Kevin Roosevelt Moore (born October 3, 1951), known as Keb' Mo', is an American blues musician. He is a singer, guitarist and songwriter, living in

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...

. He has been described as "a living link to the seminal Delta blues that travelled up the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the main stem, primary river of the largest drainage basin in the United States. It is the second-longest river in the United States, behind only the Missouri River, Missouri. From its traditional source of Lake Ita ...

and across the expanse of America." His post-modern blues style is influenced by many eras and genres, including folk, rock, jazz, pop and country. The moniker "Keb Mo" was coined by his original drummer, Quentin Dennard, and picked up by his record label as a "street talk" abbreviation of his given name.

Biography

Early life

From early on, Keb' Mo's parents, who were from Louisiana and Texas, instilled in him a great appreciation for the

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form that originated among African Americans in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues has incorporated spiritual (music), spirituals, work songs, field hollers, Ring shout, shouts, cha ...

and

gospel music Gospel music is a traditional genre of Christian music and a cornerstone of Christian media. The creation, performance, significance, and even the definition of gospel music vary according to culture and social context. Gospel music is compo ...

. By adolescence, he was an accomplished guitarist.

Career

Keb' Mo' started his musical career playing the steel drums in a calypso band. He moved on to play in a variety of blues and backup bands throughout the 1970s and 1980s. He first started recording in the early 1970s with

Jefferson Airplane Jefferson Airplane was an American Rock music, rock band formed in San Francisco, California, in 1965. One of the pioneering bands of psychedelic rock, the group defined the San Francisco Sound and was the first from the San Francisco Bay Area, ...

violinist

Papa John Creach John Henry Creach (May 28, 1917 – February 22, 1994), better known as Papa John Creach, was an American blues violinist who also played classical, jazz, R&B, pop and acid rock music. Early in his career, he performed as a journeyman musician w ...

through an R&B group. Creach hired him when Moore was 21 years old and Moore appeared on four of Creach's albums: '' Filthy!'', '' Playing My Fiddle for You'', '' I'm the Fiddle Man'' and '' Rock Father''. Keb' Mo's first gold record was received for a song, "Git Fiddler", which he co-wrote with Creach on

Jefferson Starship Jefferson Starship is an American rock band from San Francisco, California, formed in 1974 by a group of musicians including former members of Jefferson Airplane. Between 1974 and 1984, they released eight RIAA certification, gold or Music rec ...

's '' Red Octopus''. ''Red Octopus'' hit number one on the

Billboard 200 The ''Billboard'' 200 is a record chart ranking the 200 most popular music albums and EPs in the United States. It is published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists. Sometimes, a rec ...

in 1975. Moore was also a staff writer for

A&M Records A&M Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group and functions as a branch of Interscope Geffen A&M Records, Interscope-Geffen-A&M. Established in 1962 by Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss, the label initially operated independent ...

and arranged demos for Almo – Irving music. Keb' Mo's debut, '' Rainmaker'', was released on Chocolate City Records, a subsidiary of Casablanca Records, in 1980. He was further immersed in the blues with his long stint in the Whodunit Band, headed by Bobby "Blue" Bland producer Monk Higgins. Moore jammed with Albert Collins and

Big Joe Turner Joseph Vernon "Big Joe" Turner Jr. (May 18, 1911 – November 24, 1985) was an American blues shouter from Kansas City, Missouri. According to songwriter Doc Pomus, "Rock and roll would have never happened without him". Turner's greatest fa ...

and emerged as an inheritor of a guarded tradition and as a genuine original. Keb' Mo' has appeared on stage (1990–1993) in several versions of the musical Spunk, by George C. Wolfe, an adaptation of three short stories by Zora Neale Hurston. His character, Guitar Man, learned while he was an understudy to "Chick Streetman", played all the actual music in the play while performing. The character of Guitar Man is the foundation for his stage persona. In 1994, Keb' Mo' released his self-titled album, ''

Keb' Mo' Kevin Roosevelt Moore (born October 3, 1951), known as Keb' Mo', is an American blues musician. He is a singer, guitarist and songwriter, living in Nashville, Tennessee. He has been described as "a living link to the seminal Delta blues that tra ...

