Musical career
Growing up in Tumbler Ridge and later Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, The Moffatts learned singing early in their lives and singing country music with their mother, Darlana and father, Frank Moffatt, first appearing on-stage in 1990. In 1992, after performing at large-scale country music festivals, the group was nominated for five awards by the British Columbia Country Music Association.
In 1992, the Moffatt family moved to Branson, Missouri where they performed at the Osmonds theatre. In March 1993 they moved to Nashville, Tennessee were they became regulars on TNN's Nashville Now with Ralph Emery. In October, they joined the cast of the Country Tonite show at the Aladdin Hotel in Las Vegas. In 1994 Country Tonite opened a new theatre in Branson and the Moffatts became a part of that cast. In June 1995 they released their first country album, titled The Moffatts. In 1996, the brothers' parents divorced and the boys lived primarily with their father, who also managed the group until their 2001 break up.
In their teens, the group dropped out of the country music genre and recorded a new album, Chapter One: A New Beginning, and began singing pop/rock music. Prior to their teens the band would only sparingly perform their own instruments and had a back-up band, but now chose to go it alone with Scott on lead guitar, Clint on bass guitar, Dave on keyboards and Bob on drums. Lead vocals on the album were shared between Scott and Dave, however live they all took their turns. Chapter One sold more than two million copies worldwide and almost went double platinum in their native Canada. It was produced in part by the Berman Brothers (who also worked for Hanson and Real McCoy) in New York and Toronto. One single on the US version, the Glen Ballard-produced "Until You Loved Me," appeared in the Drew Barrymore film, Never Been Kissed. "Misery" in Chapter 1: A New Beginning (US Version) is on the soundtrack of the movie Teaching Mrs. Tingle starring Katie Holmes. Chapter One was also very popular in Europe, which allowed the group to write and record a song with German teen idol Gil Ofarim.
Following the success of Chapter One, the group stated publicly that they would be working with Dave Grohl of Foo Fighters on their next album, in an attempt to break away from their boy-band image. Grohl, however, was quoted on MuchMusic.com as saying that he had never heard of the band and did not intend to work with them. Truth be told Dave spoke with the band at a Juno aftershow party and stated he was interested in producing the band. However, later, his manager felt it wasn't the right mix.
The follow-up album Submodalities was released in October 2000, and contained a more classic/harder edged rock flavor than typical "boy band" fare. The transition between the bubblegum pop of their prior album and the harder edge of the new was captured in the 2001 documentary, Moffatts: Closing of Chapter One. The Moffatts wrote or co-wrote almost all of the album songs. Bob Rock, who has produced albums for such superstars as Metallica and Bon Jovi, produced Submodalities. The album was also certified platinum by the CRIA selling over 100,000 copies. The first single, "Bang Bang Boom" at that time was the fastest rising single to #1 in Canadian music history and topped the retail singles chart in Canada.
[edit] TV appearances
Throughout the nineties, The Moffatts made hundreds of live performances and hundreds of television appearances worldwide. In addition to these performances and interviews, the band also appeared as themselves on the NBC TV show Hang Time in 1999, performing the song "Girl of My Dreams" for the school. In 2000, they again played themselves on the Disney Channel show So Weird in the episode "Destiny". Fiona Phillips, the lead character in the show, was an obsessed fan on the show, while her mom Molly Phillips, played by Mackenzie Phillips, was performing with The Moffatts. During the same year, the group appeared in the documentary, The Closing of Chapter One, detailing their move from pop to rock.
They performed "Guns of Love" on Good Morning America in July 1995.
In 1999, the Moffats also did an episode of TV show Campbell Scramble, a show that Calgary's CTV sports newscaster Glenn Campbell made. His three daughters, Kate, Madeline, and Amy appeared on this episode as well.
Break-up
In August 2001, the group broke up following their concert in London, Ontario. Scott Moffatt had enough of the comparisons to boy-bands and felt that the band wasn't receiving the credit they deserved as both musicians and entertainers, and now that he had completed his five year commitment to the band, chose to quit. Dave Moffatt recently appeared on Canadian TV program, Entertainment Tonight Canada, where it was stated that the band broke up because his father was not able to accept his sexuality. It was also stated that "The Moffatts" was his father's dream, and that he had pushed himself and his brothers into it.
