release only 	— 	— 	— 	— 	Melba (Buddah)
1978 	"Standing Right Here"b/w "Living Free" 	— 	69 	53 	— 	A Portrait of Melba
1978 	"I Don't Know No One Else to Turn To"b/w "Just Another Link" 	— 	— 	— 	— 	A Portrait of Melba
1978 	"You Stepped Into My Life"b/w "There's No Other Like You" 	47 	17 	5 	— 	Melba (Epic)
1979 	"Pick Me Up, I'll Dance"b/w "Where Did You Ever Go" 	103 	85 	22 	48 	Melba (Epic)
1979 	"Miss Thing"b/w "Need Love" 	— 	90 	41 	— 	Burn
1979 	"Night People"b/w "Hot and Tasty" 	— 	— 	— 	— 	Burn
1980 	"Everything So Good About You"b/w "Next to You" 	— 	47 	— 	— 	Closer
1981 	"Take My Love" b/w "Just You, Just Me" (Non-album track) 	— 	15 	12 	— 	What A Woman Needs
1981 	"Let's Stand Together" b/w "What a Woman Needs" 	— 	44 	12 	— 	What A Woman Needs
1982 	"Love's Comin' at Ya"b/w Instrumental version of A-side (Non-album track) 	104 	5 	2 	15 	The Other Side Of The Rainbow
1983 	"Mind Up Tonight"b/w Instrumental version of A-side (Non-album track) 	— 	25 	17 	22 	The Other Side Of The Rainbow
1983 	"Underlove"b/w "Underlove"(M&M mix, non-album track) 	— 	35 	42 	60 	The Other Side Of The Rainbow
1983 	"Keepin' My Lover Satisfied"b/w Instrumental version of A-side (Non-album track) 	— 	14 	57 	— 	Never Say Never
1984 	"Livin' for Your Love"b/w "Got to Have Your Love" (Instrumental version, non-album track) 	108 	6 	— 	— 	Never Say Never
1984 	"Love Me Right"b/w "Never Say Never" 	— 	15 	— 	— 	Never Say Never
1985 	"I Can't Believe (It's Over)"b/w "King of My Heart" 	— 	29 	— 	— 	Read My Lips
1985 	"Read My Lips"b/w "Got to Have Your Love" (from Never Say Never) 	104 	12 	— 	— 	Read My Lips
1985 	"When You Love Me Like This"b/w "Winner" (Editied instrumental, non-album track) 	106 	14 	— 	— 	Read My Lips
1986 	"Love the One I'm With (A Lot of Love)" (with Kashif)b/w "Don't Go Away" 	— 	5 	— 	— 	A Lot Of Love
1986 	"A Little Bit More" (with Freddie Jackson)b/w "When We Touch (It's Like Fire)" 	— 	1 	— 	96 	A Lot Of Love
1986 	"Falling"b/w "Got to Have Your Love" (from Never Say Never) 	— 	1 	— 	— 	A Lot Of Love
1987 	"I'm Not Gonna Let You Go"b/w "Dreams" 	— 	26 	— 	— 	A Lot Of Love
1987 	"It's Been So Long"b/w "Don't Go Away" 	— 	6 	— 	— 	A Lot Of Love
1988 	"I Can't Complain" (with Freddie Jackson)b/w "There I Go Falling In Love Again" (from A Lot of Love) 	— 	12 	— 	— 	I'm In Love
1988 	"I'm in Love" (with Kashif)b/w "Stay" (from A Lot of Love) 	— 	13 	— 	— 	I'm In Love
1988 	"Love & Kisses"b/w "I'm in Love" (Summertime Shorts version, with Kashif—non-album track) 	— 	68 	— 	— 	I'm In Love
1990 	"Do You Really (Want My Love?)"12" single with four different mixesOnly the original version appears on the album	— 	10 	39 	93 	Soul Exposed
1990 	"Lift Ev'ry Voice and Sing"b/w Same song with narration by Rev. Jesse Jackson (Non-album track) 	— 	9 	— 	— 	Soul Exposed
1998 	"Everybody"CD single with five different mixes 	— 	— 	— 	— 	Solitary Journey (Featuring three of the five mixes)
2005 	"My Heart Belongs to You"12" single with three different mixes 	— 	— 	— 	— 	Non-album tracks
2011 	"Love Is" 	— 	87 	— 	— 	Non-album tracks
"—" denotes release did not chart or was not released	"—" denotes release did not chart or was not released 	"—" denotes release did not chart or was not released	"—" denotes release did not chart or was not released	"—" denotes release did not chart or was not released	"—" denotes release did not chart or was not released	"—" denotes release did not chart or was not released
* "Let's Stand Together" and "Take My Love" charted together on the US Billboard Dance chart, but charted separately elsewhere.
==See also==
*List of disco artists (L-R)
*List of post-disco artists and songs
*List of female movie actors by name: M
*Guests on Soul Train
*List of performers on Top of the Pops
*List of Broadway musicals stars
*List of artists who reached number one on the Billboard R&B chart
==References==
Category:African-American female singers
Category:African-American Christians
Category:American disco singers
Category:American gospel singers
Category:American soul singers
Category:Singers from New York City
Category:Musicians from Newark, New Jersey
Category:Drama Desk Award winners
Category:Theatre World Award winners
Category:Tony Award winners
Category:Mercury Records artists
Category:Epic Records artists
Category:Capitol Records artists
Category:1945 births
Category:Living people
Category:Actresses from New York City
Category:Actresses from Newark, New Jersey
Category:African-American actresses
Category:American actresses
Category:American film actresses
Category:American television actresses
Category:American voice actresses
Category:20th-century American actresses
Category:21st-century American actresses
Category:American musical theatre actresses
Category:American stage actresses
Category:21st-century women singers
Category:All Dogs Go to Heaven
Category:Don Bluth peopleCategory:Pages stolen off Wikipedia