Vincent Lee Moses (March 13, 1941 – January 26, 1998), known as Lee Moses, was an American R&B and

soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun ''soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest attes ...

singer and guitarist. His recordings in the late 1960s as well as his 1971 LP ''Time and Place'', are highly regarded within the

deep soul Southern soul is a type of soul music that emerged from the Southern United States. The music originated from a combination of styles, including blues (both 12 bar and jump), country, early R&B, and a strong gospel influence that emanated fro ...

genre.

Life and career

Lee Moses was born in

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

, Georgia, and attended Booker T. Washington High School. In the late 1950s he formed his first band, the Showstoppers. They became a popular live act in the Atlanta area, and were at one time the house band at the Royal Peacock club. Moses moved to New York City in the mid-1960s, where he worked as a

session musician Session musicians, studio musicians, or backing musicians are musicians hired to perform in recording sessions or live performances. The term sideman is also used in the case of live performances, such as accompanying a recording artist on a ...

and recorded with Johnny Brantley, who co-wrote and produced his first single, "My Adorable One", in 1965. In 1966, he co-produced, with Johnny Brantley, several tracks by a virtually unknown

Jimi Hendrix James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. Although his mainstream career spanned only four years, he is widely regarded as one of the most ...

at Abtone Recording Studios in New York City. The tracks were later released as a 4-LP box set titled "The Genius of Jimi Hendrix". It was released in 1975 on vinyl only and has become a collectors item. In 1967, he recorded three singles – all commercially unsuccessful – for the Musicor label, including "Bad Girl," and an instrumental version of

The Four Tops ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

' "

Reach Out, I'll Be There "Reach Out I'll Be There" (also formatted as "Reach Out (I'll Be There)") is a song recorded by the Four Tops from their fourth studio album '' Reach Out'' (1967). Written and produced by Motown's main production team, Holland–Dozier–Holland, ...

". He also recorded a version of "

Dark End of the Street "The Dark End of the Street" is a 1967 soul song, written by songwriters Dan Penn and Chips Moman and first recorded by James Carr. History and original recording The song was co-written by Penn, a professional songwriter and producer, and Mo ...

", issued by Gates Records (probably in 1969). Moses' guitar style has been described as "funky" and likened to that of

, a contemporary of his on the club scene of the mid-1960s. He has also been praised for his "rough and powerful deep soul singing style". In 1970, Moses released a single, "Time and Place", on the Maple label, a subsidiary of

All Platinum Records All Platinum Records was a record company started in 1967 by singer/writer/producer Sylvia Robinson and her husband, businessman Joe Robinson, who had previously worked in the recording industry. All Platinum and its subsidiary labels, includin ...

. This was followed by a nine-track LP of the same name - also produced by Brantley - that included his versions of several classic songs of the period including "

Hey Joe "Hey Joe" is an American song from the 1960s that has become a rock standard and has been performed in many musical styles by hundreds of different artists. The lyrics tell of a man who is on the run and planning to head to Mexico after shooting ...

" and "

California Dreaming "California Dreamin'" is a song written by John Phillips and Michelle Phillips and first recorded by Barry McGuire. The best-known version is by the Mamas & the Papas, who sang backup on the original version and released it as a single in 196 ...

". The album featured several members of

The Ohio Players ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...

, as well as Moses' own band, the Diciples ''(sic)''. Although the album has since been described as "a revered and highly sought-after lost treasure for deep soul fans and collectors," it was a commercial failure at the time. Moses also worked with fellow Atlanta native

The Mighty Hannibal James Timothy Shaw (August 9, 1939 – January 30, 2014), known as The Mighty Hannibal, was an American R&B, soul, and funk singer, songwriter, and record producer. Known for his showmanship, and outlandish costumes often incorporating a pink tu ...

on his 1973 album, ''Truth''. He returned to Atlanta in the early 1970s, and continued to perform locally, but did not record again. He died there from lung cancer in 1998. In 2007,

Castle Music Castle Communications, also known as Castle Music, was a British independent record label and home video distributor founded in 1983 by Terry Shand, Cliff Dane, and Jon Beecher. Its video imprint was called Castle Vision. The label's producti ...

issued a CD anthology of all Moses' recordings, under the title ''Time and Place''. In 2020, Simon David released the documentary ''Time and Place''. On May 24, 2019, Colemine Records released the LP ''How Much Longer Must I Wait? Singles & Rarities 1965–1972''.

Discography

Studio albums

* ''Time and Place'' (1971)

Compilation albums

* ''Time and Place'' (2007) * ''How Much Longer Must I Wait? Singles & Rarities 1965–1972'' (2019, Colemine Records)

Singles

* "Free At Last" b/w "Got That Will" * "Never In My Life" b/w "If Loving You Is a Crime (I'll Always Be Guilty)" * "Diana (From N.Y.C.)" b/w "My Adorable One" * "Dark End of the Street" b/w "She's a Bad Girl" * "I'm Sad About It" b/w "How Much Longer Must I Wait" (1967) * "Reach Out, I'll Be There" b/w "Day Tripper" (1967) * "Bad Girl (Part I)" b/w "Bad Girl (Part II)"(1967) * "Time and Place" b/w "I Can't Take No Chances" (1970)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Moses, Lee 1941 births 1998 deaths American soul musicians 20th-century American musicians