'', which featured two Robert Johnson classics, " Come On In My Kitchen" and " Kind Hearted Woman Blues". In the

Martin Scorsese Martin Charles Scorsese ( , ; born November17, 1942) is an American filmmaker. One of the major figures of the New Hollywood era, he has received List of awards and nominations received by Martin Scorsese, many accolades, including an Academ ...

miniseries '' The Blues'', Keb' Mo' states that he was greatly influenced by Johnson. Keb' was the runner-up for Best New Blues Artist at The Long Beach Blues Festival, where he was spotted by Steve LaVere, who owns the publishing for the entire Robert Johnson song catalogue (1992–93). Keb' Mo's self-titled album was released on Okeh Records, a vintage revival division of Sony Music. In 1996, he released '' Just Like You'', his second album, which featured 12 songs full of Delta rhythms. He won his first

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...

for this album, which featured guest appearances from

Jackson Browne Clyde Jackson Browne (born October 9, 1948) is an American rock musician, singer, songwriter, and political activist who has sold over 30 million albums in the United States. Emerging as a teenage songwriter in mid-1960s Los Angeles, he had his ...

and Bonnie Raitt. On June 10, 1997, Moore performed on the television program '' Sessions at West 54th''. He joined musicians Laval Belle on drums, Reggie McBride playing bass and Joellen Friedkin on keyboards to perform 14 songs, some from each of his albums. Blues pianist Dr. John also made a guest appearance. This session (known as '' Sessions at West 54th: Recorded Live in New York'') was shown on television but was not released as a DVD until late 2000. In 1998, Moore was involved in the multi-artist project "Begegnungen (Encounters)" by German rock musician Peter Maffay. They performed together a new version of Mo's "Am I Wrong" on the album and some more songs in the 30 concerts at the arena tour later the same year, documented on the live album ''Begenungen Live'', released in early 1999. A further guest of Maffay at the ''Begegnungen'' album and tour was Sonny Landreth and many more artists from around the world. '' Slow Down'', his next album, was released in 1998 and featured twelve songs. It earned him a second Grammy Award. The album begins with the song "Muddy Water", a tribute to Muddy Waters. It also features a song entitled "Rainmaker", which had been released previously on his first album, eighteen years prior. His fourth album, '' The Door'', was released in 2000. The same year, Keb' Mo' released '' Big Wide Grin'', a children's album featuring many songs from Moore's own childhood, along with some newer children's songs and some by Moore himself. In 2001, he appeared on

Sesame Street ''Sesame Street'' is an American educational television, educational children's television series that combines live-action, sketch comedy, animation, and puppetry. It is produced by Sesame Workshop (known as the Children's Television Worksh ...

with Kermit the Frog, Grover, Elmo, and other muppets performing the song "Everybody Be Yo'self". The album includes an original arrangement of " America the Beautiful", which he performed years later on the 2006 series finale of ''

The West Wing ''The West Wing'' is an American political drama television series created by Aaron Sorkin that was originally broadcast on NBC from September 22, 1999, to May 14, 2006. The series is set primarily in the West Wing of the White House, where t ...

'', " Tomorrow", in which he appears as himself to perform the song at the

inauguration In government and politics, inauguration is the process of swearing a person into office and thus making that person the incumbent. Such an inauguration commonly occurs through a formal ceremony or special event, which may also include an inau ...

of President Matt Santos. In 2003,

collaborated with many blues musicians including Keb' Mo' to put together a series of films entitled ''The Blues''. Following its release, several albums were released in accordance, some were compilations, some new collaborations and Keb' Mo' released an album in the series featuring a handful of existing recordings from Keb' Mo' to The Door. Also in 2003, Moore and Lyle Lovett released a cover of the Bob Seger song "'Til it Shines". On February 10, 2004, he released '' Keep It Simple'' which earned him a third Grammy Award, again in the contemporary blues genre. Later that year, he released his sixth studio album, '' Peace... Back by Popular Demand''. Moore released ''

Suitcase A suitcase is a form of baggage. It is a rectangular container with a handle and is typically used to carry one's clothes and other belongings while traveling. The first suitcases appeared in the late 19th century due to the increased popular ...

