Barbara Moore (composer)

Barbara Moore (7 March 1932 – 26 August 2021) was an English composer, arranger and vocalist for film, television and commercials. She was a member of the musical trios the Ladybirds and the Breakaways and a backing vocalist for Dusty Springfield. She coordinated the vocals on the New Seekers' single "I'd Like To Teach The World To Sing" and was the voice behind the 1960s TV adventure series The Saint. She also rearranged "At the Sign of the Swingin' Cymbal", an instrumental composition that served as the theme tune for Alan Freeman's Pick of the Pops.[1]

Barbara Moore
Background information
Born7 March 1932
Bradford, West Yorkshire
OriginLondon
Died26 August 2021 (aged 89)
Hotham Park House, Bognor Regis
Genres
Occupation(s)
  • Composer
  • arranger
  • vocalist
Years active1959–2001

Early life and education

Moore was born in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England, on 7 March 1932. She was the only child of musician parents, Arthur Birkby and Clare Birkby, who later separated. She was raised in London and attended St Paul's Girls' School to study jazz piano.[2]

Career

1950s

Her parents' divorce impeded Moore's ambitions to attend Oxford University. Instead, she travelled to India, at the age of 19, and began performing as a pianist at the Taj Mahal Hotel. However, she could not acclimatise herself to the conditions there and returned to England where she joined Dudley Moore's trio in the late 1950s.[2][3]

1960s

Moore was hired to sing the vocal opening to a new ITV adventure series, The Saint, in the early 1960s. In the mid-1960s, she joined the vocal trio the Ladybirds and provided vocal backup for artists, including Jimi Hendrix, on Top of the Pops. She performed on the radio show Evergreen in 1964 and episodes of the TV series Not Only... But Also (1965), starring Peter Cook and Dudley Moore.

Moore's solo album, A Little Moore Barbara, was released in 1966. In the meantime, she was also featured on Dusty Springfield's TV show. In 1967, she reunited with Dudley Moore and collaborated on his comic film Bedazzled. It was the first of many film assignments in her career. In 1968, she was asked by EMI to manage sessions for vocalist Deena Webster and create an album in six days. This was her first significant excursion into arranging. She performed well and was applauded by the senior musicians at the recording session.[4][2][3]

1970s

In 1970, Moore went on to arrange the backing chorus for Elton John's "Border Song". She also founded her own group, the Barbara Moore Singers, performing alongside Glen Campbell (1970), Bobbie Gentry (1970-71) and Mike Yarwood (1972) on BBC television programmes, as well as on the soundtrack of the film The Ruling Class (1971).

The BBC, in April 1970, asked her to update Brian Fahey's "At the Sign of the Swingin' Cymbal" for Alan Freema's Pick of the Pops show.[1] She also arranged the vocals for "I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing", a Coca-Cola commercial song from 1971 that became a hit for the New Seekers in a modified version. After she had composed the theme for Terry Wogan's BBC Radio show, she gained a job at de Wolfe, the library music company. She vocalised on recordings, including the Roger Webb Sound's Vocal Patterns and Moonshade albums, and scored music for commercials across Europe.

In 1972, Moore released her album Vocal Shades and Tones. One of its tracks, "Steam Heat", was later included in an episode of TV drama The Sweeney (1975) for a strip club scene.[2][4][3]

1980s

Her last album, Bright & Shining, was released in 1981 by the Sylvester Music Company.[5]

Personal life

Moore married the arranger Pete Moore in 1954. She had met him in Dubai while on a concert pianist job. The couple had a daughter, but they split up shortly after. Moore raised her daughter, Lindsey, as a single parent. Lindsey died in 2006, leaving Moore with a granddaughter, Clare.[4][6][2]

After her divorce, she was in a relationship with the jazz trombonist Chris Pyne.[2]

Death

Moore, after a prolonged illness, died on 26 August 2021, at the age of 89. She spent her last days at Hotham Park House, Bognor Regis.[2][6]

Albums
Title Album details
A Little Moore Barbara
  • Released: 1967
  • Label: CBS
Vocal Shades And Tones
Bright & Shining
  • Released: 1981
  • Label: Sylvester Music Company
Sing Sweet ♡ Barbara Collection 1966-1990
  • Released: 2001
  • Label: EM Records
The World Of Barbara Moore - Collection 1966-1981
  • Released: 2001
  • Label: EM Records

References
  1. BBC Radio, Pick of the Pops
  2. "Barbara Moore, singer and composer behind the Pick of the Pops theme tune and a host of memorable moments on television – obituary". The Telegraph. 27 September 2021.
  3. "An appreciation of the late Barbara Moore". We Are Cult. Retrieved 26 April 2022.
  4. Angliss, Sarah (September 16, 2021). "Jimi, Elton, Dusty … the overlooked musical magic of Barbara Moore". The Guardian.
  5. "Barbara Moore". Record Collector Magazine. Retrieved 26 April 2022.
  6. Gormley, Connor (16 September 2021). "Tributes paid to influential composer who lived in Hotham Park house". Sussex Express.
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