Chris Ballew | |
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Background information | |
Birth name | Christopher Ballew |
Born | May 28, 1965 |
Origin | Seattle, Washington, U.S. |
Genres | |
Instrument(s) |
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Years active | 1986–present |
Member of | Caspar Babypants |
Formerly of |
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Website | chrisballew |
Christopher Ballew (born May 28, 1965) is an American musician best known as the lead singer and bassist of the alternative rock group the Presidents of the United States of America. He also performs and records as a children's artist under the pseudonym Caspar Babypants.
Ballew's career in music traces back to his street performances in a duo called Egg, during his time in Boston in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Following a brief period in Los Angeles performing with Beck, Ballew returned to Washington and formed the Presidents of the United States of America in 1993, a band that lasted until 2015. In 1998, he started a solo project known as the Giraffes, which turned into a band the following year. In 2009, he launched Caspar Babypants, a children's music project that has since released numerous albums. He has also issued music under his own name. Ballew uses unconventional instruments, notably a two-string "basitar", and he performs without distortion pedals, relying on the natural distortion of the amplifier. He is married to collage artist Kate Endle.
Ballew grew up in Seattle and attended middle and high school at Bush School, where he met Dave Dederer, with whom he would later form the Presidents of the United States of America. In the late 1980s and early '90s, Ballew lived in Boston, where he performed as a street musician in a duo called Egg with Phil Franklin (later of Caroliner Rainbow and Sunburned Hand of the Man). [1] Many of Ballew's songs with Egg would become well-known Presidents songs, most notably "Naked and Famous", which is performed by Egg as a bonus track on a 2005 reissue of the Presidents' eponymous debut album. The two members of Egg were also part of the experimental triple-bass guitar ensemble Balls, which released a 12-inch EP in 1991. While in Boston, Ballew also played briefly with Mary Lou Lord, and with Mark Sandman of Treat Her Right and Morphine, in a duo called Supergroup, in which they developed the oddly-stringed instruments that would become a staple of both the Presidents' and Morphine's sound.
Ballew moved to Los Angeles in the early 1990s, where he shared an apartment with musician Beck and played in his live band. Ballew told Seattle Weekly that playing with Beck "was the beginning of my professional career as a guy getting paid to make music." [2] He returned to his native Washington in 1993 and started the Presidents of the United States of America. The band released six studio albums, then split up in July 2015.
In 1998, Ballew released a solo album credited to the Giraffes. The recording project turned into a band between 1999 and 2000. For the live version of the Giraffes, Ballew was joined by Jason Staczek (organ, clarinet) and Mike Musburger (drums). [3]
In 2009, Ballew launched a project targeted toward toddlers, called Caspar Babypants. [4] Ballew uses a three-string acoustic guitar when performing Caspar Babypants songs. Caspar Babypants has released numerous albums, all with exclamatory titles such as "Here I Am!", "More Please!", "This Is Fun!", "Sing Along!'", "Hot Dog!", "I Found You!", "Baby Beatles!", "Rise and Shine!", "Night Night!", "Beatles Baby!", "Away We Go!", "Winter Party!", "Jump for Joy!", "Keep It Real!", "Flying High!", "Bug Out!", and "Happy Heart!" [5]
In 2015, fifteen years after the last official release, Chris Ballew put together We Hear Music, a 33-track double album consisting of previously unreleased Giraffes material. The record was shared privately with a few fans through the internet, with a note allowing the recipients to redistribute the music freely. [6]
Ballew also publishes as a solo artist under his own name. His first album, I Am Not Me, came out in July 2021. In 2022, he released two albums, Soul Unfolded and Primitive God.
In June 2022, he performed "Peaches" with "Weird Al" Yankovic. [7]
During his time with the Presidents, Ballew was endorsed by Epiphone Guitars and Orange amplifiers, utilizing an Epiphone SG-400 guitar (converted into a two-string "basitar"), as well as an AD200B MK 3 200-Watt Bass Head from Orange. No distortion pedals are used live; just the natural distortion of the amp is heard. Regarding his two-string "basitar", Ballew admits: "I'm technically not really a bass player, although, I play as if I'm playing bass lines, a lot of times I strum like (on a) guitar and make chords." [8]
Ballew is married to collage artist Kate Endle. [9]
With the Presidents of the United States of America
With Balls
With Egg
As Caspar
With Caspar and Mollusk (aka Chris & Beck)
With Supergroup (aka Chris & Mark Sandman)
With the Minus 5
With the Giraffes
With the Tycoons
With Chris and Tad
With Subset (aka PUSA & Sir Mix-a-Lot)
With Chris Ballew and Friends
With Creepy Stick
With the Feelings Hijackers
Solo
The Presidents of the United States of America were an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1993. The three-piece group's initial lineup consisted of vocalist and bassist Chris Ballew, drummer Jason Finn, and guitarist Dave Dederer. The band became popular in the mid-1990s for their hits "Lump" and "Peaches"—released in 1995 and 1996, respectively—which helped their self-titled debut album go triple Platinum.
