f rt f y * .. 'f v .'. i'..." Presenti ':Ric'hard B- Alleh* 1 (- ^* i. t .'^. FREDDIE MOORE ^ » f I 1 ' ^- -f; .!. * ^ f tl' '- t- 1. r 1 ....-!:£ ^eel I-Summary-Re typed banny Barker f I ''.I ('' * <'! I + s June 19, 1969 f, / t / .i ''. I * ^ * » v I "('.> ^ -rl^ -I r 1 4 I i The tape was recorded at 115 W» 141st Street in tTew Yofk t . / * 4a * I . .'.t City. Fred Moore is called by most of the people Freddie Moore» I ;( i .'} ^ .*. T Freddie was born in Washington, North Carolina which is sometimes .r f '^ 1. 1 ^ -t Ik called "Little Washington," Nortt-i Carolina; Freddie l/s birthday * I J. * ^ i -1 is August 20, approximately 1900; he is fifty-ei^ht years old new. ,-f ^'};' -^ ^ * "; f* . Freddie is the only one in his family who played or sang* Freddi6 ^ :.^ f '':. s. i.' * ;- '".; .» + *. >-. 1 f ; started off wifh mus 1c as a kid with the carnivals and minstrel T?^ Jf f * t. J » '4 * .'V' h *' I f- shows; he was a hamfat dancer, ie* a buck dancejc, DB "sort of a * ^ ^ ' n \-} .< t 1 ', '1. Not a teal skilljsd 1 jive dancer, buck and wing, cut the fool," r ^ ^ t -.1'. -,. Freddie t I, professional dancer, but what ever came into your mind* " -' 'i f ^ I r .S1 t I r 1 was a black-faced comedian* » ( .h + ^ * t .* I- J »^ The first music Freddie remembers hearing was some of Jelly 1^ .; :^ '"^ It- \ + r-»'" A \ I. J Roll Morton s number s» [Obviously DB and RBA doul^t -bliis] < Of I- t. ;i * ^ A*. F * I; *r + tt course, 'h6 had heard spirituals and there was a famous preacher, .I I I. 4 » i-: ./ revivalist, Mr. Bill Hig^ins, Freddie called him "Birothet t-owdoWh" r T'l f *. t s' because in church he would tell the brother and sisters What to do .. ,;^^ ^ .1 ..-: \'i ^ * -r ^ i' and then on the otitside he would do worse tlian what T-ie was telling 1 *' f .f r them not to do* Freddie called Mm a member o£ the "Bite-back d » Association." t h ^ ^ I. fr .f > .fl .*, Freddie didn't tiave.a music teacher, in fact, he only had ....T.:.k * -M ). * li t about four lessons in his life. He picked drums up himself* He » * <\ i I 1 ^ f d I* started when he was about eleven or twelve years 013: he used to ^1 * / "f t t .r t / ."^ / s take t^ie rounds out of the chairs and beat on laid cans» chairg; ^ h * ^ t * 1 < ^ ./ a .I f *-f anything he could get a sound out of< t f A- .s * r ,h ^ Danny Barker aske Freddie to relate the story of the time wh^h ^t,j ,'v^ ^ < * t » ^ 'fr if * » * »'f- ^ ^ * 4 he went to jail when he beat up "his school teaclier, aftef Sh6 had ^ If ~f 1 i ^ f^'i '»3 v f? ^ j t n ^ V1 h ~t..t I *t whippyd him. Freddie was about eleven years old, had left "h6me &h<3 a./-..fJE *1 v t. i '.'- ff'^1 f .. ^. t I * '.'t..? r" * v * .^ '.; *1 ^ T .I -;' -_ *\ f . ? - .^ *;^."* 7 F^ '^ . if t I t-\ n'i * ;». ^'^'i r ^ *~n r ',1 * < r, < 4^- I 1 .r (, hl* >. -^«, 1 "1 r y^ t FREDDIE MOORE t 2 Reel I-Summary-Retyped J » June 19, 1959 / was living in New Bern* North Carolina which is about seventy-five 1. miles from "Little Washington." In the story, wl-iile he was in J jail which was next door to where his mother was living^ lie 1'ieard his mother scrubbj-ng clothes on a washboard.to thp rhythm of the hymn she was singing; "Nearer, My God To Thee." [He sings a \ ll. few bars.] He stayed in Jail a day and a night. Freddie was t » expelled from school and besides the learning he got in the s t,wo years he was in school, he pic'ked up 1-iimself from being around I friends of his? He learned to read pretty nice, spell* but he didn't learn how to write very much* > ^ 1 Freddie had been playing around f^ve years -when he had his J. first music lesson* The first lesson was from B Prof. Booker ; a trumpet play6r» This was in New Bern, North Carolina, and he 1J *t continued them for about four months. Then Freddie Joined the * Ao G. Alien Minstrel ShoWo Freddie w&s too small to carry the drum so 1'ie was what you call ra "walking gent"i after the parade fhe f fellows would bring their coats and give them to Freddie to liarig T t up on coat hangers, in the Pullman car,in which they travelled. f * * .I When Freddie got to where 1-16 could do a little something on f f the drums, he used to go to the dance halls and pay -Lhe drummel" to r t' I t ^ let him sit in during the intermission? he would pay the driummer .t - '>' * ^ 25 cents, 50 cents> around ttet. The drummer's nam6 Was Jesse [Sp?] i' ^ Johnsono The band was composed of three players and didn't have a > namCo They had piano, drums, and saxophone, very corny* When \ \ Freddie thought he could play enough drums to get by, he joined / .