{{Short description|American jazz musician (born 1955)}} {{for|the American businessman|Jim Chappell (businessman)}}
'''James William Chappell''' (born 1955 in Michigan),<ref>Library of Congress registration number SRu000197013, dated November 5, 1990.</ref> professionally known as '''Jim Chappell''', is an American New Age and jazz pianist. During the late 1980s and early 1990s, Chappell placed five albums in the Top Twenty of ''Billboard's'' Top New Age Albums chart, and placed another album in the Top Twenty of their Top Contemporary Jazz Albums chart.
==Recording history== Chappell's first album, ''Tender Ritual'', was a collection of piano solos released in 1985 on his own Unspeakable Freedom label. In 1986, Chappell was signed with the newly formed Music West Records.<ref name=MusicWest>{{cite journal|last1=Kassan|first1=Brian|title=New Label, New Approach|journal=Cash Box|date=November 8, 1986|volume=50|issue=21|page=49|url=https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Cash-Box/80s/1986/CB-1986-11-08.pdf|access-date=March 19, 2017}}</ref> That same year, Chappell released ''Dusk'', another collection of piano solos. It would be the first of Chappell's albums to appear on a ''Billboard'' chart, peaking at No. 19 on its Top New Age Albums chart.
With his third album, Chappell's records started to include small-ensemble accompaniment and (on 1990s ''Saturday's Rhapsody'') full orchestration. His three albums in this style—1989's ''Living in the Northern Summer'', ''Saturday's Rhapsody'', and 1991's ''Nightsongs and Lullabies''—all appeared on the ''Billboard'' Top New Age Albums chart.
In 1992, Chappell switched to the Real Music label, where his music became more jazz-oriented. There were four such albums—''In Search of the Magic'' (1992), ''Over the Top'' (1993), ''Manila Nights'' (1994) and ''The Earthsea Series, Volume 1'' (1994). On the latter three, Chappell was backed by HearSay, a jazz quartet.<ref>Not to be confused with the early 2000s British pop group of a similar name.</ref> The first of them, 1993's ''Over the Top'', appeared on ''Billboard'''s Top Contemporary Jazz Albums chart. This album was also successful in the Philippines, enough such that Chappell booked a three-date concert hall tour of the islands in the summer of 1993 and sold out all of the shows.<ref>[https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1993-11-03-ca-52787-story.html Keyboardist Jim Chappell Taps Into Brawn Power]. ''Los Angeles Times'', November 3, 1993.</ref>
Chappell's final album with Real Music was 1994's ''Laughter at Dawn''. It saw Chappell returning to his original style of solo piano and was the last of his albums to appear on a ''Billboard'' chart.
Chappell moved to Gallery Records in 1996 and recorded one album there. He released nothing further until 2002, when he began releasing albums on his own Unspeakable Freedom label. None of them have appeared on any Billboard charts.<ref>[http://www.jimchappell.com Home page of jimchappell.com] Label information is found by clicking through to the listed vendors.</ref>
==Critical reception==
In his review of Chappell's ''Nightsongs and Lullabies'', Jim Aikin noted that "Chappell's pastel piano meditations ... are the musical equivalent of airbrushed greeting-card watercolors of cute bunny rabbits and fawns." However, he went on to say that Chappell is "a consummate craftsman—a sensitive pianist and gifted melodist who knows some genuinely interesting chords."<ref>Aikin, Jim, "In Review" ''Keyboard'' Volume 17, Number 7 (Issue #181) May 1991, page 17</ref>
In a review of one of Chappell's contemporary jazz albums, Jonathan Widran of ''AllMusic'' praised ''Over the Top'' for its "energetic live interaction" with fellow performers.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/over-the-top-mw0000620128 |title=Over the Top|last= Widran |first= Jonathan |date= |website=Allmusic.com |access-date=20 September 2015}}</ref>
==Personal life== Chappell has a brother named Gary Chappell. Gary Chappell worked as a manufacturer for Music West Records.<ref name=MusicWest/>
