Jerry Moore - Life is a Constant Journey Home (1967)

Eric Gale (g)

Jerry Moore (g, vo)

Bill Salter (b)

Warren Smith (d)

Ralph MacDonald (cga)

Jerry Moore jest postacią fascynującą, nie tylko potrafi za sprawą muzyki skłonić do refleksji, ale również odsunąć na bok zmartwienia (...) Odkryty w Greenwich Village, miejscu nowojorskiej bohemy, ruchu beatników, w wieku 25 lat Jerry Moore nagrywa siedem utworów w tym Life Is A Constant Journey Home dla wytwórni ESP-Disk. Płyta ukazuje się w tym samym roku jako Ballad Of Birmingham/Life Is A Constant Journey Home. Jest to ostatnie oficjalnie zarejestrowane i wydane dzieło folkowego barda końca lat 60, ponieważ pan Moore został pastorem, który na ulicach ratuje ludzkie dusze od wiecznego potępienia. Żyje ... (źródło)

A quiet proposal Here’s a welcome find of the long-lost album by the largely overlooked Jerry Moore. Discovered in the clubs of Greenwich Village by fellow folk-singer Randy Burns, Moore’s bag is slightly reminiscent of Tim Hardin and Fred Neil, with a dash of Tim Buckley when he wants to send his plaintive vocal into overdrive.

A civil-rights activist at a time when revolution was in the air, Moore’s concerns are all over Winds Of Change and The Ballad Of Birmingham, which addresses the Ku Klux Klan’s bombing of a Baptist church in Alabama. To that extent, it’s worth viewing Moore as a kind of proto-Gil Scott-Heron, both men having the ability to preach without alienating the listener.

Even if one accepts this is a modest period piece, it still benefits from rediscovery since the backing, from Eric Gale’s guitar in particular, is first-rate soul funk; while Moore sings within his limitations, he can find an extra gear in the mystical Drugged and the Love-esque This Is My Time. Remastered now, Life Is… sounds crisp, unlike the muddier vinyl original. Having released it, Moore became a preacher and never made another album. This’ll do fine. --- Max Bell

This one is so legendary that we don’t have to describe it ourselves. All Music Guide’s Ron Wynn writes: “Here's a classic case of a great release coming from a most unexpected source. Moore did a number of reasonably effective soul and blues singles on regional labels, then recorded this seven-track concept work for the legendary bohemian New York label ESP Disk, best known for '60s underground rock bands like the Fugs, the Godz and Pearls Before Swine. Life Is a Constant Journey Home contains several remarkable protest and topical tunes, each sung with grit and conviction. “The Ballad of Birmingham” revisits the horrible bombing incident in 1963 that killed four little girls, while "Winds of Change" offers hope and inspiration to those battling for justice, and "Life Is a Constant Journey" takes almost a folkie musical approach while discussing the impact of fate and personal decisions. Like so many other remarkable ESP releases, this one got limited distribution and remains a collector's oddity, although it still stands as a fine piece of singer/songwriter commentary and vocal polemic.” Moore is supported on this album by well-known instrumentalists Eric Gale, Bill Salter, Warren Smith, and Ralph MacDonald. (ESP-Disc)