( t * s the Ao Go Alien Minstrel Show as water boy and fco hang up the coa^s f .. ; -1 t L -J after the parade. He made $3 a week, room and board. He didn't t r. t , > * I- tell his mother anything about it;'he Just ran away f^-om hom6» T * :;.i 1 I 1 t h < - f * 1 fJ Ik * I 1 1 ;; * f 3 FREDDIE MOORE t Reel I-Summary-Retyped June 19, 1959 F K [Thte Manager .or owner-also connected with the Rabbitfoot Minstrels ?] » » [A. G. Alien 4 told him if he would study the drummer in parades and shows, and when he got big enough to play he would pay him $12 a week, room ^ and board. The show was on the road for about five months, but when the show got back to his home town his moEhfic was right there waiting for him. Freddie told her he was trying to mafc^ money for ^ 1 them and gave her twenty-five dollars which kind of softened "her r * heart. He told her he was learning how to play the drums and showed her Where he slept and that he had lots to eat. Freddie . ^ 1. only liad one suit, and Washed his own clothes. The next time he v went on the road he was gone a whole year* After that he quit tlie show? he was around thirteen years old then. ^ Freddie met "Jazz*' Currie [sp?] in 'his home town of Wasliington; North Carolina,, He was so young that he didn't know what he was getting into, but.he liked it so well and "Jazz" Currie [sp?] wHo played drums, baritone [horn or saxoplione ?] , tenor [horn or saxoph&he]» trumpet, tronibone, he was an all round musician, and a funny man» too* Said he would help him join his show when he got back to tcfwn in about six months. The show was called the Old Kentucky Minstr6ls. The Old Kentucky came back in about four months and Freddie joined ^ the show as comedian; had his li?ps white and fade black in the / part of an African with a big ring in his nose, big earrings, and a I wig, and he had a spear* "Jazz" Currie [sp?] showed Freddie hew to > dress which was just like him» in black-dyed long underwear, no / t. shoe s * "Jazz" Currie [sp?] also sliowed him Ticw to do tlie dance which was something like an Indian War Dance* He showed Freddie ho-w to r t. say several words in [pseudo ?] African. Freddie, and *'tTazz" Currie 1 t i 1 f T I ,'t FREDDIE MOORE 4 Reel I--Summary-Re typed ijune 19, 1959 [sp?] were the two end men in tl-ie show. They had about eight men with four on each side and a thin light-skinned fellow who didn't have any make-up on at all sat in the middle of them, and they called him Mr. Interlocutor, in other words he was the straight man* > * His name was Jimmy Spriggs, an all round man. Mr. Alien says that was Jimmy Palao's real name, Jimmy Spriggs, Mr* Alien also says Jimmy Palao was a violin and saxophone player from New Orleans, but that it was probably a different guy. Freddie Moore tells a minstrel joke. [Additional information on Jimmy Palao see Tom Albert Eteel 3] Freddie never played with Charlie Love, but he played wifh a * fellow named Charlie, a big heavy set, brown skin fellow, a trumpet player and a band leader. Mr. Alien says tt"a t that couldn't The f the same guy. [Possibly it was. RBA] Mr. Alien asks him if he knew John Porter who played baritone, trombone, several instruments^ Freddie doesh't say. Freddie knew Fox Temington [sp?] who was a violin playey around Shreveport, [La.] I Freddie says that most of the boys came from the South that / played these shows and some from Illinoisr they were older fellows* Most of the players were readers and they had band books [of written music no doubt]. The band was composed of about twelve pieces* The first music Freddie heard played by ear was Jenkiris Orphanage Band [Charleston, S.