Moe Tucker facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Moe Tucker
Tucker in 1966
Background information
Birth name	Maureen Ann Tucker
Born	(1944-08-26) August 26, 1944 (age 80) Jackson Heights, Queens, New York City, U.S.
Origin	Levittown, New York, U.S.
Genres	Experimental rock proto-punk rock and roll art rock avant garde folk rock
Occupation(s)	Musician singer songwriter
Instruments	Drums percussion guitar vocals bass
Years active	1963–c. 2007
Associated acts	The Velvet Underground Half Japanese Daniel Johnston Jonathan Richman

Maureen Ann "Moe" Tucker (born August 26, 1944) is an American musician, singer, and songwriter. She is best known as the drummer for the famous rock band the Velvet Underground. Besides playing drums, Tucker also sang lead vocals on some of the band's songs, like "After Hours" and "I'm Sticking With You".

After The Velvet Underground broke up in the early 1970s, she took a break from music to raise her family. She returned in the 1980s and released four solo albums. In 1996, Tucker and the other members of The Velvet Underground were welcomed into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Early life

Maureen Tucker was born in Jackson Heights, Queens, a part of New York City. She grew up in Levittown, New York, with her parents, James and Margaret, her older brother, Jim, and her sister, Margo. Her brother Jim was friends with Sterling Morrison, who would later be in a band with her.

Music Career

The Velvet Underground

Tucker started playing the drums in 1963 when she was 19. Before joining The Velvet Underground, she had left college and was working for IBM as a keypunch operator, a job that involved entering data into computers.

The band needed a new drummer after their first one, Angus Maclise, left. The band's guitarist, Sterling Morrison, remembered that his friend's younger sister, Moe, played the drums, so he asked her to join.

A Unique Drumming Style

Tucker's way of playing the drums was very unusual. Instead of sitting down, she played standing up. Her drum kit was simple, with tom-toms, a snare drum, and a bass drum that was turned on its side. She used mallets instead of regular drumsticks.

She also rarely used cymbals. Tucker believed a drummer's main job was to keep a steady beat, and she felt cymbals were too loud and covered up the other instruments. Music critic Robert Christgau said her simple, self-taught style was very important and helped create the sound of punk rock.

Singing and Other Instruments

Besides drumming, Tucker sang lead vocals on a few Velvet Underground songs. She sang "After Hours" and "The Murder Mystery" on their 1969 album, The Velvet Underground. She also sang "I'm Sticking with You," which was recorded in 1969 but released later. The band's main singer, Lou Reed, said "After Hours" was so "innocent and pure" that he couldn't sing it himself.

Sometimes, Tucker would also play the bass guitar during live shows when the band's main bassist, John Cale, was playing another instrument like the viola or keyboard.

Leaving and Returning to the Band

In early 1970, Tucker had to leave the band for a while because she was pregnant with her first child. She only played on a few songs for the band's fourth album, Loaded. A young drummer named Billy Yule filled in for her during live shows.

Tucker came back to the band later in 1970. By then, Lou Reed had left, and bassist Doug Yule was the new leader. She toured with the band across North America and Europe. After the tour, she left the music world completely to focus on raising her family.

In 1993, Tucker rejoined The Velvet Underground for a reunion tour in Europe. The band released a live album from this tour called Live MCMXCIII.

Solo Career and Other Projects

In 1971, Tucker moved to Phoenix, Arizona. In the early 1980s, she moved to Douglas, Georgia, and worked at a Wal-Mart distribution center. She left that job in 1989 to tour Europe with a band called Half Japanese.

This started a new chapter in her music career. She began recording her own albums, where she sang and played guitar. Her former bandmate Sterling Morrison sometimes played with her.

Tucker also appeared as a guest musician on albums by other artists, including her former Velvet Underground bandmates Lou Reed and John Cale. She also played with and produced music for other bands and musicians. In a 2010 interview, Tucker said she had stopped making music a few years earlier.

Musical Influences

As a teenager, Tucker loved the music of Babatunde Olatunji, a Nigerian drummer. She was also inspired by rock and roll star Bo Diddley and the band the Rolling Stones. These artists made her want to become a musician. She never took formal drum lessons and taught herself how to play by listening to her favorite songs.

Personal life

Tucker was married in the early 1970s and later divorced in the 1980s. She has five children: Kerry, Keith, Austen, Kate, and Richard. She lives in Douglas, Georgia.

In 2009, Tucker said in an interview that she had become interested in politics. She supported the Tea Party movement, a political group that had specific ideas about how the American government should be run.

Discography

Studio albums

Solo

With the Velvet Underground

• The Velvet Underground & Nico (1967)
• White Light/White Heat (1968)
• The Velvet Underground (1969)
• Loaded (1970)

With Half Japanese

• Fire in the Sky (1993)

Live albums

Compilation albums

Extended plays

Singles

As lead artist

Other appearances

• Charlie Pickett – Route 33 (1986)
• Lou Reed – New York (1989)
• Shotgun Rationale – Who Do They Think They Are? (1992)
• Shotgun Rationale – Roller Coaster (1993)
• John Cale – Antártida (1995)
• John Cale – Walking on Locusts (1996)
• John Cale – Eat/Kiss: Music for the Films by Andy Warhol (1997)
• Magnet – "Don't be a Penguin" (1997)
• Charles Douglas – "The Lives of Charles Douglas" (1999)
• Bloodkin – "Out of State Plates" (1999)
• The Kropotkins – Five Points Crawl (2000)
• The Raveonettes – Pretty in Black (2005)

See also

In Spanish: Maureen Tucker para niños