Blondie Chaplin

Though not quite a household name, Blondie Chaplin has played key roles in some of the biggest bands in rock & roll, with a decades-long résumé that includes work with the Beach Boys, the Band, Bonnie Raitt, David Johansen, Elliott Murphy, and 15 years as an auxiliary member of the Rolling Stones. In addition to enhancing the stage shows and studio creations of notable classic rock legends, Chaplin also writes songs of his own, releasing a self-titled solo album in 1977 and a 2006 follow-up, Between Us. Chaplin was born in South Africa in 1951 in the city of Durban. By age 13, he was part of rock group the Flames, who had a regional hit in 1968 with their take on Jerry Butler and the Impressions' "For Your Precious Love." Carl Wilson saw the Flames perform in London and signed them to the Beach Boys' imprint Brother Records, and also produced their self-titled 1970 album for the label. At that point, however, the band changed their name to the Flame to avoid being confused with James Brown backup vocal group The Famous Flames. The Flame extinguished not long after their Brother album (incidentally, it would be the only non-Beach Boys release on the label), when Chaplin and fellow Flame member Ricky Fataar joined the Beach Boys in 1972. Chaplin would be a part of the band in 1972 and 1973, contributing to the albums Carl and the Passions - "So Tough", The Beach Boys in Concert, and Holland, and singing lead on the song "Sail on Sailor." From that point on, Chaplin was fully immersed in the music industry, releasing a self-titled solo album on Asylum Records in 1977 and showing up throughout the '80s and '90s in various roles on records or live shows from Anton Fig, Rick Danko, a Byrds tribute project with Gene Clark, David Johansen, Jennifer Warnes, and many others. After touring with Rolling Stones guitarist Mick Taylor, Chaplin began working with the Stones around the release of their 1997 album Bridges to Babylon and remained a fixture in the band for around 15 years. In 2006, he released his second solo album, Between Us, on the Big Karma Records label. Throughout the next two decades, Chaplin wore multiple hats as he continued in supporting roles for classic rock royalty, playing on albums by Keith Richards, Ronnie Wood, and Brian Wilson. He also joined Wilson in 2016 as part of the Pet Sounds 50th Anniversary World Tour and continued to tour with him into the 2020s.
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