THE SHOW MUST GO ON,
MOORE OR LESS

She’s a singer, certainly a star, and a survivor. Melba Moore has had a decades-long career that includes musical theatre, film, TV, and recordings covering such genres as R&B, dance music, and pop, and disco. Her stage work began with a role in the legendary rock musical Hair, and that’s where her cabaret concert at 54 Below began, too: with songs from, and anecdotes about, that production. And, of course, the program titled From Broadway, with Love – that looked back on her history – had to spend some time featuring music and memories related to her Tony Award-winning role in Purlie, including the title song and the joyful “I Got Love.” And she definitely got love from the audience in the forms of earned admiration, support, and patience that helped her soldier on when lyrics and focus went astray on this second of her two consecutive nights (July 10) at the venue.

There’d been some rambling and repetition in the patter, but in the latter part of the set, signs of physical and emotional distress became evident. As the crowd nervously but sympathetically held its collective breath, the singer struggled for hers, stopping mid-song and saying she wasn’t well. (Her posting on social media later on explained that she’d been having symptoms related to the day’s punishing heat; reviews of the previous evening’s performance did not mention any big troubles.) The old adage “The show must go on” frankly seemed like questionable advice. To give the shaky entertainer time and comfort, another veteran performer who was in attendance jumped up on stage and, with his arm around her, sweetly crooned a soothing “Summertime” (from Porgy and Bess). It was Ben Vereen. And Melba Moore, seemingly the intrepid trouper, vowed to finish the set. Alas, she lost her place and lost and/or kept repeating some lyrics in the final songs, but didn’t lose the audience’s affection and connection.

Earlier, she spoke at length of her early career’s stepping stones and steps into the disco world with “You Stepped Into My Life” (on the night’s set list) and other hits,  triumphs and troubles, setbacks and bouncing back, being romanced and being ripped off financially. Along the way, there were tales of her perseverance and getting roles in Timbuktu! (the revamped version of Kismet) and Les Misérables, the latter sampled via the emotional “I Dreamed a Dream.” For many fans, it may be that  Melba Moore’s many recordings hold many memories they were eager to have triggered from the diva’s discography featuring disco/dance music. Pre-recorded tracks provided some of the accompaniment for the selections from those successes, to provide more of a facsimile of the records than what a trio of musicians could reasonably replicate. Otherwise, that threesome  —musical director/pianist Darnell White, bassist Jordyn Dais,  drummer Gregory Bufford – were more than up to the task of sounding full and formidable and fine.

As far as Melba Moore’s voice as heard on recordings and live performances over the years, fabulous feats featured in her work have been her startlingly stratospheric high notes and super-long and super-strong sustained notes. A realistic person doesn’t expect these notable, attention-grabbing skills to remain the same forever for any performer and while Miss Moore (who will mark her 80th birthday this autumn!) is plucky as she plucks some “whistle-tone” types of sounds from the air and treats fans to some of the old tricks and tics and trademarks, when she swings into singing in her higher register, the timbre is now lighter and more delicate in those sections. Arguably, selectively revising some selections’ architectures and arrangements might be an option worth considering. However, some nostalgia-fueled listeners probably prefer precious recollections and thus want whatever possible approximations will fulfill expectations. Clearly, the remarkable Melba Moore has made her mark and is determined to join them in traveling down Memory Lane, given that the current show – wherein she gives in to that desire –  is all about that journey.