'', on June 13, 2006. His touring band following the release included Reggie McBride on bass, Les Falconer III on drums, Jeff Paris on keyboards, and Clayton Gibb on guitar. On October 20, 2009, Keb' Mo' released the live album, '' Live and Mo'''. At the 2010 Crossroads Guitar Festival, Keb' Mo' performed an acoustic set with

Stefan Grossman Stefan Grossman (born April 16, 1945) is an American acoustic fingerstyle guitarist and singer, music producer and educator, and co-founder of Kicking Mule records. He is known for his instructional videos and Vestapol line of videos and DVDs. ...

and an electric set with Vince Gill,

Albert Lee Albert William Lee (born 21 December 1943) is an English guitarist known for his fingerstyle and hybrid picking technique. Lee has worked, both in the studio and on tour, with many famous musicians from a wide range of genres. He has also m ...

, James Burton, Earl Klugh and

Sheryl Crow Sheryl Suzanne Crow (born February 11, 1962) is an American singer-songwriter, musician, and actress. She is noted for her Optimism, optimistic and Idealism, idealistic subject matter, and incorporation of genres including Rock music, rock, Po ...

. He joined the finale with most of the day's performers. On August 2, 2011, Keb' Mo' released '' The Reflection''. Keb' Mo' performed at a White House event titled "In Performance at the White House: Red, White and Blues" on February 21, 2012. On February 24, 2012, many of the same performers, including Keb' Mo, Gary Clark Jr., Buddy Guy, Warren Haynes, Susan Tedeschi and Derek Trucks, paid tribute to Hubert Sumlin at the "Howlin' For Hubert" memorial concert at the

Apollo Theater The Apollo Theater (formerly the Hurtig & Seamon's New Theatre; also Apollo Theatre or 125th Street Apollo Theatre) is a multi-use Theater (structure), theater at 253 125th Street (Manhattan), West 125th Street in the Harlem neighborhood of U ...

in New York City. On the first night of the 2013 Crossroads Guitar Festival, Keb' Mo' performed a set with Booker T. Jones,

Steve Cropper Steven Lee Cropper (born October 21, 1941), sometimes known as "The Colonel", is an American guitarist, songwriter and record producer. He was the guitarist of the Stax Records house band, Booker T. & the M.G.'s, which backed artists such as ...

, Blake Mills and Matt "Guitar" Murphy. Keb' Mo' later performed two songs with emcee

Dan Aykroyd Daniel Edward Aykroyd ( ; born July 1, 1952) is a Canadian actor, comedian, screenwriter, and producer. Aykroyd was a writer and an original member of the "Not Ready for Prime Time Players" cast on the NBC sketch comedy series ''Saturday Nigh ...

. On the second night of the festival, Keb' Mo' performed with

Taj Mahal The Taj Mahal ( ; ; ) is an ivory-white marble mausoleum on the right bank of the river Yamuna in Agra, Uttar Pradesh, India. It was commissioned in 1631 by the fifth Mughal Empire, Mughal emperor, Shah Jahan () to house the tomb of his belo ...

. In early 2014, he was nominated for three

Grammy Awards The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious a ...

for Best Americana Album ('' BLUESAmericana''), Best American Roots Performance ("The Old Me Better") and Best Engineered Album Non-Classical (''BLUESAmericana''). In May, he appeared alongside

Metallica Metallica is an American heavy metal band. It was formed in Los Angeles in 1981 by vocalist and guitarist James Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich, and has been based in San Francisco for most of its career. The band's fast tempos, instrume ...

at MusicCare' 10th Annual MAP Fund Benefit Concert at Nokia honoring

Ozzy Osbourne John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne (born 3 December 1948) is an English singer, songwriter, and media personality. He rose to prominence during the 1970s as the lead singer of the heavy metal music, heavy metal band Black Sabbath, during which per ...

and Jeff Greenberg. In October 2014 he honored

The Everly Brothers The Everly Brothers were an American rock duo, known for steel-string acoustic guitar playing and close-harmony singing. Consisting of Isaac Donald "Don" Everly and Phillip "Phil" Everly, the duo combined elements of rock and roll, country, ...

