LeRoi Moore 1961-2008: An Appreciation
I'll admit it. I'm a "Davehead" who's seen and followed the Dave Matthews Band more than a dozen times in at least four states. And I know some LAist readers (and my fellow editors – right, Andy?) will judge me for actually liking their world-jazz-bluegrass-lite style of pop.
But LeRoi Moore's death at 46 yesterday in LA was saddening. Matthews' sax player was a consummate jazz musician whose work often got overshadowed by the band's frontman. The group's live shows were always fun, not because of Matthews laid-back style and usually incomprehensible banter, but because of the musicianship of the guys in the background: drummer Carter Beauford, violinist Boyd Tinsley, bassist Stefan Lessard and the big guy with the sax (and flute and penny whistle): Leroi Moore.
Watching and hearing Moore go off on a live jam was amazing: Really listen to Moore sultry sax on "Crush" or the interplay between him and Tinsley on an "Ants Marching" or "Tripping Billies" and you'll understand.
Moore told me once in an interview years ago that he always wore his trademark dark glasses onstage not because he thought it looked super cool, but because he was nervous onstage and the dark glasses gave him some comfort in front of the crowds. It must have been a little intimidating for the jazz guy from Charlottesville, Va., watch the crowds grow from the UVA frathouses to little divey bars and then to venues like the Staples Center, where the band went on without him last night. (They've been touring with a stand-in sax man for their summer tour since Moore's ATV accident earlier this summer.)
And it just makes me wonder if LeRoi's death marks some sort of end for DMB. It's just not going to be the same hearing someone else playing a song like this:
AP Photo/Michael Kim