Geoffrey Arnold Beck was an English guitarist. He rose to prominence as a member of the rock band the Yardbirds, and afterwards founded and fronted the Jeff Beck Group and Beck, Bogert & Appice. In 1975, he switched to an instrumental style with focus on an innovative sound, and his releases spanned genres and styles ranging from blues rock, hard rock, jazz fusion and a blend of guitar-rock and electronica.
"Yesterday" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles, written by Paul McCartney and credited to Lennon–McCartney. It was first released on the album Help! in August 1965, except in the United States, where it was issued as a single in September. The song reached number one on the US charts. It subsequently appeared on the UK EP Yesterday in March 1966 and made its US album debut on Yesterday and Today, in June 1966.
The Presidents of the United States of America is the debut studio album by the American alternative rock band The Presidents of the United States of America, released on March 10, 1995, via PopLlama Records. Columbia Records signed the band shortly after its release to handle increased distribution for the album.
13 Other Dimensions was released by The Giraffes through the Seattle label My Own Planet, on CD and vinyl in 1998. It is essentially a solo effort by Chris Ballew, recorded in Ballew's basement. The album was published as being a work by a fictional band composed of Ballew's childhood stuffed animals. Ballew's name appears nowhere on the album.
Love Everybody is the fourth studio album by American rock band the Presidents of the United States of America. It was released on August 17, 2004, on the band's own label, PUSA Inc. It was the group's final album with Dave Dederer. The band returned to their standard musical style on this album.
The Days Are Filled with Years was released by The Giraffes in 2000 on Orange Recordings. It is the second album as The Giraffes by The Presidents of the United States of America's Chris Ballew. Cover art features a picture of Ballew's infant son, Augie Ballew, at the piano.
II is the second studio album by the American rock band The Presidents of the United States of America. It was released via Columbia Records on November 5, 1996, coinciding with the United States presidential election.
"I've Just Seen a Face" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles. It was released in August 1965 on their album Help!, except in North America, where it appeared as the opening track on the December 1965 release Rubber Soul. Written and sung by Paul McCartney, the song is credited to the Lennon–McCartney partnership. The song is a cheerful love ballad, its lyrics discussing a love at first sight while conveying an adrenaline rush the singer experiences that makes him both enthusiastic and inarticulate.
"Peaches" is a song by American alternative rock band the Presidents of the United States of America. It was included on their self-titled debut album and released as a single in February 1996. The track was produced by American producer Conrad Uno. The band members have acknowledged that "Peaches" borrows riffs from Bad Company's 1975 song "Feel Like Makin' Love".
Mark Sandman was an American singer, songwriter, musical instrument inventor, multi-instrumentalist and comic writer. Sandman possessed a distinctive, deep bass-baritone voice and a mysterious demeanour. He was an indie rock icon and longtime fixture in the Boston/Cambridge music scene, best known as the lead singer and slide bass player of the band Morphine. Sandman was also a member of the blues-rock band Treat Her Right and founder of Hi-n-Dry, a recording studio and independent record label.
Matthew Kiichi Heafy is a Japanese-American musician, best known as the guitarist and lead vocalist for heavy metal band Trivium. He was also the lead vocalist for the band Capharnaum, along with Trivium's former producer Jason Suecof. In 2017, Heafy was voted sixth on the Ultimate Guitar list "Top 25 Greatest Modern Frontmen".
John Antonopoulos, known professionally as Johnny A., is an American musician, guitarist, and songwriter.
John Lennon's musical instruments were both diverse and many, and his worldwide fame resulted in his personal choices having a strong impact on cultural preferences.
Caspar Babypants is the stage name of children's music artist Chris Ballew, who was also the vocalist and bassist of The Presidents of the United States of America.
Todd McHatton is an American singer, songwriter, musician, performer, artist, and puppeteer. He gained notoriety with his hit kids song, “I Think I’m a Bunny.”
Kudos to You! is the sixth and final studio album by The Presidents of the United States of America. It was released on February 14, 2014.
Beatles Baby! Is the tenth studio album to be released by Caspar Babypants - aka: Chris Ballew the lead singer of The Presidents of the United States of America.