Frank's take on these comments were - "The Moffatts break up had nothing to do with Dave's sexuality, but it does make for good press." As for The Moffatts being Frank's dream, he stated that the dream originally was Scott's, however he does admit to pushing the band once the ball was in motion. "You can't be the best young band (Backstreet Boys & NSYNC were also vocal boy-band groups) in the world without consistency and hard work, but granted there may have been a better way of me doing things." He then commented, "I'll be the first one to admit I wasn't the perfect father, but we all have good relationships now and I'm working on improving my parenting skills daily." Frank also commented, "I think the fact that they are all still active in music answers a lot of questions in itself."
After the break-up, two of the triplets, Bob and Clint Moffatt, briefly joined a group called Pusch and performed at the 2002 Winter Olympics. The band was later renamed Hidell [1], and lasted slightly over a year and released one album. Bob relocated to Ban Phe, Thailand, where he began working on an English singing contest with an educational organization called TEFL International. Bob convinced Clint to join him in Thailand and start a band called Same Same under the Thailand label. Same Same had chart-topping hits in Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines.
Scott Moffatt resurfaced in an Ontario-based band The Boston Post, named after the old New England newspaper. The original lineup included Shawn Everett on drums, Jon Gant on guitar and Neal Gupta on bass. They released an EP titled It's 99PM in 2003. A video interview with Scott Moffatt from the Holiday Train show in Sparwood, BC on December 13, 2005 confirmed that he planned to go solo and was recording in LA. On April 10, 2006, song previews from the upcoming independent release The Allegory of the City were put up on his music page along with the promise of a limited edition version soon being available for pre order. The new songs are all acoustic and reveal a folk rock/pop vibe. He played all instruments and did all vocals on the record, as well as produced it. The CD will be available worldwide but tour dates have not been determined. The album is available at www.myspace.com/scottmoffattmusic. Scott is currently in Thailand producing a rock band called Slot Machine.
Dave Moffatt eventually relocated to Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, at first with aspirations of attending the University of Winnipeg and then deciding to launch an acting and modeling career. In addition to hosting karaoke nights at a local gay bar (including Calgary's Twisted Element), Dave also appeared in a 2005 Winnipeg production of Miss Saigon and was a contestant on Canadian Idol, making it into the top 32 before being eliminated.
In 2004, the Canadian Pacific Railway announced in a press release that Bob and Clint were "reunited" and appeared under the name "The Moffatts" for the railway's Holiday Train program, a mobile fundraiser for community food banks. In 2005, Scott also joined the tour (see this photograph (Clint to the far left, Scott and Bob to the far right).
Although the group has shut down its main website, the Moffatts remain popular in Europe; its German fansite, linked below, is quite active.
Scott Moffatt is currently in Bangkok, Thailand working with rock bands for record company Sony BMG. Clint and Bob Moffatt moved to Thailand in 2006 and formed Same Same. They now reside in Nashville, Tennessee and perform country music under the name Two Bullet Parade. They also participated in the Task Force Afghanistan Show Tour in December 2008 to entertain the Canadian troops. Dave Moffatt was in a Toronto-based band called Lights Out Love. He still lives in Canada and eventually started a career as a yoga instructor.
Reunions
The Moffatts reunited for the first time in over ten years for an online Christmas show on Stageit on December 22, 2012. The set list included Christmas carols and songs picked by fans from the entire Moffatts' catalog, including solo records and Like Strangers/Same Same.
In 2016, Clint, Scott, and Bob reformed The Moffats without Dave to embark on a farewell tour. The tour kicked off in February 2017 and hit stops in Indonesia, Singapore, and the Philippines. In May 2017, Dave came out of retirement to hold a farewell concert of his own in Manila. By the end of 2017, the Moffats' farewell turned into a complete reunion, as Dave rejoined the band to work on new music. A 6 track EP "Chapter II" was released in November 2018 and was followed by The Reunion Tour 2018.
Full names
* Scott Andrew Moffatt (Scott Moffatt) - Lead vocals, Guitars
* Clinton Thomas John Moffatt (Clint Moffatt) - Lead vocals, Bass, Percussion
* Robert Franklin Peter Moffatt (Bob Moffatt) - Lead vocals, Drums
* David William Michael Moffatt (Dave Moffatt) - Lead vocals, Keyboards
When God Made You
The Moffatts Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
He made the mountains, the deserts and the plains
But I wonder was it in his master plan
That there'd be earthquakes, floods, and hurricanes
When I see the peaceful sky, sometimes I wonder
How could it turn so dark and be so cruel
This old world is full of imperfections
But I found one exception to the rule
When God made you
He had something else in mind
When God made you
He took a little extra time
When we're surrounded by a world that's slowly sinking
Your gentle eyes and loving smile make me forget
Though you're only flesh and blood, I can't help thinking
If you have a flaw, I haven't found it yet.
