Moore By Four celebrates 40 years bringing jazzy harmonies to Twin Cities

Even after 40 years of jazzy harmonizing, Moore By Four still needs to rehearse.

So bandleader Sanford Moore prepared a scrumptious spread of bruschetta and a charcuterie board for a rehearsal in his downtown Minneapolis loft last week. As he perched behind his piano and laptop with the food in front of him, he pulled up an old recording of Moore By Four doing his niftily motormouth arrangement of “Misty.”

And to everyone’s surprise, Ashley Commodore — who wasn’t even born 40 years ago when her parents were Moore By Four members — harmonized flawlessly with the recording.

“She knows it from when she was 4 years old,” singer Ginger Commodore, her mother, pointed out.

“She was around at rehearsal,” added singer Dennis Spears.

“Oh, my goodness this is impressive,” singer Connie Evingson declared.

Moore By Four, a stylish jazzy vocal quartet, was the toast of the Twin Cities in the 1980s and ‘90s. They performed all over town, sparkled with Christmas and New Year’s Eve shows and entertained at galas and corporate parties. They sang for presidents and world leaders, and for special events like the Super Bowl, and even gigged in Japan and Europe. They turned down a major record label because no one could figure out a radio format for a band that was too musical for the masses.

“We’re still here,” proclaimed Spears. “We’re still doing solo stuff and creating and trying to pass on what we’ve learned from the master. It’s a blessing.”

Moore By Four’s master, Sanford Moore, and three veteran vocalists are delighted to have had Ashley, now 38, in the fold for the last five years.

“We get rejuvenated by a spirit like this,” Ginger said, pointing to Ashley.

“She is such a good energy,” Spears said.

Ashley has taken the slot of Yolande Bruce, a longtime Moore By Four member who died of cancer in 2021.

Ashley — who sings with Stokley Williams as well as the bands MPLS and Urban Classic — always viewed Moore By Four as her destiny, as maybe “Moore By Five” or as a substitute.

Spears was taken by Ashley from the get-go.

“The first time I heard you sing Yolande’s version of ‘There’ll Never Be Another You,’ girl, we had to stop rehearsal that day,” he recalled. “There was a passion in your voice with her being your auntie. The way you delivered it with such clarity and just on point with what Yolande had done.”

Moore founded the group in 1986 to present a one-weekend tribute to the Cotton Club, the Harlem nightclub, in Ruby’s Cabaret in northeast Minneapolis. He enlisted four female singers, including Evingson and Ginger Commodore, who had theater and church backgrounds.

“The original concept was going to be four singers singing different styles of songs in my arrangements,” Moore said.

For 10 years, it was a full-time job. Managed by Evingson and drummer Bobby Commodore (Ginger’s husband), they traveled to jazz festivals in Europe and Japan, coming away with nightmarish travel stories that they can laugh at now.

How 2-year-old Ashley’s passport got lost in Italy. How Moore By Four sang gospel accompanying an opera singer in Japan. How they spent a week in Portugal to perform one hourlong set because it was more cost-effective than a brief stay.

A highlight was the Umbria Jazz Festival in Perugia, Italy, in 1989 where giants like Dizzy Gillespie and Carmen McRae performed along with rising newcomers like Roy Hargrove and Geoff Keezer.

Evingson swooned recalling Moore By Four’s name on festival T-shirts with all those jazz stars.

The group slowed down a bit because Moore became busy as a music director (and often pianist) for shows at Penumbra, Illusion, Guthrie, Children’s Theatre and other Twin Cities playhouses.

Evingson said they each had individual goals that they could pursue and still sing together maybe three or four times a year.

In rehearsal, it’s obvious how detailed and exacting Moore is. That’s necessary to sing vocalese.

“They tried to compare us to Manhattan Transfer but there is no comparison,” Moore insisted. “We had more of a gospel influence than strict jazz.

“I’ve been inspired by Manhattan Transfer, New York Voices and Lambert, Hendricks and Ross, but I never tried to be like them,” he said. ”My history is musical theater, jazz and gospel, and some pop.”

At times, Moore By Four interpreted some pop material, including Aretha Franklin’s “Until You Come Back to Me” and Rickie Lee Jones’ “Company.” But their repertoire these days is primarily jazz standards like “Get Happy” and “Perdido” done in a distinctive way.

“It’s a bunch of solo singers coming together and making something that’s very cohesive,” she said. “Everybody has their own moment in a song, but you come back into this group harmony.

“I don’t think a lot of [other] bands necessarily respect each of those different perspectives and how they can come together,” she added. “[For them] You just show up and do your part.”

Her mom insists that Moore By Four is old school, taking a familiar song and rearranging it so it’s something different.

“The cats coming up now, they can play the old music because that’s how they learned it and that’s how they play it,” Ginger said. “They don’t want a new arrangement.

“Old school, you rehearse and practice it over and over,” she continued. “This new crew is ‘Just put it on a piece of paper how the song goes and I can just read it. I don’t need to have a feeling about it.’”

When: 7 p.m. Thu., Jan. 15

Where: Crooners, 6161 Hwy 65, Fridley

Tickets: $43.47 and up, eventbrite.com