Roger Maxwell Chapman (born 8 April 1942 in Leicester), also known as Chappo, is an English rock vocalist.[1] He is best known as a member of the progressive rock band Family, which he joined along with Charlie Whitney, in 1966 and also the rock, R&B band Streetwalkers formed in 1974. His idiosyncratic brand of showmanship when performing 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 and has made occasional appearances there and elsewhere.
In Germany, he was awarded an Artist of the Year award during the 1980s, followed by a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2004.[2]
Career
Chapman was originally the vocalist for Farinas, who released the single "You'd Better Stop" b/w "I Like It Like That" in August 1964. (However, lead vocals on that single were performed by Jim King.) He moved on to join The Roaring Sixties who were renamed Family in 1966.
Family
In 1967 Family released their first single "Scene Through The Eye of a Lens", whic became a psychedelic favorite. Chapman wrote most of Family's songs with Charlie Whitney and their debut album Music in a Doll's House was released in 1968. Their bluesy, experimental rock music gained them a reputation as a progressive underground band.
The release of Family Entertainment (1969), A Song for Me (1970) and Anyway (1970) established Family as a fast and loud rock band also capable of producing the most intense acoustic music, in the British underground music scene, at that time. Their single "The Weaver's Answer" from the Family Entertainment album was a hit in 1969. On 28 August 1970 they appeared at the third Isle of Wight Festival. Although the band was popular in U.K and Europe, success in the U.S eluded them and in 1973 the band broke up.[3]
Chapman-Whitney morphed their band into Streetwalkers, a polished album-oriented rock band who played white soul, taking a different direction to Family. The band released Downtown Flyers (1975)and then recorded the groove heavy album Red Card (1976)[4] which was released in the U.K in 1976 and remains a much respected album by music fans and the music press.[5] Two more albums followed before the band broke up in 1977, ending eleven years of the Whitney-Chapman musical partnership.
Solo
In 1979 Chapman began a solo career and recorded his first solo album Chappo.[6] His backing band became known as 'The Shortlist' and he toured Europe extensively. Mike Oldfield's song "Shadow on the Wall" from the album Crises (1983) featured Chapman on vocals and became a hit.[7] He appeared as a guest artist on the second Box of Frogs album Strange Land (1986) singing lead vocals on two songs. Chapman went on to record Walking the Cat (1989) and Hybrid and Low Down (1990).
During the next years eleven more studio and live recordings were released. His album Hide Go Seek was produced by former Family bassist Jim Cregan and released in May 2009. He appeared at the Rhythm Festival on Saturday 21 August 2010 with his performance billed as 'The farewell performance from Roger Chapman & The Shortlist'.[8]
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