Born and raised in New Orleans (and living there still, when he’s not on the road), Stanton Moore is very much a product of geography, culture and creative networking. He grew up in the thriving music scene of his home town that included Professor Longhair, Doctor John, the Meters and countless other Big Easy mainstays.
In the early ‘90s, Moore hooked up with guitarist Jeff Raines, bassist Robert Mercurio and keyboardist Rich Vogel and saxophonist Ben Ellman to form the New Orleans-based “steam-roller” funk band known as Galactic. After receiving his bachelor’s degree in music and business from Loyola University, Moore and the band made their first record (the widely acclaimed Coolin’ Off) and hit the road to do nearly 200 gigs a year for the first ten years of Galactic’s existence. The band has since released five more albums since Coolin’ Off, and continues to amass a worldwide audience via recording and touring globally.
Stanton Moore aided by eight-string guitar virtuoso Charlie Hunter and saxophonist Skerik (Les Claypool, John Scofield, Roger Waters), Moore launched his solo career in the late ‘90s with the All Kooked Out!, an album recorded in New Orleans just after Mardi Gras in 1998 and released later that year. In addition to the Moore-Hunter-Skerik core, All Kooked Out! also featured a handful of New Orleans horn players, including Brent Rose, Brian Seeger, Matt Perrine, Ben Ellman, and former Sun Ra trumpeter Michael Ray. Moore extended the solo discography with the 2001 release of Flyin’ the Koop (Verve/Blue Thumb).
In the midst of Moore’s All Kooked Out! sessions, yet another concept was taking shape. Outtakes from the session turned into the first Garage a Trois release, Mysteryfunk (1999). In 2000, the trio was augmented by percussionist Mike Dillon (Les Claypool, Ani DeFranco) and has since released two more albums – Emphasizer in 2003 and Outre Mer (on Telarc) in 2005 – both with Moore behind the drum kit.
Moore continues his Telarc affiliation with the September 2006 release of III, his third solo recording. In addition to a trademark sound that Modern Drummer calls “infectious, jazz-meets-Bonham, nouveau second-line,” III also features organist Robert Walter (Greyboy Allstars, The Head Hunters), guitarist Will Bernard (T.J. Kirk, Doctor Lonnie Smith), along with a few special guests: Skerik and trombonist Mark Mullins (Galactic, Bonerama, Harry Connick, Jr., Better Than Ezra).The album was recorded at the legendary Preservation Hall in New Orleans.
Moore has also been keeping busy with a myriad of side projects. In 2005, he released an educational project covering his approach to New Orleans drumming called Take It to the Street, comprised of a book/CD and two DVDs. The project has been very well received and has won numerous accolades, including 4.5- and 5-star ratings from Modern Drummer magazine and first and second place in the 2006 MD readers poll. The project covers both the traditional and modern approaches to new Orleans second-line drumming and features the Dirty Dozen, George Porter, Jr., and Ivan Neville. To support this project, Moore has been travelling the globe performing one-man clinics (sometimes with band support) and master classes. He has appeared at the Modern Drummer Festival weekend, the Percussive Arts Society International Convention (PASIC), Drummer’s Collective (NYC) and Drummer Live (the main UK drum magazine’s festival).
He stays very involved in education, constantly teaching private lessons in New Orleans and on the road. He was a contributing writer for Drum! magazine and is currently a regular writer for Modern Drummer, which featured him on their April 2004 cover. Showing a rare versatility, he appeared (within the same year) on Heavy Metal Grammy nominees Corrosion of Conformity’s In the Arms of God, Irma Thomas’ After the Rain and Robert Walter’s Super Heavy Organ. In 2005, he launched a signature line of cymbals with Bosphorus Cymbals and a signature drum stick with the Vic Firth stick company.
Despite some severe property damage and other personal setbacks in the aftermath of Katrina, Moore was quick to lend a hand to other drummers in New Orleans by donating cymbals and other gear to musicians whose equipment was damaged by the storm. He has also played a number of benefit concerts in the past year to help raise money for Katrina victims. He recently spearheaded the Tipitina’s Music Workshop to work with young and developing musicians in the New Orleans area. The workshop will focus on the preservation of New Orleans music and culture and will host a rotating cast of well known local and national musicians to work with the attendees. He continues to play dates throughout the Big Easy as well as globally with an ever-evolving cast of musicians: John Scofield; Karl Denson; George Porter, Jr., and Leo Nocentelli (of the Meters); Charlie Hunter; Warren Haynes; John Medeski and John Wood (of Medeski, Martin and Wood); Donald Harrison Jr.; Robert Walter; the New Orleans Klezmer All-Stars; the Preservation Hall Jazz Band; Corrosion of Conformity; and Irma Thomas to name a few.
Source: Stantonmoore.com