==Discography== {| class="wikitable" |- ! rowspan="3" | Album ! rowspan="3" | Year ! rowspan="3" | Label ! rowspan="3" | Catalog # ! colspan="4" | Chart Performance ! rowspan="3" | Reference |- ! colspan="2" | US New Age ! colspan="2" | US Cont. Jazz |- ! Weeks ! Peak ! Weeks ! Peak |- | ''Tender Ritual'' || 1985 || Music West || MW-131 || align="center" | – ||align="center" | – || align="center" | - ||align="center" | – ||align="center" | – |- | ''Dusk'' || 1986 || Music West || MW-132 || align="center" | 21 || align="center" | 19 || align="center" | - || align="center" | - || align="center" | <ref name="BillboardNewAge">{{cite web |url=http://www.billboard.com/artist/304624/jim-chappell/chart/ |title=New Age Albums (Jim Chappell)|last= |first= |date= |website=Billboard.com |access-date=20 September 2015}}</ref> |- | ''Living the Northern Summer'' || 1989 || Music West || MW-133 || align="center" | 33 || align="center" | 5 || align="center" | - || align="center" | - || align="center" | <ref name="BillboardNewAge"/> |- | ''Saturday's Rhapsody'' || 1990 || Music West || MW-134 || align="center" | 23 || align="center" | 10 || align="center" | - || align="center" | - || align="center" | <ref name="BillboardNewAge"/> |- | ''Nightsongs and Lullabies'' || 1991 || Music West || MW-135 || align="center" | 17 || align="center" | 7 || align="center" | - || align="center" | - || align="center" | <ref name="BillboardNewAge"/> |- | ''In Search of the Magic'' || 1992 || Real Music || RM-0136 || align="center" | – ||align="center" | – || align="center" | – || align="center" | - || align="center" | – |- | ''Over the Top'' || 1993 || Real Music || RM-0137|| align="center" | - || align="center" | - || align="center" | || align="center" | 19 || align="center" | <ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.allmusic.com/artist/jim-chappell-mn0000335425/awards/ |title=List of Awards (Jim Chappell)|last= |first= |date= |website=Allmusic.com |access-date=20 September 2015}}</ref> |- | ''Manila Nights'' || 1994 || Real Music || RM-0138|| align="center" | – ||align="center" | – ||align="center" | – || align="center" | – || align="center" | - |- | ''The Earthsea Series, Volume 1'' || 1994 || Real Music || RM-1160|| align="center" | – ||align="center" | – ||align="center" | – || align="center" | – || align="center" | – |- | ''Laughter at Dawn'' || 1994 || Real Music || RM-0139 || align="center" | 5 || align="center" | 19 || align="center" | - || align="center" | - || align="center" | <ref name="BillboardNewAge"/> |- | ''Acadia'' || 1996 || Gallery || GR-1001|| align="center" | – ||align="center" | – ||align="center" | – || align="center" | – || align="center" | – |- | ''Serenity Rush'' || 2003 || Unspeakable Freedom || || align="center" | – ||align="center" | – || align="center" | - ||align="center" | – ||align="center" | – |- | ''Coming Through'' || 2005 || Unspeakable Freedom || || align="center" | – ||align="center" | – || align="center" | - ||align="center" | – ||align="center" | – |- | ''Honey Wind'' || 2007 || Unspeakable Freedom || || align="center" | – ||align="center" | – || align="center" | - ||align="center" | – ||align="center" | – |- | ''Sad Music Moods'' || 2008 || Unspeakable Freedom || || align="center" | – ||align="center" | – || align="center" | - ||align="center" | – ||align="center" | – |- | ''Comfort Songs'' || 2009 || Unspeakable Freedom || || align="center" | – ||align="center" | – || align="center" | - ||align="center" | – ||align="center" | – |- | ''Treasure At Seventeen'' || 2009 || Unspeakable Freedom || || align="center" | – ||align="center" | – || align="center" | - ||align="center" | – ||align="center" | – |- | ''Rise'' || 2009 || Unspeakable Freedom || || align="center" | – ||align="center" | – || align="center" | - ||align="center" | – ||align="center" | – |- | ''Panorama'' || 2010 || Unspeakable Freedom || || align="center" | – ||align="center" | – || align="center" | - ||align="center" | – ||align="center" | – |- | ''Into the Fresh Beyond'' || 2012 || Unspeakable Freedom || || align="center" | – ||align="center" | – || align="center" | - ||align="center" | – ||align="center" | – |- | ''Something to Turn To'' || 2014 || Unspeakable Freedom || || align="center" | – ||align="center" | – || align="center" | - ||align="center" | – ||align="center" | – |- |}
When originally released on the Unspeakable Freedom label, ''Tender Ritual'' had catalog number RB-101.
Real Music re-released all five of the Music West albums. These re-releases have catalog numbers RM-0131 through RM-0135.
==Notes== {{Reflist}}
==Further reading== *{{cite book|last1=Scaruffi|first1=Piero|title=Enciclopedia della musica New Age|date=1996|publisher=Arcana|location=Padua|isbn=978-8-879-66073-0|pages=117–118|chapter=Jim Chappell}} A discussion (in Italian) of Chappell's work through 1996.
==External links== * [http://www.jimchappell.com/ Official Web Site] * [https://www.realmusic.com/artists/jim-chappell Chappell's artist page at Real Music] {{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chappell, Jim}} Category:American jazz pianists Category:American male jazz pianists Category:Jazz musicians from Michigan Category:American new-age musicians Category:Smooth jazz pianists Category:Living people Category:1955 births Category:21st-century American pianists Category:21st-century American male pianists