Representative Albums: "Mail Order Magic," "Live in Hamburg," "Anthology: 1979-1998"
Biography
Roger Chapman is best known for his barbed-wire voice, used to front British '70s rock acts Family and Streetwalkers. He began a long-awaited solo career in 1978 that has led to over a dozen full-length releases. Never heard of them? It's not surprising; album-wise, he's been camped out in Germany for 20 years. His first album and tour got high praise in his British homeland, but critics cut into him soon after. When the hassle-free German market beckoned, Chapman began to focus all subsequent work there, where he has become a musical hero, the "Working Class Artist." Chapman split with his longtime writing partner, Charlie Whitney, after the breakup of Streetwalkers in 1977. He surrounded himself with ace session musicians to cut a debut solo effort, Chappo. It was an album of strong rock which catered to the singer and not the musicians. An appearance on Germany's Rockpalast TV show and the ensuing hit single, "Let's Spend the Night Together," gave Chapman the shot of success he needed, so he set up operations in Germany. Live in Hamburg was a reassuring second album, demonstrating the live energy of this experienced yet stage-crazed performer. Studio albums over the next few years blended straight power rock with funk, R&B and soul, all topped with Chapman's characteristic vocal style. In the 1981 German music awards, Chapman was voted Best Singer, and his Hyenas Only Laugh For Fun won an award. Chapman and his backing band, the Shortlist, released two alter-ego albums in the early '80s as the Riff Burglars. These releases honored roots and classic rock by artists like Chuck Berry, Willie Dixon and Leiber & Stoller. A lead vocal on Mike Oldfield's 1983 hit, "Shadow on the Wall," also added to Chapman's diverse repertoire. Chapman's mid-'80s foray into polished studio sounds did not fare well with his audience. When his extended partnership with guitarist Geoff Whitehorn ran it's course, Chapman returned to pure rock form with 1989's Walking the Cat, which featured Alvin Lee and old friend, Bob Tench. Two compilations filled a silent period in the mid '90s, but 1996's Kiss My Soul was a comeback for the guy who never went away. It even got attention and a pressing in Chapman's British homeland, where he often tours but has no domestic releases. This was followed by 1998's A Turn Unstoned? and the 2-CD Anthology; the next year saw re-releases of Chappo and Mail Order Magic. Moth to a Flame was issued in early 2001.~ Patrick Little, All Music Guide
Roger "Chappo" Chapman[1] was originally the vocalist for a band called Farinas formed by Charlie Whitney, who released the single "You'd Better Stop" in August 1964 . He is best known as a member of the progressive band Family, which he joined along with Charlie Whitney, in 1967 and also the rock, R&B band Streetwalkers formed in 1974. His idiosyncratic brand of on-stage showmanship and vocal vibrato led him to become a cult figure on the British rock scene. Chapman is claimed to have said that he was trying to sing like both Little Richard and his idol Ray Charles. Since the early 1980s he has spent much of his time in Germany. He has won an Artist of the Year award and was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2004.
During 1966 The Roaring sixties were renamed Family and they replaced their drummer Overnall with Rob Townsend. The band issued its first single as Family entitled Scene Through The Eye Of A Lens/Gypsy Woman in 1967[2] and Family's debut album Music in a Doll's House followed in July 1968. Family's heavy, experimental rock music gained them a reputation as a progressive underground band, and Whitney became famous both for his cocky expression and his double-necked Gibsonguitar. By 1970, with the release of their albums A Song For Me and Anyway and an unforgettable appearance at the third Isle of Wight Festival on 28 August in 1970, Family was creating some of the fastest and loudest rock and the most intense acoustic music in the British underground scene. Although Family proved to be popular in UK and continental Europe success in the US eluded them and in 1973 the group broke up.
Songwriting
Whitney's angular guitar passages on songs like "Drowned In Wine" and "Good News Bad News" were singled out by fans and critics as being essential to the Family sound. He and Chapman wrote most of Family's songs together as a team. Whitney did compose two tracks, the instrumental "Summer '67" and the childlike folk song "Processions" (about a small boy enjoying a day at the seashore).
Charlie Whitney and Roger Chapman formed Streetwalkers late in 1973. This new band included vocalist and guitarist Bobby Tench from The Jeff Beck Group and Hummingbird and future Iron Maiden drummer, Nicko McBrain. Streetwalkers was a polished AOR band with more elements of white soul than Family. They signed to the Vertigo label as Chapman Whitney Streetwalkers recording an album simply entitled Streetwalkers, released on the Reprise label in 1974, with a line up including other members of Family and King Crimson. Chapman and Whitney morphed their band into the "Streetwalkers" which comprised five members including Bobby Tench, drummer Nicko McBrain, who later moved onto play with Iron Maiden and bassist Jon Plotel. Tench, McBain and Plotel appeared on Rockpalast in 1975,[3] alongside Roger Chapman and Charley Whitney, billed as "The Whitney Chapman Streetwalkers" just before the band name was shortened. Their next album was entitled Downtown flyers which was released in USA during 1975. The groove heavy album Red Card[4] was released in the UK during 1976 and remains a much respected album.[5]Vicious but fair was also released by Vertigo in the same year and a final album Live Streetwalkers in 1977 followed, purely to fulfill contractual obligations.[6]Streetwalkers became highly respected by music fans and the music press. The band broke up in 1977, ending eleven years of the Whitney-Chapman musical partnership.
Solo career 1979-present
In 1979 Chapman began a solo career and recorded his first solo album, Chappo[7]. In 1983, Mike Oldfield recorded the album Crises[8] featuring the song "Shadow On The Wall" sung by Chapman. In 1986 he guested on the second Box of Frogs album "Strange Land" singing lead on two songs. Bobby Tench, from Streetwalkers, was reunited with Roger Chapman in 1989 and they recorded Walking the Cat, released by SPV'simprint label Maze in 1989 also Hybrid and Low Down, released by Polydor in 1990. Since then Chapman has released eleven albums of new and live recordings, the most recent is the studio album One More Time For Peace released by Mystic in 2007. The album Hide Go Seek by Chapman was released in May 2009.