Tom Chaplin
Encyclopedia
Thomas Oliver "Tom" Chaplin (born 8 March 1979, Battle
, East Sussex
, England
) is a singer, musician
and composer
, best known as the lead vocalist
of the piano rock
band, Keane.
's brother, also called Tom. Their mothers became friends and he started a friendship with the two brothers that endures today.
His father was headmaster of Vinehall School
in Robertsbridge
, so both friends were schooled there.
With Rice-Oxley, Chaplin then attended Tonbridge School
. Studying there, they met Richard Hughes
, who would later be their band mate and Dominic Scott
(who was an original member of the line-up but left in 2001). During his time at Vinehall, Chaplin acted in several school plays and was part of the school's choral group. He also played the flute while at school.
In 1995, the trio (Scott, Rice-Oxley and Hughes) started their first band, 'The Lotus Eaters'. It was a cover
band that played U2
, Oasis
and The Beatles
at Sussex
pub
s. Tim Rice-Oxley invited Chaplin to join the band as an acoustic guitar player. Short time later, in 1997, the band's name changed to Keane and Tom Chaplin became the lead vocalist.
It was revealed on Soccer AM
in 2010 that Tom is an Ipswich Town
fan. Tom is also an avid fan of cricket, supporting both Sussex and the England national team.
Tom fulfilled a lifetime ambition of performing with the remaining Queen
members at the Prince's Trust Rock Gala, 17 November 2010. Tom sang 'It's a Hard Life
', backed by Brian May and Roger Taylor. He was also asked to perform at Freddie Mercury's 65th Birthday event held at London's Savoy, he performed 'The Show Must Go On
' as well as 'It's a Hard Life' alongside May and Taylor.
Tom's family now run a charity called Rwanda Aid, with Tom providing the capital to fund several projects in that country. Tom married his long-term girlfriend Nat in June 2011
In July 1997, Chaplin went to South Africa for his gap year
, during which the rest of the band members were preparing themselves for a gig. When Hughes went to collect Chaplin a year later, on 3 July 1998, his first words were, "We've got a gig in ten days." This would be the band's first performance at the Hope & Anchor pub on 13 July 1998. Chaplin then began studying for a degree in art history
at the University of Edinburgh
, before leaving to pursue his music career in London.
During their stint in London, Chaplin shared a flat with Rice-Oxley in Stoke Newington
and they tried to get money for rehearsal time. Chaplin worked at a publishing company where his chief responsibility was to carry boxes.
With Scott in the line-up as the lead guitar
ist, Chaplin had to play the acoustic guitar
. Since Scott left in 2001, he primarily takes lead vocal, but also plays the organ on "Hamburg Song" during some live gigs, as well as a distorted piano for newer songs on their second album.
He also took part in Band Aid 20
's re-recording of "Do They Know It's Christmas?
" in November 2004 doing a solo on the line "feed the world", something that had not been done on previous versions where all artists sang.
after he left their hotel in Japan with no warning, choosing to fly back to Britain
alone. He left the Priory Clinic in London on 6 October, but continued to receive treatment after leaving.
It was reported at the time that Sir Elton John had telephoned him to offer advice, and also that Justin Hawkins
of The Darkness and Pete Doherty were receiving treatment at the same branch of The Priory, but Chaplin later stated that this was not the case.
He told The Sun newspaper in 2010 that he had been clean of drugs since late 2006 and still drank alcohol on occasion, but in moderation,'having got my fingers burnt with it before'. He also added that he now preferred to play golf rather than party, inspired by reading Alice Cooper's story of his own recovery from alcohol and drug problems.
organ for "Hamburg Song" and "Nothing in My Way
". Since May 2006 a Yamaha CP60M for the distortion piano riffs on "A Bad Dream
", "The Frog Prince
" and "Crystal Ball", is used.
He also has been playing the acoustic guitar
in songs like "Your Eyes Open" since the 2006 UK tour, and during 2007 acoustic solos of "Broken Toy" and "The Frog Prince". He also plays guitar in Keane's third album, Perfect Symmetry
. In many of the Perfect Symmetry live shows, Tom plays three different Fender Telecaster
guitars: one red, one white and one light blue.
In an interview with Keane Backline, Rice-Oxley stated that Chaplin had been interested in learning to play the theremin
, but "couldn't be bothered to learn how to use it", also stating that the theremin "might be the only way of reproducing the musical saw sound" used in some tracks of Perfect Symmetry.
Battle, East Sussex
Battle is a small town and civil parish in the local government district of Rother in East Sussex, England. It lies south southeast of London, east of Brighton and east of the county town of Lewes...
