Bebo Norman - ChristianMusic.com
Bebo Norman
The Georgia-born performer celebrated his most successful album to date, 2002's Myself When I Am Real. The album topped Billboard's Heatseekers chart and yielded back-to-back Top 5 radio hits with "Great Light of the World" and "Falling Down."
Contemporary Christian singer-songwriter Bebo Norman built up a grass-roots following through several years of touring in the mid-'90s, which helped promote sales of his self-released album The Fabric of Verse.
Both Bebo's parents were Christians , but they also allowed us room to make our mistakes. While we always knew where they stood, they were very consistent in love. Our relationships developed to the point that my parents became dear friends of mine. I have seen both my parents develop ministries out of friendships they have had with people, and I've seen that affect lives. That is how I hope to live. The work I did with an organization called Young Life also influenced me because they place an emphasis on relational ministry. If we are pursuing God, then we can pursue what we are passionate about knowing that His desires have become ours. Then, everything that happens around us is a kind of ministry.
Bebo was asked once "What part of God's power inspires you the most?" Bebo Norman says: "I would say the power to forgive? Not the need to, but the willingness to do so."
Amazingly, Bebo's realness hasn't been altered by the success of his six-year career as a singer/songwriter.
Bebo likewise joined the elite group of Dove Award winners thanks to his City on a Hill - Sing Alleluia hit "Holy Is Your Name." As the momentum mounted, he joined national headlining tours, hopped the pond for European dates, and graced the covers of CCM and Premier magazines. He even landed a coveted slot on the Imagine Tour with MercyMe and Amy Grant.
Norman was eventually signed to the Watershed subsidiary of Essential Records, where he released his official debut album, Ten Thousand Days, in 1999.
Bebo sculpted his newest songs into self-revealing works of art, focusing more than ever on letting them be a mirror into himself. He also commissioned Malone to paint his album cover, a piece woven with textures and a lived-in feel, capturing the essence of Bebo and his music.
With songs that confide his most intimate thoughts on God, faith and longing, it's appropriate that the project was created in the places Bebo feels the most at home.
The most articulate expression of Bebo's relationship with God is found on the album's stand-out radio single, "Great Light Of The World." Bebo premiered the stirring anthem nightly for thousands of fans during the Spring 2002 Come Together tour with Third Day. As bold and breathtaking as this song is, its timeless, hymn-like lyrics emerged from a quiet moment alone with God.
Big Blue Sky stretched me in healthy ways that were outside my limits, but now I've sprung back and landed in a place where I feel like an adult as a songwriter.
He's been featured on the covers of CCM, Release, Christian Single, and Premier magazines. His previous two national releases have seen critical acclaim, with Big Blue Sky named the No.1 Christian CD of 2001 by Amazon.com.
With fresh confidence, Bebo elevates his voice to new heights with Try. "Try" and "Standing in Your Silence" ponder how unconditional love inspires people to return to grace, while "Nothing Without You" considers the importance of God's central role in our lives.
Norman says, "I've never been as excited about one of my records as I am about Try, and the reason is simple - I think I've rediscovered the joy of songwriting with this new project. The songs are very simple, very straightforward, and more than ever, at the heart of where God has me right this minute in this life that I feel so blessed to live."
The new album also establishes a career first, as Bebo enlisted outside songwriters to help push his creativity without forfeiting his signature style. Equally significant, Bebo recorded Try with prominent producers Mitch Dane (Jars of Clay) and Matt Bronleewe (Michael W. Smith, Natalie Imbruglia). Overall, the new alliances helped Bebo capture the simple beauty that resides in each song.
Bebo strikes a balance with Try as the songs blend a pure organic energy with approachable pop hooks. Examples include the stripped-down "Finding You," the piano-and-strings filled "Drifting," and the serenely poetic "Soldier." Each song highlights Bebo's thoughtful lyrics and knowable voice, yet the singer reveals himself best in "Disappear." Inspired by a time of "getting away and quietly reevaluating who I am," the song reflects a personal experience that shapes the whole disc.
With so much continued success, Bebo had found little time to root himself in deeper relationships. Sensing the deficiency, Bebo "disappeared" into a quiet time of personal evaluation and emerged seeking relationships of depth. With new priorities the singer found fresh inspiration that overflowed into every area of his life. This growth opened the door, when he found the woman destined to be his better half, Bebo was asked what is your favorite song on your new CD. He answered "I really love the song "Try," the title track, it's written about my wife, which makes me happy. The song I really enjoy the most is a song called, "Nothing Without You", just because it was written early one morning in my living room as a prayer and it still speaks to me right now. I love it."
In an few different interview's Bebo was was asked some great question, Bebo was asked what are the things that you value the most? He's reply was I can say the things that I value the most are things at home. Although I love, love, love traveling and playing music, the real gift is the people around me. I call them my handful because we are given the three or four people in our life that really know us and it's taken me a long time to realize that the heart of life is really lived through those relationships.
Bebo, how would you describe the recent trends in the overall heart of Christian music over the last few years? There's a move towards worship, and worshipping is always a good thing. But I would say that we have to be careful not to reduce worship to just a song and emotions. Then he was asked what bible character inspires you the most? Bebo says Apart from Jesus, I'd probably say somebody like Mary Magdalene just because I think she's an example of how Jesus reaches us no matter what our own personal struggles are.
