Stories conflict about the Rhythm Night Club fire in Natchez, Mississippi that broke out on April 23, 1940, but there were definitely survivors. One of them was blues and gospel artist Arnold Dwight "Gatemouth" Moore (11/18/1913-5/19/2004). He'd joined Walter Barnes and his Royal Creolians for the night, probably filling in for a band regular (possibly as lead vocalist).
Barnes and his big band had formed in Detroit in 1924 during Prohibition days, and usually had about eleven players, with May Alex as torch singer. Barnes himself played tenor saxophone. The band had cut at least nine singles in Chicago in 1928 and 1929, and played hopping clubs like Chicago's Savoy Ballroom and Al Capone's Cotton Club in Cicero on the West Side.
On the fateful night in Natchez, Gatemouth somehow escaped with his body intact. His spirit, though, must have been shaken. He went on to record a number of singles, including the oft-covered "Did You Ever Love A Woman?," but in 1948, eight years after the Natchez fire, he had an on stage religious conversion experience at the Club DeLisa in Chicago. He soon became a preacher/minister/pastor and stopped singing the Devil's blues, at least for a while. In 1952, he sang gospel music in Detroit and toured around with a choir, making recordings along the way.
In the 1970s and sporadically until his death two years ago in Yazoo, Mississippi (at ninety), he dipped back into rhythm and blues.
There are probably any number of other survivor tales that would be fascinating to trace. When all else fails, there are imagined ones to write. People paid fifty cents to get in to the Rhythm Club that night; some say the last song was "Clarinet Lullaby," others say it was "Marie." Eight of the Royal Creolians died, along with Barnes. But Gatemouth Moore survived, converted and thrived. As John Lee Hooker sang it, "Must have been a plan -- a plan from above --'cause who knows?"Today's Rune: Joy.
Birthdays today include:
Ira Gershwin (1896- 1983) "Summertime"
Joyce Kilmer (1886-1918) "Trees"
Wintertime and the livin's hard. . . . . Adieu!
1 comment:
Sad tale. At least Gatemouth lived through that terrible night. And he lived to be ninety. That's great.
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