When God made you
He had something else in mind
When God made you
He took a little extra time
When God made you
He did something so divine
When God made you
He took a little extra time.
The Moffatts's song When God Made You talks about the imperfections in the world and how it is filled with earthquakes, floods, and hurricanes. The opening lines suggest that God created the oceans, mountains, deserts, and plains with a wave of his hand. However, the lyrics express a sense of wonder if the creation of such natural disasters was in his plan. The peaceful sky sometimes turns dark and becomes cruel, and this can make people question the imperfections in the world. Despite these imperfections, the singer has found an exception to the rule, and it's the person they are singing about.
The singer then praises the person for their gentle eyes, loving smile, and flawless nature. They feel that in a world that's slowly sinking, this person's beautiful qualities make them forget about the imperfections. As the song progresses, the singer repeats the phrases "When God made you, he had something else in mind" and "When God made you, he took a little extra time," emphasizing the uniqueness of the person and the divinity that was put into their creation.
Overall, the song reflects on the beauty of individuals and how they are God's perfect creation, despite the flaws in the world around us.
Line by Line Meaning
God made the oceans and with a wave of his hand
God created the vast oceans with just a single wave of his hand, showing his great power and command over nature.
He made the mountains, the deserts and the plains
God also created the mountains, deserts, and plains, showcasing his ability to create a diverse and beautiful world for us to live in.
But I wonder was it in his master plan
Despite God's grand creations, there are still imperfections in the world, making us wonder if they were meant to be a part of his ultimate plan.
That there'd be earthquakes, floods, and hurricanes
Natural disasters like earthquakes, floods, and hurricanes raise questions about why they occur and the role they play in God's plan.
When I see the peaceful sky, sometimes I wonder
The tranquility of a calm sky can make us contemplate the tragedy and violence that can happen on Earth.
How could it turn so dark and be so cruel
Darkness can represent evil and cruelty that exists in the world, which is in contrast to the goodness and light represented by God.
This old world is full of imperfections
The world we live in isn't perfect, and everything in it is flawed in one way or another.
But I found one exception to the rule
Still, there is a glimmer of hope, and one exception to the world's flaws and imperfections.
When God made you
The singer is referring to someone who represents this exception, and acknowledging that they were created by God.
He had something else in mind
God had a special plan or purpose in mind when creating this person.
He took a little extra time
The care and attention that God took in creating this person was greater than for others, indicating their significance.
When we're surrounded by a world that's slowly sinking
Despite the imperfections of the world, the presence of this exceptional person makes it more bearable, providing comfort and hope even in times of trouble.
Your gentle eyes and loving smile make me forget
The sight of this exceptional person provides the singer with a sense of calm and happiness, allowing them to forget the worries of life.
Though you're only flesh and blood, I can't help thinking
Even though this exceptional person is a human being with flaws and imperfections, the singer still thinks of them as something special and unique.
If you have a flaw, I haven't found it yet
The singer views this exceptional person as nearly perfect, and cannot think of any flaws or imperfections that they possess.
He did something so divine
The creation of this exceptional person was not an ordinary act, but something that can only be described as divine.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: G. BROOKS, P. ALGER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Mo Mie 10.11.12
Perfect harmony and melody!
Jessica Winkler
I had their CDs when I was a kid and absolutely loved it. I can't find the songs from this album anywhere now. So nostalgic.
TinaMfam
I remember listening to their tape as a young person
kc cuyco
I love this song!
Dewi Agustina
These guys really are talented..
fridz66
Nina Kim no question about it.
Omni and Bryce
I would listen to this song whenever I felt so down as a kid. It's like God was reminding me that I have a bright future ahead. I'm happily maried to the woman of my dreams today and we have beautiful kids. 💚
Gwen Hunt
INSPIRATIONAL !!!!
Vince Craig
Amazing
Cody Price
When God Made Y’all He Took A Lil Extra Time