, East Sussex
East Sussex
East Sussex is a county in South East England. It is bordered by the counties of Kent, Surrey and West Sussex, and to the south by the English Channel.-History:...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
) is a singer, musician
Musician
A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
and composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
, best known as the lead vocalist
Singing
Singing is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
of the piano rock
Piano rock
Piano rock, sometimes referred to as piano pop, is a style of popular music that is based around the piano—and sometimes piano-related instruments such as keyboards–with piano typically replacing rhythm guitar as the rhythm instrument...
band, Keane.
Life and career
Chaplin was born to David Chaplin and Sally Taylor, about one month apart from future band mate Tim Rice-OxleyTim Rice-Oxley
Timothy James Rice-Oxley , is an English multi-instrumentalist, best known as co-founder, the principal composer and pianist, backing vocalist of piano rock band Keane.-Life and career:...
's brother, also called Tom. Their mothers became friends and he started a friendship with the two brothers that endures today.
His father was headmaster of Vinehall School
Vinehall School
Vinehall School is a co-educational day and boarding school located near the town of Robertsbridge, East Sussex. It takes children from ages 2 to 13. The school was inspected by Ofsted in 2011 and given an overall quality rating of "outstanding".-History:...
in Robertsbridge
Robertsbridge
Robertsbridge is a village in East Sussex, England within the civil parish of Salehurst and Robertsbridge. It is approximately 10 miles north of Hastings and 13 miles south-east of Tunbridge Wells...
, so both friends were schooled there.
With Rice-Oxley, Chaplin then attended Tonbridge School
Tonbridge School
Tonbridge School is a British boys' independent school for both boarding and day pupils in Tonbridge, Kent, founded in 1553 by Sir Andrew Judd . It is a member of the Eton Group, and has close links with the Worshipful Company of Skinners, one of the oldest London livery companies...
. Studying there, they met Richard Hughes
Richard Hughes (musician)
Richard David Hughes is an English musician, best known as the drummer of the British piano rock band Keane. He is the eldest member of the band.-Biography:...
, who would later be their band mate and Dominic Scott
Dominic Scott
Dominic Scott is an Irish guitarist, and the founder of the English rock band Roundstone and rock band Keane.-Keane:Scott attended Tonbridge School in Kent, where he met the other members of the band which would become Keane. In 1995, he asked his friend Tim Rice-Oxley to form a band to play...
(who was an original member of the line-up but left in 2001). During his time at Vinehall, Chaplin acted in several school plays and was part of the school's choral group. He also played the flute while at school.
In 1995, the trio (Scott, Rice-Oxley and Hughes) started their first band, 'The Lotus Eaters'. It was a cover
Cover version
In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
band that played U2
U2
U2 are an Irish rock band from Dublin. Formed in 1976, the group consists of Bono , The Edge , Adam Clayton , and Larry Mullen, Jr. . U2's early sound was rooted in post-punk but eventually grew to incorporate influences from many genres of popular music...
, Oasis
Oasis (band)
Oasis were an English rock band formed in Manchester in 1991. Originally known as The Rain, the group was formed by Liam Gallagher , Paul "Bonehead" Arthurs , Paul "Guigsy" McGuigan and Tony McCarroll , who were soon joined by Liam's older brother Noel Gallagher...
and The Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
at Sussex
Sussex
Sussex , from the Old English Sūþsēaxe , is an historic county in South East England corresponding roughly in area to the ancient Kingdom of Sussex. It is bounded on the north by Surrey, east by Kent, south by the English Channel, and west by Hampshire, and is divided for local government into West...
pub
Public house
A public house, informally known as a pub, is a drinking establishment fundamental to the culture of Britain, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. There are approximately 53,500 public houses in the United Kingdom. This number has been declining every year, so that nearly half of the smaller...
s. Tim Rice-Oxley invited Chaplin to join the band as an acoustic guitar player. Short time later, in 1997, the band's name changed to Keane and Tom Chaplin became the lead vocalist.
It was revealed on Soccer AM
Soccer AM
Soccer AM is a British Saturday-morning football-based comedy/talk show, predominantly based around the Premier League...
in 2010 that Tom is an Ipswich Town
Ipswich Town F.C.
Ipswich Town Football Club are an English professional football team based in Ipswich, Suffolk. As of 2011, they play in the Football League Championship, having last appeared in the Premier League in 2001–02....
fan. Tom is also an avid fan of cricket, supporting both Sussex and the England national team.
