Geoff Moore Geoff Moore heaps several vocational roles onto his plate these days. In addition to his best-known job as a sought-after performer and singer/songwriter, Moore’s also a music industry businessman, artist manager, non-profit organization board member, mentor to young musicians—even a hunting guide. Perhaps dearest to this generous heart, after his own family, stands Moore’s work as a fervent advocate for eradicating global poverty, which now drives him to promote adoption, too. His continuing campaign to help not just some children but every single one inspires Moore’s latest music project, a two-album collection appropriately titled Every Single One. Released on Overflow, the independent label he co-manages, these records debut 8 new songs from the Grammy-nominated artist and re-recorded classic hits from Geoff’s multi-Dove Award-winning career. “I wanted to take some of my favorite old songs and re-record them as well as write a few new ones,” Moore says. His refashioned original songs are mostly driven by acoustic guitar and piano, assuming more simple musical arrangements. “These are reinterpretations, yes, but they don’t stray so far away that longtime fans won’t recognize their favorites. I hope people new to my music will also find something they like because sonically both albums reflect what’s current and relevant today in music,” Geoff explains. Moore’s original plan called for just one album, but as the recording sessions evolved, great ideas flourished, culminating in Every Single One: Part I and Every Single One: Part II. A first for this veteran artist, Moore self-produced the Every Single One albums, handpicking session players from among his career collaborators, including Dana Weaver (guitar), Paul Eckberg (drums/percussion), Ian Fitchuk and Blair Masters (keyboards/piano), Chris Wiegel (bass) and Bruce Wethy (fiddle). Moore also credits studio musician and Steven Curtis Chapman sideman Adam Lester, who counts Moore as one of his early influences, for creative guitar tracks as well as production assistance. Opening Every Single One: Part I is a new track, the devotional-like “Your Day,” co-written with Joel Hanson. “It’s a song about the morning, about starting a new day living more expectantly,” Geoff explains. “Dietrich Bonhoeffer, celebrated scholar and Lutheran minister, writes that there’s something sacred about the beginning of each day. We’re rested and things look different in the daylight. Add to that God’s mercy is new for us every day. It’s light chasing darkness—I love that view of new beginnings.” Also making its debut is Moore’s cover of “This Is My Father’s World.” Here Geoff, an avid outdoorsman, celebrates God’s lush creation. Additional Part I tracks are favorites “Good to Be Alive,” “If You Could See What I See,” “A Friend Like You” and “Passionate Man,” among others. Included on Every Single One: Part II is another Hanson title, “Captured,” a more recent concert pleaser, which Geoff records here for the first time. “That’s What Love Will Do,” co-written with Ben Glover rounds out the disc’s new material. Additional selections on Part II are Moore’s hits “Listen to Our Hearts,” “Heart and Soul,” “Home Run,” “Foundations” and “When All Is Said and Done.” Topping the list of new songs is “Every Single One,” co-written with Glover. Each album showcases a different version of the inspiring title track. “As reflected in the chorus of ‘Every Single One,’ my most intimate spiritual encounters happen when I work with the poor,” Moore says. “When poverty touches my life somehow, when I am involved in helping the deprived, I’m a better person for it.” Moore’s charge against poverty stems from his experience as a two-decade spokesperson for Compassion International, one of the nation’s largest child development organizations. Part of his touring—Geoff still performs more than 100 dates a year—includes the original event series “An Evening of Compassion,” a family entertainment evening that also calls people to discover their role in serving those in need. Moore’s guests have been such likeminded top artists as Rachael Lampa, Caedmon’s Call, Ginny Owens, Tait, Big Daddy Weave and Bebo Norman. Influenced, too, by his work with the poor, Moore also works as an adoption advocate. He serves as a board member of Shaohannah’s Hope, an adoption foundation established by the family of Steven Curtis Chapman. Further, Geoff and his wife of 22 years, Jan, recently adopted two daughters from Hunan, China: Anna Grace and Ashley Rose. They join the Moore’s two boys, Justin and Josh. “Whether I’m spending time with my family or promoting Compassion, I’m reminded of what really matters in life. Working to eliminate poverty is a total priority adjuster. It makes real a great spiritual truth about how destitute we are without God in our lives.” Every Single One follows 2002’s A Beautiful Sound, one of several solo albums Moore has released since retiring his band The Distance in 1998. Earlier this year, Moore bowed out of his lauded 15-year partnership with ForeFront Records to work with Overflow, Inc., the entertainment and artist management company he launched in 2001 alongside David Lipscomb. Geoff maintains his artistry while also helping to build up the Christian music community’s next generation of musicians. Today Moore works with artists like The Afters, The Swift and singer/songwriter Danny Oertli, continuing a mentoring role he first developed during his years at ForeFront. He says, “We believe God’s word is true and that ‘out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks.’ I’m honored to be able to take the lessons of my career and share them with our artists, walking along side them as they pursue their callings.” Though he’s busier than ever, Moore finds his work deeply satisfying
and is energized to fulfill each and every commitment. |