Hobdy Moorer, Oral History
Files
Dublin Core
Title
Hobdy Moorer, Oral History
Description
Rev. Hobdy Moorer, Gospel singer and member of the Pillars of Birmingham. Hobdy shares his history of gospel quartet in Birmingham
Creator
Hobdy Moorer
Bob Friedman
Publisher
Birmingham Black Radio Museum
Date
May 26, 2007
Contributor
Lindsey Reynolds
Emily Bibb
Format
JPG
MP3
PDF
Language
English
Identifier
MoorerOH
Oral History Item Type Metadata
Interviewer
Bob Friedman
Interviewee
Hobdy Moorer
Transcription
Transcript from audio snippet:
Bob Friedman: You say you traveled around the country?
Hobdy Moorer: Oh yes.
BF: The country?
HM: Kinda like driving some places…
BF: You mean you traveled outside of Alabama?
HM: Yeahhhh
BF: How did you, you just jumped in a car?
HM: Oh we traveled in our automobile. Just like Georgia. Augusta, Georgia, Atlanta, Georgia, West Point, Georgia. Then Sturgeon, Mississippi, Columbus, Mississippi...
BF: And they would take up a collection basically...
HM: Yeah yeah. We went to Columbus, Mississippi, ya know our big bass singer was singing about “Tell Heaven I’m Coming Home” Shoot! a white fellow was way in the back there and I’m gonna tell you what he said to him, between me and you…. He told me “Sing it again!” And he put a 50-dollar bill in the hat just for me to sing that one good...and Sanders sung it again. But we had some rough times through that Bob. Was coming out of Georgia and we stopped at a store to get something to eat, and it was a store full of Klu Klux. Sitting around chewing tobacco…Some of them had axe handles in their lap. Said, “Y’all a singing group?” “Yes sir, we just stopped by to buy us some cheese and crackers and things like that.” He said, “Well boys y’all gone have to sing.”
So we said, “We don’t mind singing.” “Got to sing before you leave, if not we’re gonna keep yall down heah.” And they told, named the songs that they wanted us to sing. So he told us, he said I want you, after I told them I didn’t sing, said, “I want you to sing ‘Swing Low Sweet Chariot’ “after that I want you to sing, “Everyone’s Gonna Have a Lesson in Glory” just like the Blackwood Brothers.
BF: Oh God…
Bob Friedman: You say you traveled around the country?
Hobdy Moorer: Oh yes.
BF: The country?
HM: Kinda like driving some places…
BF: You mean you traveled outside of Alabama?
HM: Yeahhhh
BF: How did you, you just jumped in a car?
HM: Oh we traveled in our automobile. Just like Georgia. Augusta, Georgia, Atlanta, Georgia, West Point, Georgia. Then Sturgeon, Mississippi, Columbus, Mississippi...
BF: And they would take up a collection basically...
HM: Yeah yeah. We went to Columbus, Mississippi, ya know our big bass singer was singing about “Tell Heaven I’m Coming Home” Shoot! a white fellow was way in the back there and I’m gonna tell you what he said to him, between me and you…. He told me “Sing it again!” And he put a 50-dollar bill in the hat just for me to sing that one good...and Sanders sung it again. But we had some rough times through that Bob. Was coming out of Georgia and we stopped at a store to get something to eat, and it was a store full of Klu Klux. Sitting around chewing tobacco…Some of them had axe handles in their lap. Said, “Y’all a singing group?” “Yes sir, we just stopped by to buy us some cheese and crackers and things like that.” He said, “Well boys y’all gone have to sing.”
So we said, “We don’t mind singing.” “Got to sing before you leave, if not we’re gonna keep yall down heah.” And they told, named the songs that they wanted us to sing. So he told us, he said I want you, after I told them I didn’t sing, said, “I want you to sing ‘Swing Low Sweet Chariot’ “after that I want you to sing, “Everyone’s Gonna Have a Lesson in Glory” just like the Blackwood Brothers.
BF: Oh God…
Collection
Citation
Hobdy Moorer and Bob Friedman, “Hobdy Moorer, Oral History,” The Birmingham Black Radio Museum, accessed February 23, 2019, http://thebbrm.org/document/84.
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