Tom fulfilled a lifetime ambition of performing with the remaining Queen
Queen (band)
Queen are a British rock band formed in London in 1971, originally consisting of Freddie Mercury , Brian May , John Deacon , and Roger Taylor...
members at the Prince's Trust Rock Gala, 17 November 2010. Tom sang 'It's a Hard Life
It's a Hard Life
"It's a Hard Life" is a song by the British rock band Queen, written by lead singer Freddie Mercury. It was featured on their 1984 album The Works, and it was the third single from that album. It reached number 6 in the UK Singles Chart and was their third consecutive Top 10 single from the album...
', backed by Brian May and Roger Taylor. He was also asked to perform at Freddie Mercury's 65th Birthday event held at London's Savoy, he performed 'The Show Must Go On
The show must go on
"The show must go on" is a well-known phrase in show business, meaning that regardless of what happens, the show must still be put on for the waiting patrons...
' as well as 'It's a Hard Life' alongside May and Taylor.
Tom's family now run a charity called Rwanda Aid, with Tom providing the capital to fund several projects in that country. Tom married his long-term girlfriend Nat in June 2011
Keane
Chaplin was invited to join the band by Rice-Oxley, after he finally convinced the other two, in 1997, when the name 'The Lotus Eaters' was changed to 'Cherry Keane', after a friend of Chaplin's mother. Later 'Cherry' was removed from the name.In July 1997, Chaplin went to South Africa for his gap year
Gap year
An expression or phrase that is associated with taking time out to travel in between life stages. It is also known as sabbatical, time off and time out that refers to a period of time in which students disengage from curricular education and undertake non curricular activities, such as travel or...
, during which the rest of the band members were preparing themselves for a gig. When Hughes went to collect Chaplin a year later, on 3 July 1998, his first words were, "We've got a gig in ten days." This would be the band's first performance at the Hope & Anchor pub on 13 July 1998. Chaplin then began studying for a degree in art history
Art history
Art history has historically been understood as the academic study of objects of art in their historical development and stylistic contexts, i.e. genre, design, format, and style...
at the University of Edinburgh
University of Edinburgh
The University of Edinburgh, founded in 1583, is a public research university located in Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The university is deeply embedded in the fabric of the city, with many of the buildings in the historic Old Town belonging to the university...
, before leaving to pursue his music career in London.
During their stint in London, Chaplin shared a flat with Rice-Oxley in Stoke Newington
Stoke Newington
Stoke Newington is a district in the London Borough of Hackney. It is north-east of Charing Cross.-Boundaries:In modern terms, Stoke Newington can be roughly defined by the N16 postcode area . Its southern boundary with Dalston is quite ill-defined too...
and they tried to get money for rehearsal time. Chaplin worked at a publishing company where his chief responsibility was to carry boxes.
With Scott in the line-up as the lead guitar
Lead guitar
Lead guitar is a guitar part which plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs within a song structure...
ist, Chaplin had to play the acoustic guitar
Steel-string acoustic guitar
A steel-string acoustic guitar is a modern form of guitar descended from the classical guitar, but strung with steel strings for a brighter, louder sound...
. Since Scott left in 2001, he primarily takes lead vocal, but also plays the organ on "Hamburg Song" during some live gigs, as well as a distorted piano for newer songs on their second album.
He also took part in Band Aid 20
Band Aid (band)
Band Aid was a charity supergroup featuring British and Irish musicians and recording artists. It was founded in 1984 by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure to raise money for famine relief in Ethiopia by releasing the song "Do They Know It's Christmas?" for the Christmas market that year. The single...
's re-recording of "Do They Know It's Christmas?
Do They Know It's Christmas?
"Do They Know It's Christmas?" is a song written by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure in 1984 to raise money for relief of the 1984–1985 famine in Ethiopia. The original version was produced by Midge Ure and released by Band Aid on 29 November 1984....
" in November 2004 doing a solo on the line "feed the world", something that had not been done on previous versions where all artists sang.
Drug rehabilitation
On 22 August 2006, Chaplin revealed that he was receiving treatment for drug abuse problems. He and his bandmates cancelled their North American tour for his rehabilitationDrug rehabilitation
Drug rehabilitation is a term for the processes of medical or psychotherapeutic treatment, for dependency on psychoactive substances such as alcohol, prescription drugs, and so-called street drugs such as cocaine, heroin or amphetamines...
after he left their hotel in Japan with no warning, choosing to fly back to Britain
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
alone. He left the Priory Clinic in London on 6 October, but continued to receive treatment after leaving.
