Hey there. Thanks for checking out my page. If you’re wondering who I am, and what you should know about me, well… what do you need and want to know? What can I share?
I’m an artist, as you can see: a performing singer-songwriter and writer. The second born of four children in an amazing third-generation Italian-American family, I have two sisters and one brother.
Growing up in my Dad’s beauty salon, I fell in love with women and words earlier than most boys do. In between answering the phone, chatting with clientele and sweeping the floor, I read every magazine I could while there, from Harper’s to Vogue and plenty in between. Though I’ve cut back considerably on my subscriptions & impulsive bookstore buys of late, I’m an admitted magazine junkie to this day; it’s my favorite medium for reading anything.
I still adore & admire women – from my family, friends and fortunate loves to new friends who bring their own distinct inspiration into my storyline. My Mom, sisters and Gram are four of the most incredible people I’ve ever known; they help keep me balanced, if anyone does. And while it’s always been a constant no matter what twists and turns my life is taking, my love affair with writing is definitely enjoying renewed intensity these days.
Music mattered in our house. Everybody sang, Daddy played the organ, and each of my three siblings still has a voice more beautiful than mine. I’m just the kooky middle child who needs to make a living making music, who’s finally giving myself entirely to my calling.
Though I took up the guitar at age seven with some reluctance, radio permeated my childhood days. I spent hours listening to 60s and 70s pop, rock and R&B on my tiny transistor radio, then boombox, stereo and eventually, my first Walkman. We were practically inseparable! After a year’s worth of basic guitar lessons, my dirt bike and Star Wars action figures took priority. But by late 1980, John Lennon’s “Starting Over” and “Watching the Wheels” hit radio, awakening my eleven-year-old ears – along with John Cougar’s “Hurts So Good” – and I wanted to sing. Eddie Van Halen and The Edge, whose music I couldn’t get enough of, were also working their magic; their sound, style and songs made me literally fall in love with playing the guitar.
I’m fiercely passionate about my favorites, loves and concerns. As you can imagine!
As a kid, my favorite comic book character was Batman. Still is. Could be the natural protector in me, I guess. Maybe it’s my sense of justice, of setting things right and avenging wrongs, especially when they’re perpetrated against women or children. I’m no chauvinist, but I am a bit old-fashioned when it comes to this.
Even though I spent four (early 90s) years working behind the scenes in the music business (taking care of publicity & promotion for a Grammy-winning, internationally known artist roster), I’m still very much a music fan at heart.
Thanks to my writing, and my
EAR CANDY column, I’ve met and shared conversations with some of my favorite artists, among them heroes like Steve Lukather and Dominic Miller. But I’ve done my time in the nine-to-five trenches as well, spending a decade of days toiling in the corporate world. That chapter is one I’ve gladly closed (95-05), no matter what the future holds in store for me. As I wrote for Bob Baker’s “Buzz Factor” not long ago, most of us are artists 24 hours a day, no matter where our work-weeks are spent to pay our rent. Sometimes our daily grind temporarily makes us lose sight of this, lose ourselves or our souls in the process.
As far as my music goes, you may wonder what (or who) I sound like, a worthy yet tricky question. After hearing the four songs on this page, how would you describe my sound – my voice, lyrics, melodies, music & songs – if you were telling a friend about me? I can share some critics’ comparisons so far, but I’d rather let your imagination simmer.
I do hope to make music that gets to you the way my favorite artists have always gotten to me. Songs that feel like they’ve been written for (or about) us, so close to our own emotions and experiences.