, at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 19th annual Music Masters Series, and in November he honored Mavis Staples alongside Bonnie Raitt,

Gregg Allman Gregory LeNoir Allman (December 8, 1947 – May 27, 2017) was an American musician, singer and songwriter. He was known for performing in the Allman Brothers Band. Allman grew up with an interest in rhythm and blues music, and the Allman B ...

and Grace Potter, at Chicago's Auditorium Theatre for celebration of Staples' life and career in honor of her 75th birthday. Also in late 2014 he was featured on a

tribute album, '' Looking into You: A Tribute to Jackson Browne''. In 2015, his album '' BLUESAmericana'' won the 'Contemporary Blues Album' category at the Blues Music Awards. He has been supportive of charity Playing For Change since its inception and recently appeared in a video with Keith Richards' singing

Bob Marley Robert Nesta Marley (6 February 1945 – 11 May 1981) was a Jamaican singer, songwriter, and guitarist. Considered one of the pioneers of reggae, he fused elements of reggae, ska and rocksteady and was renowned for his distinctive voca ...

's "Get Up, Stand Up". He appeared on two tracks from the ''Playing For Change: Songs Around The World'' that was released on June 17. The album had over 180 musicians from 31 countries, including Keith Richards,

Sara Bareilles Sara Beth Bareilles ( ; born December 7, 1979) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actress. She has sold over three million albums and over 15 million singles in the United States. Bareilles has earned various accolades, including ...

, David Hidalgo, Cesar Rosas, and

. He donates 5% of '' BLUESAmericana'' to the charity. In late 2015, he performed at a special concert hosted by

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...

called "A Celebration of American Creativity: In Performance at the White House". It was shot and filmed in the East Room of the

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest (Washington, D.C.), NW in Washington, D.C., it has served as the residence of every U.S. president ...

. Other performers included Smokey Robinson,

James Taylor James Vernon Taylor (born March 12, 1948) is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. A six-time Grammy Award winner, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2000. Taylor achieved his breakthrough in 1970 with the single "Fi ...

, Buddy Guy, Queen Latifah, Usher, Trombone Shorty,

MC Lyte Lana Michele Moorer (born October 11, 1970), better known by her stage name MC Lyte, is an American rapper. Considered one of the pioneers of female rap, MC Lyte first gained fame in the late 1980s, becoming the first female rapper to release a ...

, Audra McDonald,

Esperanza Spalding Esperanza Emily Spalding (born October 18, 1984), sometimes professionally known with the stylized name of esperanza spalding, is an American bassist, singer, songwriter, and composer. Her accolades include five Grammy Awards, a Boston Music Aw ...

, Brian Stokes Mitchell and Carol Burnett. It commemorated the 50th anniversary of the founding of Lyndon B. Johnson's National Foundation on the Arts through the Humanities Act. Keb' Mo' released a live album, ''Keb' Mo' Live – That Hot Pink Blues Album'' on April 15, on Kind of Blue Music/

RED Distribution RED Music, stylized RED MUSIC, formerly RED Distribution, LLC (Relativity Entertainment Distribution) was a Sony Music, Sony-owned sales and marketing division that merged under The Orchard (company), The Orchard in 2017. RED previously hand ...

. Keb' Mo' partnered up with

to release a joint album, '' TajMo'', on May 5, 2017. The album has guest appearances by Bonnie Raitt, Joe Walsh, Sheila E., and Lizz Wright, and has six original compositions and five covers, from artists and bands like

John Mayer John Clayton Mayer ( ; born October 16, 1977) is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. He attended Berklee College of Music in Boston, but he left for Atlanta in 1997 with fellow guitarist Clay Cook, with whom he formed the short-liv ...

and

The Who The Who are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup (1964–1978) consisted of lead vocalist Roger Daltrey, guitarist Pete Townshend, bassist John Entwistle and drummer Keith Moon. Considered one of th ...

