Tom Chapin performing at Caffe Lena a hot ticket
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. >> Sometimes you get to be a legend without even noticing it. That’s what’s happened to Tom Chapin, whose appearance at Caffe Lena in Saratoga Springs on Saturday has turned into the hottest ticket in town.
The scheduled 8 p.m. performance has already sold out and a 4 p.m. show has been added. According to Caffe Lena, that show is also close to selling out.
In a recent telephone interview Chapin, who turns 74 in March, says about his popularity, “I guess I became a folk- elder without realizing it.” He added, “I feel very blessed. I’ve had a lifetime of gathering good friends, good music and good times.”
Though as an individual performer, he never had that big hit single that either identifies a career or jump- starts one. Regardless, he has produced a sturdy, diverse body of work.
He’s been a major solo performer at coffee houses and festivals throughout the country. He had a television show and performed in Off-Broadway musicals. He is known as an artist who has as much influence on the children’s market as he does with adults.
Chapin rejects labels, calling himself “a story-teller,” as he refers to himself as “a child of Pete Seeger.”
“I don’t write angry songs. I don’t proselytize. Pete never said you should be doing this or not doing that. If he wanted you to think about war he’d sing a song about someone’s son returning from battle. He’d trust the material to get you thinking. Like him, I trust the audience.”
Chapin has been performing since the 60s, when he formed a trio with his two brothers Steve and Harry and sang as the Chapins. They were a viable part of the folk scene in New York City’s Greenwich Village until 1966, when each member decided to pursue an individual career.
Tom left the country to perform throughout Europe, and when he returned to the United States, he used his story-telling and musical gifts to host the children’s television program “Make a Wish” from 1971-76.
Meanwhile, his brother Harry became one of the biggest recording stars in the country with songs like “Cat’s in the Cradle” and “Taxi.”
The brothers stayed close. Tom and Harry collaborated on the theater piece “Cotton Patch Gospel.” When Harry was killed in an automobile ac- cident in 1981, Tom stayed with the project, and shepherded it to a successful Off-Broadway run. Bitten by the theater bug, Tom also appeared in the musical “Pump Boys and the Dinettes” and created a musical revue based on his brother’s songs.
He still speaks highly of his brother Harry Chapin, who he calls “a gifted story-teller and a wonderful humanitarian.” Indeed, Tom is still deeply involved with and does frequent fundraising concerts for WHY HUNGER, the charity his bother co-founded.
However, if Tom Chapin ever had a calling, it might be his connection with music written with children in mind.
He tells how when his children hit a certain age during the 80s, there seemed to be lit- tle or no music that he could enjoy sharing with them. “I couldn’t find any music that parents would like as much as their kids. So, I started writing songs that would engage a child and not dumb down to their parents. “
Saturday’s face-to-face concerts at Caffe Lena are adult oriented, but he will likely play some of his children’s compositions, mixing them in with other original songs, as well as traditional favorites.
He says the greatest compliment he could get was “for someone to tell me that on long family trips they played my albums.” He offers a wry chuckle and adds, “That was in the age of face-to-face before it became face-to- screen.”
For tickets call 1- 800- 8383006 information caffelena.org