Ben Moore, Blind Boy of Alabama, Dies at 80
- “The entire Blind Boys family … are in mourning,” band says
Ben Moore, one of the Blind Boys of Alabama, died May 12 of natural causes, the group’s tour manager said.
Moore was 80 and became ill as the Blind Boys were wrapping their most-recent tour in New Mexico, Willie Chuck Shivers said on social media.
“Rest easy my friend … you are in God’s hands now,” he said.
A baritone who had previously recorded gospel music as Bobby Purify, Moore, who lost his sight to glaucoma in the 1990s, joined the Blind Boys in 2008 after founding member Clarence Fountain retired.
“The entire Blind Boys family, including Jimmy Carter, Paul Beasley, Rev. Julius Love and Joey Williams, are in mourning,” the band said in a statement, adding the surviving members intend to carry on, “as Ben would have it.”
Moore made five albums with the group, which was formed two years before his birth, in 1939.
It’s unclear if he’ll be replaced.
“The Blind Boys family is deeply saddened by Ben’s passing,” longtime singer Ricky McKinnie said in a statement.
“He was an integral part of our group, not just as a talented singer but as a kind and dependable friend. Although he will be sorely missed, we are grateful for the years of memories.”
5/18/22