On that note, I’d love to share some of the music that moves me: artists whose singing and songwriting absolutely inspire me, whose recordings and performances really get to me, a few of them good friends making sweet music out on the road & radio (though it’s nearly impossible to list them all here):
Justin Currie, del Amitri, Juliana Hatfield, Jude Cole, Johnny Cash, Bob Dylan, Eddie Van Halen, Harriet Wheeler, The Edge, U2, Steve Lukather, The Beatles, Chantal Kreviazuk, Willie Nelson, Stephen Kellogg & The Sixers, Ray Charles, Alice Peacock, Hal Benoit, David Sanborn, Jeff Porcaro, Diana Krall, Hank Williams, Mary Lou Lord, Josh Ritter, Neal Schon, Norah Jones, Frankie Sullivan, Survivor, Mary Ann Farley, Indigo Girls, Mark Erelli, Keith Scott, Garrison Starr, G.E. Smith, Karen Carpenter, Michael McDonald, Tracy Grammer, Kenny Loggins, Patty Griffin, Burt Teague, Jackson Browne, Patty Larkin, Marshall Crenshaw, Tiffany Arbuckle, John Hiatt, Rebecca Correia, Lyle Lovett, Martina McBride, Freedy Johnston, Lisa Martin, Sade, Elvis Costello, The Corrs, Neil Finn, Crowded House, Kelly Willis, Rhett Miller, Beth Orton, Sheryl Crow, Ryan Adams, Abra Moore, Lisa Bastoni, John Mayer, Tara MacLean, David Gray, Alison Krauss, Michael Buble, Rachael Yamagata, John Pizzarelli, Fleetwood Mac, Kate Callahan, Jon Brion, Hall & Oates, Alastair Moock, Guster, Dido, Counting Crows, Scout, Jerree Small, Frente!, Danny Kortchmar, Chely Wright, The Wallflowers, Annie Lennox, Eric Clapton, Mary Lee’s Corvette…
In the years since I began actively songwriting and performing live again, I’ve been blessed in many ways. I’ve had the immensely good fortune to open performances for artists I admire including Will Hoge, Jeffrey Gaines, Freedy Johnston, Eliza Gilkyson, Susan Werner and They Might Be Giants (at two noted venues on the same Northampton night!), Steve Forbert and David Wilcox, among others. My own songs have been recorded alongside some of my favorite area musicians as well, from guitarists Jim Chapdelaine and Duke Levine to multi-instrumentalist Jim Henry, bassists Richard Gates and Drew Glackin, drummers Jon Peckman and Doug Plavin… and a humbling cast of supporting characters.
I’ve performed in bars and churches, parking lots and concert halls from Hartford to Hollywood, Northampton to New York to Nashville; I've sung for a wildly eclectic, enthusiastic rush hour crowd on Hollywood Boulevard and swapped songs under the starry summer skies of Falcon Ridge; had one sermon written around my song “So Much Of What I Wanted,” and a beautiful baby girl born to the sounds of my first song “Here & Now” (but not my own daughter, since I’ve no children yet). I’ve traveled a bit but need to see the world as a touring artist, behind these six strings and the sound of my own voice. More than anywhere else, I yearn to see my grandfather’s birthplace in Italy, with Ireland and Scotland coming in a close second and third.
I love great songs. I love it when a new voice compels me to listen, when a song’s grooves and hooks are so irresistible, I completely lose myself within the music. As I said, I’m still a huge music fan, equal parts artist and artist advocate. If I send you an add request, it’s only because I’ve taken the time to visit your page, read and listen, finding something I really like (or love!) about your sensibility and work.
I could go on & on & on & on… but if you’ve read this far, you’ve got a sense of who I am. Feel free to email me anytime; I wish you only the best in everything you do!
It was SO great to catch up with you the other night! Thanks for checking in with me. I hope that the new CD brings you all of the recognition & success that you deserve!!!
thanks for the add! Bill Champlin's new album "No Place Left To Fall" is now avaiable in the U.S. The songs and performances are really great, and it features an AWESOME band and special guests including Steve Lukather, Michael English, and Peter Cetera. To order the CD/DVD you can click on the banner on my page, or you can visit www.dreammakersmusic.com. For International friends and fans, the CD/DVD is available at www.amazon.com and other major online retailers. I am sure you will love it, and Bill will really appreciate your support!
Une fois n'est pas coutume, merci de nous aider à faire un peu de pub pour le prochain concert d'Elodie Ruillier au Zèbre de Belleville. Venez nombreux ! A bientôt,
hey hey! great job last night - sorry i'm a horrible person and didn't say goodbye. i was STARVING! so rebecca mentioned that you have a connection at the frisky berry? what do you think about maybe doing a night w/ the 3 of us (and whoever else, maybe patty griffin could play?!) just planting a bug in your ear :)