. The album won the 2018 Grammy for Best Contemporary Blues Album. In June 2019, Keb' Mo' released a studio album, ''

Oklahoma Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw language, Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northea ...

'', with guest contributions from

Rosanne Cash Rosanne Cash (born May 24, 1955) is an American singer-songwriter and author. She is the eldest daughter of country musician Johnny Cash and his first wife, Vivian Cash. Although Cash is often classified as a country artist, her music draws f ...

, Jaci Velasquez, Robert Randolph, and Taj Mahal, with a duet with Robbie Brooks Moore (his wife). Keb' Mo' played the

Glastonbury Festival The Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts (commonly referred to as simply Glastonbury Festival, known colloquially as Glasto) is a five-day festival of contemporary performing arts held near Pilton, Somerset, England, in most su ...

in June 2019 followed by UK and European dates in July 2019. Keb' Mo' performed at the 2019 Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum concert and induction ceremony. Keb' Mo' won the

for "Best Americana Album" in 2020 for ''Oklahoma''. He was one of the headliners at the 2020 Mahindra Blues Festival in Mumbai, India.

Film projects

In 1998, he portrayed Robert Johnson in a documentary film, ''Can't You Hear the Wind Howl?'' In 1997, Keb' Mo' portrayed the character Isaac, the Angel of Music, in the episode "Inherit the Wind" and again in 1999 in "Then Sings My Soul" of the television series '' Touched by an Angel''. He performed "Hand It Over" from his 1996 release ''Just Like You'' in the 1997 episode and again in the 2002 episode "Remembering Me: Part 2". He also appeared as J. D. Winslow in the 2001 episode "Shallow Water", where he performed his song "God Trying to Get Your Attention" from his album ''Slow Down''. The 2003 movie Holes features a re-recorded rendition of ''Just Like You'' with slightly altered lyrics. In January 2007, he performed at the

Sundance Film Festival The Sundance Film Festival is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with 423,234 combined in-person and online viewership in 2023. The festival has acted ...

. He played the role of the mischievous spirit Possum in the 2007

John Sayles John Thomas Sayles (born September 28, 1950) is an American independent film director, screenwriter, editor, actor, and novelist. He is known for writing and directing the films '' The Brother from Another Planet'' (1984), '' Matewan'' (1987), ...

movie '' Honeydripper''. Keb' Mo' provided additional music for '' Mike and Molly''. He has co-written the opening music for '' B Positive'' with executive producer

Chuck Lorre Charles Michael Lorre ( ; né Levine; born October 18, 1952) is an American television producer, writer, director, and composer. Nicknamed the "King of Sitcoms", Lorre has created/co-created and produced many sitcoms including '' Cybill'' (199 ...

. In 2019, Keb' Mo' featured as a guest artist on the PBS concert series ''Bluegrass Underground'' (now re-branded as ''The Caverns Sessions'').

Political activism

In 2004, he participated in the politically motivated Vote for Change tour alongside Bonnie Raitt and

, with whom he originally recorded the title track from the album '' Just Like You''. Keb' Mo' is part of the No Nukes group which was against the expansion of

nuclear power Nuclear power is the use of nuclear reactions to produce electricity. Nuclear power can be obtained from nuclear fission, nuclear decay and nuclear fusion reactions. Presently, the vast majority of electricity from nuclear power is produced by ...

. In 2007, the group recorded a music video of a new version of the Buffalo Springfield song " For What It's Worth".

