Well, this is the big one—nearly 21 minutes long, as the card in the cassette proclaims. That card also notes that "Last Call" was completed May 30, 1989 (I was 17). This was after at least a couple weeks of composing, recording, numerous attempts at bouncing down to make space for further parts on my Tascam four-track followed by more overdubbing, and mixing. The inspiration was Alan Hovhaness' Saint Vartan Symphony, which is similarly made up of many short, separate movements that are all closely related to each other. Although I was (and still am) inordinately proud of "Last Call," I never did anything more with it. I loved how it came out with me handling all the parts, and I didn't feel I could ever play it with a rock band. I've thought several times over the years about scoring it for some kind of ensemble, but what the exact instrumentation should be has always eluded me. It might be hard to approximate the sound of the lead "voice" here, which was produced using the wonderfully malfunctioning reverb channel of an SR (Sears Roebuck) 40XL amp.

Box of Urchins Not Received

Last Call to the River

New Album, 2014
Buy it on : www.afrikanprotokol.be

01 France Au Revoir

A Paul Motian composition played by me on tenor, Todd Capp (drums) and Reuben Radding (bass).

ABACUS

Thomas Chapin Trio (Thomas Chapin - sax, Mario Pavone - bass, Michael Sarin - drums) perform "Anima" (Thomas Chapin) in Graz, Austria, May 1994.

This is a selection from "Unreleased Live Recordings of the Thomas Chapin Trio in Europe".

Thomas Chapin Trio with Mario Pavone & Mike Sarin - "Anima" in Graz, Austria, May 1994

Demos and finished recordings from the 2005 production, written produced and performed by Fake Brain. The band: Gideon Kendall - vocals and electronics, Andrew Solin - guitar and vocals Marc Friedlander - drums and vocals, James Pertusi - bass and vocals. With extra instrumentation by Kevin Lacroix and Rose Thomson.

ballad of dead willie

fonkay cashgrabbaz

Thomas Chapin, 40, Raucous Musician

February 15, 1998
The New York Times by Peter Watrous

Thomas Chapin, one of the more exuberant saxophonists and band leaders in jazz, died of complications due to leukemia on Friday at Rhode Island Hospital in Providence , said a friend, Sam Kaufman. He was 39.

Mr. Chapin was one of jazz's more extraordinary musicians. A typical solo of his moved easily between traditional jazz and the sonic explorations of the avant-garde, and in concert he was a showman, using yells and roars and howls to charge his performances.

Mr. Chapin was a fan of two of the more raucous saxophonists in jazz history, Rahsaan Roland Kirk and Earl Bostic, and he approached his shows in part as theater. None of his extroversion diminished the sense that Chapin was deeply studied, and in his playing one heard everything from folk music of the world to be-bop, from classical music to early jazz. And Mr. Chapin was one of the few musicians to exist in both the worlds of the downtown, experimentalist scene and mainstream jazz.

He came to his breadth of knowledge naturally. Mr. Chapin began his serious studies in the early 1980s, attending the University of Hartford and studying with saxophonist Jackie McLean. He later graduated from Rutgers University, after studying with pianist Kenny Barron. The schooling he received allowed him to take over the leadership of Lionel Hampton's orchestra for six years, starting in 1981, and also maintain a position in Chico Hamilton's band as a saxophonist.

But Mr. Chapin had other ideas, and in the late 1980s he formed his own groups, most notably a trio with the bassist Mario Pavone and the drummer Steve Johns. And he entered the fertile world of the Knitting Factory; Mr. Chapin was the first artist signed by the club's record label, Knitting Factory Records.*

For nearly 10 years Mr. Chapin pursued his own music, working with the trio at festivals and clubs around the world, and also arranging larger groups. And he spent a good portion of his time working with the more important names in various factions of jazz. He performed with John Zorn, Dave Douglas, Ned Rothenberg, Marty Ehrlich, Ray Drummond, Ronnie Mathews, Peggy Stern, Tom Harrell, Anthony Braxton and many more. Over his career Mr. Chapin recorded about 15 albums; his most recent, "Sky Piece" (Knitting Factory), a trio recording was recently released. He is survived by a wife, Terri Castillo Chapin, of Queens .

Copyright © 1998 by The New York Times Co.
Reprinted with permission.

Thomas Chapin Trio with Mario Pavone & Mike Sarin - "Anima" in Graz, Austria, May 1994

Thomas Chapin Trio (w/Mario Pavone, Michael Sarin)

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