Brew Moore
b. Milton Aubrey Moore, 26 March 1924, Indianola, Mississippi, USA, d. 19 August 1973. After learning to play a range of instruments, Moore concentrated on tenor saxophone and in his teens sought work in various parts of the USA. A melodic player with a liquid ballad style, Moore's roots were in the style of the early Lester Young, and the advent of bebop restricted his progress. Nevertheless, he made many records in the '50s, then in 1961 became resident in Europe where, apart from a three-year return to the USA (1967-70), he remained for the rest of his life. Although his decision to stay away from America for so many years, allied to his refusal to move with the times, kept him out of the spotlight, it is now generally acknowledged that the quality of Moore's ballad playing was of the very highest order. His early death from a fall, attributed to his dependence upon alcohol, silenced a player whose talent, if not his career, was comparable to that of near-contemporaries such as Stan Getz and Zoot Sims.