Equipment

Keb' Mo' uses several types of guitars, including electric guitars, acoustic guitars and resonator guitars. He has a preference for red guitars, as he says on his website: "I have a history with red guitars. My first electric was a red guitar." He mostly plays on a red custom

Fender Stratocaster The Fender Stratocaster, colloquially known as the Strat, is a model of double- cutaway electric guitar designed between 1952 and 1954 by Leo Fender, Bill Carson, George Fullerton, and Freddie Tavares. The Fender Musical Instruments Corpora ...

that features two single-coil pickups, and one humbucker and is much modified from a regular Stratocaster model. On stage, he prefers a red Hamer guitar with Gibson P-100 pickups. Two of his electric guitars were lost in the 2010 Nashville flood: an Epiphone Sheraton and a Danelectro Selectomatic. He owns a variety of acoustic and resonator guitars, including a Gibson artist model, a guitar made for him by James Goodall, a National Style N, a National Resorocket, and a Gibson ES-335-shaped resonator guitar with a P-90 pickup that he purchased in a

Nashville Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...

club and had repaired.

Discography

Albums

DVDs

*''Sessions at West 54th – Recorded Live in New York'' (1997) *''Exploring the Guitar with Keb' Mo (2000) *''The Blues Guitar of Keb' Mo' (2002) *''Keb' Mo' & Guests'' (2011)

Other contributions

In 1998, Moore appeared on the album ''Begegnungen'' (the German word for "Encounters") by Peter Maffay, one of the most successful rockstars in Germany and Mid-Europe (16 Number 1 albums in the German album charts). This record is a duet album with artists from every continent. Moore and Maffay make a new version of "Am I wrong". In 2001, Moore performed " I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry" on the tribute album ''Timeless: Hank Williams Tribute''. Moore is also credited as producer on the Best Country Album, Grammy Award winner for 2001. In 2002, Moore contributed " Sonnet 35" to the

compilation album A compilation album comprises Album#Tracks, tracks, which may be previously released or unreleased, usually from several separate recordings by either one Performing arts#Performers, performer or by several performers. If the recordings are from ...

, '' When Love Speaks'' ( EMI Classics), which features famous actors and musicians interpreting Shakespearean

sonnet A sonnet is a fixed poetic form with a structure traditionally consisting of fourteen lines adhering to a set Rhyme scheme, rhyming scheme. The term derives from the Italian word ''sonetto'' (, from the Latin word ''sonus'', ). Originating in ...

s and play excerpts. Two years later, he appeared on '' Amy Grant: Greatest Hits 1986–2004'' in a duet entitled "Come Be with Me", which became a modest success on pop radio. In 2005, Moore appeared on Buddy Guy's version of " Ain't No Sunshine", along with Moore composed one of the theme songs featured on the show, ''

Martha Stewart Living ''Martha Stewart Living'' is a magazine A magazine is a periodical literature, periodical publication, print or digital, produced on a regular schedule, that contains any of a variety of subject-oriented textual and visual content (media), ...

''. That same year, he appeared on

Eric Clapton Eric Patrick Clapton (born 1945) is an English Rock music, rock and blues guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He is regarded as one of the most successful and influential guitarists in rock music. Clapton ranked second in ''Rolling Stone''s l ...

's album '' Back Home''. In 2006, Moore co-wrote the song, " I Hope", with the Dixie Chicks for their album, '' Taking the Long Way''. In 2006, Moore collaborated with New Orleans blues group The Subdudes, producing their most critically noteworthy album '' Behind the Levee'', penning one cut, "Social Aid and Pleasure Club", and providing backing tracks for several other songs on the album. In 2006, Moore appeared on the final episode of West Wing, performing "America the Beautiful" at the presidential inauguration. Moore also provided vocals to Marcus Miller's 2007 album, '' Free'' on the track entitled "Milky Way" and again on Miller's 2008 album entitled, '' Marcus''. In 2008, he also appeared on Otis Taylor's album ''Recapturing the Banjo'', contributing vocals and banjo on several songs. Moore appeared on the June 7, 2008, broadcast of Garrison Keillor's radio program '' A Prairie Home Companion''. He performed two songs with Bonnie Raitt: "No Getting Over You" and "There Ain't Nothin' in Ramblin'". The show was archived on the ''A Prairie Home Companion'' website. In 2009, Moore co-wrote a song with