It was reported at the time that Sir Elton John had telephoned him to offer advice, and also that Justin Hawkins
Justin Hawkins
Justin David Hawkins is an English musician and singer-songwriter, best known for being the lead singer and lead guitarist of The Darkness, alongside his brother, guitarist Dan Hawkins...
of The Darkness and Pete Doherty were receiving treatment at the same branch of The Priory, but Chaplin later stated that this was not the case.
He told The Sun newspaper in 2010 that he had been clean of drugs since late 2006 and still drank alcohol on occasion, but in moderation,'having got my fingers burnt with it before'. He also added that he now preferred to play golf rather than party, inspired by reading Alice Cooper's story of his own recovery from alcohol and drug problems.
Equipment
Chaplin uses a Hammond MK2Hammond organ
The Hammond organ is an electric organ invented by Laurens Hammond in 1934 and manufactured by the Hammond Organ Company. While the Hammond organ was originally sold to churches as a lower-cost alternative to the wind-driven pipe organ, in the 1960s and 1970s it became a standard keyboard...
organ for "Hamburg Song" and "Nothing in My Way
Nothing In My Way
"Nothing in My Way" is a song performed and composed by English rock band Keane and is featured as the third track on their second studio album, Under the Iron Sea. The song was also released 30 October 2006 as the third commercial and fourth overall single from that album in the United Kingdom...
". Since May 2006 a Yamaha CP60M for the distortion piano riffs on "A Bad Dream
A Bad Dream
You might also be looking for Nightmare."A Bad Dream", often mistitled as "Bad Dream", is a song by English piano rock band Keane appearing as the fifth track on their second album, Under the Iron Sea. It was released on 22 January 2007 as the sixth and final single from the album...
", "The Frog Prince
The Frog Prince (song)
"The Frog Prince" is a song performed and composed by English alternative rock band Keane, released as the closing track on their second album, Under the Iron Sea. The song was composed in 2004 and first mentioned by Tim Rice-Oxley on the Strangers DVD...
" and "Crystal Ball", is used.
He also has been playing the acoustic guitar
Acoustic guitar
An acoustic guitar is a guitar that uses only an acoustic sound board. The air in this cavity resonates with the vibrational modes of the string and at low frequencies, which depend on the size of the box, the chamber acts like a Helmholtz resonator, increasing or decreasing the volume of the sound...
in songs like "Your Eyes Open" since the 2006 UK tour, and during 2007 acoustic solos of "Broken Toy" and "The Frog Prince". He also plays guitar in Keane's third album, Perfect Symmetry
Perfect Symmetry (Keane album)
Perfect Symmetry is the third studio album by English rock band Keane, released on 13 October 2008 in the United Kingdom. The album's title was released on 31 July 2008. The band had completely transformed their look and their new album was said to be also very unexpected...
. In many of the Perfect Symmetry live shows, Tom plays three different Fender Telecaster
Fender Telecaster
The Fender Telecaster, colloquially known as the Tele , is typically a dual-pickup, solid-body electric guitar made by Fender.Its simple yet effective design and revolutionary sound broke ground and set trends in electric guitar manufacturing and popular music...
guitars: one red, one white and one light blue.
In an interview with Keane Backline, Rice-Oxley stated that Chaplin had been interested in learning to play the theremin
Theremin
The theremin , originally known as the aetherphone/etherophone, thereminophone or termenvox/thereminvox is an early electronic musical instrument controlled without discernible physical contact from the player. It is named after its Russian inventor, Professor Léon Theremin, who patented the device...
, but "couldn't be bothered to learn how to use it", also stating that the theremin "might be the only way of reproducing the musical saw sound" used in some tracks of Perfect Symmetry.
Known compositions
- "Call Me What You LikeCall Me What You Like"Call Me What You Like" is a song by Keane, released as their first single.Limited to 500 copies, the single was released through Zoomorphic, the band's own label set up to release their music when a record deal was not forthcoming...
" - "Closer Now" // Pattern Of My LifePattern of My Life"Pattern of My Life" is the second and last single released from Annie Lennox's first greatest hits album The Annie Lennox Collection. The song is a cover version of "Closer Now" by Keane which was a b-side to their debut single "Call Me What You Like". Lennox retitled the song, referring to a...
" (Annie Lennox song) - "The Silence of an Alien"
- "Maybe I can change"
- "Playing Along"
- "A Bad DreamA Bad DreamYou might also be looking for Nightmare."A Bad Dream", often mistitled as "Bad Dream", is a song by English piano rock band Keane appearing as the fifth track on their second album, Under the Iron Sea. It was released on 22 January 2007 as the sixth and final single from the album...
" - along with Tim Rice-Oxley.