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Your Gateway to Music and More from a Christian Perspective Slow down as you approach the gate, and have your change ready.... |
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Since 1996 |
Your Gateway to Music and More from a Christian Perspective Slow down as you approach the gate, and have your change ready.... |
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Bill Champlin of Chicago gives Michael Dalton some orders (Follow-up questions I had to ask) By Michael Dalton Bill Champlin is a Grammy-winning songwriter and has been a member of Chicago for almost 30 years. Champlin has also led a band known as the Sons of Champlin, who were part of the San Francisco scene in the late sixties. Unlike the folk rock popular at the time, the Sons had a more sophisticated sound that incorporated horns, like Chicago. They produced a number of recordings that are worth checking out. My initial interview (posted last month) with Champlin left me wanting to ask more about Chicago, the Sons and his solo work. Dalton: Were you asked to become part of Chicago to help fill the void created when former lead singer Peter Cetera left the band? Champlin: I joined Chicago three years before Peter Cetera left the band, at the time of Chicago 16 and Chicago 17. I think one of the reasons I got that gig is that Peter and I did a vocal date together on another project and the blend was way cool. I was also able to play some guitar parts, but, more importantly, I could play the David Foster piano stuff. Still, playing those parts, I think they also saw me as the guy who could sound like Terry Kath. These days I don't sing that many of Terry's songs. I just don't do copy stuff that well; I can sound like ME pretty well and that's about it. Dalton: How did Peter Cetera and Michael English come to be on No Place Left to Fall, your new solo recording? Champlin: I just asked Peter to come by and do some background vocals. We talked about making it a duet, but I think it was best to keep it to backgrounds or the whole album would be forgotten except for that song. Michael English is a contemporary Christian singer whom I’ve worked for on a few of his albums, and I just thought he would tear it up. And he did. Dalton: Is this solo recording an extension of your work with Chicago and the Sons? How is it different and how did this project come into being? Champlin: My solo album, No Place Left To Fall, is another in a series of solo albums I’ve done since 1978. Of course, some people think it's an extension of all the other stuff I do. I'm using the same voice but it's way different than Chicago or the Sons. It had been at least 10 or 11 years since my last solo album, but I met with the folks from Dream Makers Record Company, and I liked what they wanted to do with the label. It’s taken a while to get it out in the US but it’s been really well-received in Europe and Japan. It’s coming out in August. There will be a “Making of” DVD sold with the CD. It’s a good album. Get it. That’s an order!! Dalton: I wonder how it came about for you to sing background vocals on Lead Me On by Amy Grant. I often wondered if the Bill Champlin listed in the liner notes was the Champlin that I knew from the Sons of Champlin. I just discovered that it was you. Champlin: The Lead Me On record was maybe the second or third album I’d worked on with Amy. My wife, Tamara, and I did Angels along with Tom Funderburk before the “Lead Me On” project was done. I think Amy’s albums were opening a lot of musical doors back then mostly by doing a lot of the tracks and vocals in LA, ‘cause, at the time, LA was a little further down the musical road than Nashville. I think now it’s all the same everywhere. There are some major players here in Nashville that are at the top of their game. Dalton: Will Chicago continue
to record new material? How about the Sons, or will you focus more on solo
releases in your spare time?
Dalton: On the CD release
of The Sons (1969) you have a couple of bonus tracks titled “Jesus
is Coming” Part 1 & 2. Were these songs a reflection of an idea that
was taking root in popular culture or was there something more behind it?
Dalton: I read recently that
one artist believes music is best experienced live. What’s your take on
that? Your answer could inspire people to get out of their homes this summer
and stimulate the economy.
Dalton: What is the release
date for the CD/DVD version of No Place Left to Fall, which I note
is getting five star reviews from iTunes customers? Will the CD/DVD version
be available through the usual outlets?
I look at music these days
as, on one hand, kind of a dismal industry, but on the other hand, a pretty
cool thing since most of the “experts,” who have been shaping the music
are unemployed, and the musicians are making their albums their way. We
don’t have guys telling us to sound like someone else as much as we used
to. The bad news is that listeners have to dig a little harder to find
the indie music; the good news is that it’s better music. Keep your ears
to the ground ‘cause there’s kind of a resurgence of cool stuff out there
and my album is part of that new thing. It may be somewhat familiar sounding
but it’s new and REAL.
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