Peach The peach (''Prunus persica'') is a deciduous tree first domesticated and Agriculture, cultivated in China. It bears edible juicy fruits with various characteristics, most called peaches and the glossy-skinned, non-fuzzy varieties called necta ...

titled "It Meant Nothing". The song is yet to be released as an official audio recording, however, Peach does perform it and video recordings of live performances exist online. Moore covered Lowen & Navarro's "If You Loved Me Like That" on '' Keep the Light Alive : Celebrating the Music of Lowen & Navarro''. The proceeds of the album benefited The Eric Lowen Trust, ALS Association Greater Los Angeles, and Augie's Quest. Moore sings the opening theme ("I See Love", which he co-wrote with Josh Kelley) to the CBS sitcom '' Mike & Molly''. Moore appeared and played as a backing musician on an episode of '' Memphis Beat'' in 2011. Moore produced and co-wrote the song "Diggin' in the Deep Blue Sea" on the 2011 David Bromberg album '' Use Me''. He also plays electric guitar on the track. In 2013, Moore appears on B.J. Thomas' ''The Living Room Sessions'', in a duet with Thomas on the single "Most of All". In 2017, he covered " Lord, I Hope This Day Is Good" for the

Don Williams Donald Ray Williams (May 27, 1939 – September 8, 2017) was an American country music singer, songwriter, and 2010 inductee into the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, Country Music Hall of Fame. He began his solo career in 1971, singing p ...

tribute album ''Gentle Giants: The Songs of Don Williams''. In 2017, he appeared in “Signed, Sealed, Delivered: Higher Ground” (Hallmark Mystery Movie series) as the character Gabe, and performed several songs. His music was also in the following movies in the series, scheduled to appear again in Signed, Sealed, Delivered: To the Altar on July 15, 2018.

Awards and nominations

Grammy Awards

{, class=wikitable ! colspan=4 ,

, - ! width=5%, Year ! width=25%, Nominee/work ! width=30%, Award ! width=15%, Result , - , 1996 , '' Just like You'' , rowspan=3, Best Contemporary Blues Album , , - ,

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for Lunar water, frozen water, in soil i ...

, '' Slow Down'' , , - , rowspan=2,

2001 The year's most prominent event was the September 11 attacks against the United States by al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror. The United States led a Participan ...

, '' The Door'' , , - , "Big Wide Grin" , Best Musical Album for Children , , - ,

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and Its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...

, '' Keep It Simple'' , Best Contemporary Blues Album , , - ,

2005 2005 was designated as the International Year for Sport and Physical Education and the International Year of Microcredit. The beginning of 2005 also marked the end of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, Internationa ...

, " I Hope" , Best Country Song , , - , 2006 , ''

'' , Best Contemporary Blues Album , , - ,

2011 The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...

, '' The Reflection'' , Best Blues Album , , - , rowspan=2,

2014 The year 2014 was marked by the surge of the Western African Ebola epidemic, West African Ebola epidemic, which began in 2013, becoming the List of Ebola outbreaks, most widespread outbreak of the Ebola, Ebola virus in human history, resul ...

, '' BLUESAmericana'' , Best Americana Album , , - , "Old Me Better" , Best American Roots Song , , - ,

2017 2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly. Events January * January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...

, '' TajMo'' (with

) , Best Contemporary Blues Album , , - ,

2020 The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...

, ''

'' , Best Americana Album ,

References

External links

Keb' Mo'
official website * *
Keb' Mo' Interview
at NAMM Oral History Collection (2016) {{DEFAULTSORT:Keb Mo 1951 births Living people African-American guitarists American blues guitarists American male guitarists American blues mandolinists American blues harmonica players American blues singer-songwriters Contemporary blues musicians American slide guitarists Grammy Award winners Okeh Records artists Singer-songwriters from California Guitarists from Los Angeles 20th-century American guitarists 20th-century American male musicians African-American songwriters 20th-century African-American musicians 21st-century African-American musicians American male singer-songwriters African-American mandolinists