Monette Moore

Monette Moore was born on May 19, 1902, in Gainesville, Texas, and grew up in Kansas City, Missouri. An American jazz and classic female blues singer, she taught herself piano as a teenager and found early employment as a theater pianist in Kansas City in the early 1920s. Her Broadway career spanned from 1925 to 1932, during which she appeared in the musical Lucky Sambo, the musical Messin' Around, and the revue Flying Colors.

Moore began recording in 1923 and 1924 for Paramount Records, working in both Chicago and New York City before settling in the latter. Over the course of her recording career through 1927, she laid down 44 songs, occasionally releasing material under the name Susie Smith. Her sessions featured a notable roster of sidemen, including Tommy Ladnier, Jimmy O'Bryant, Jimmy Blythe, Bob Fuller, Rex Stewart, Bubber Miley, and Elmer Snowden. She also sang with Charlie Johnson's ensemble at Smalls Paradise and recorded alongside Johnson in 1927 and 1928. Throughout the 1920s, Moore performed across Chicago, Dallas, and Oklahoma City in addition to her New York engagements.

Her New York theater and club work continued from 1924 through 1941. In 1931 she appeared with Lucky Millinder at the Lafayette Theater, and in 1933 she operated her own venue, Monette's Place, in New York City. During the 1930s she recorded with Fats Waller in 1932, served as an understudy for Ethel Waters, and performed with Zinky Cohn in Chicago in 1937. Around 1940 she sang in New York alongside Sidney Bechet and Sammy Price.

Moore relocated to Los Angeles in 1942, where she became a regular presence in nightclub performances. She recorded again between 1945 and 1947 and appeared in James P. Johnson's revue Sugar Hill around 1949. She also took minor roles in several films, including Yes Sir, Mr. Bones in 1951 and The Outsider. In 1954 she filmed a cameo in the remake of A Star Is Born starring Judy Garland, performing a brief refrain in the number "Lose That Long Face," though the sequence was cut before the film's release. A reconstructed version of the extended number has since become available on YouTube. During the 1950s Moore continued performing in local Los Angeles venues while also working as a maid and restroom attendant. In 1961 and 1962 she performed with the Young Men of New Orleans at Disneyland. Moore died of emphysema on October 21, 1962, in Garden Grove, California.