Tippy Canoe

Artist Information

Biography

Originally from Baltimore and now based in sunny Oakland, songbird and solo uke-slinger/guitarist, Tippy Canoe (Michele Kappel-Stone), made the switch from a 5-piece drum kit with the garage-pop princesses The Kirby Grips (Sympathy For The Record Industry), to a 4-stringed ukulele in 2003. In 2009 she upped the string count and added guitarist to her resume. She’s on a mission to bring sincere uplift in a severely down-slanted era by spreading her hook-laden pop-meets-roots music.

On her debut full-length album, “Parasols & Pekingese,” released in 2008 on Late Bloomers Works and recorded with her full band the Paddlemen, Tippy Canoe shows off her enchanting and dynamic sound. Her voice is a mixture of the 60's girl group sound and classic country with its own quirky nature shining through. Her songwriting highlights a variety of influences ranging from 20's and 30's acts like The Boswell Sisters and Jack Teagarden, to 50's and 60's performers like Brenda Lee and The Chiffons, and catchy post-punk bands like Squeeze and Blondie.

Tippy Canoe has shared the stage or completed coastal tours with artists including Martha Wainwright, Big Sandy & his Fly-Rite Boys, Mad Tea Party, and others. San Francisco shows Tippy Canoe a lot of love; she was included in an exhibition on the ukulele at the San Francisco Museum of Craft and Folk Art, featured in the first annual San Francisco Ukulele Festival, and aired on a segment of PBS’s Bay Area Arts program SPARK TV. Tippy Canoe also contributed original music to the animated children’s DVD “Music Time.”

You won’t want to miss Tippy Canoe as she continues to stomp the pavement and charm audiences with her solo act.

FOR CLUB BOOKING & PRIVATE EVENTS please contact:
latebloomersworks (at) earthlink.net

Other Internet homes include:
Myspace: http://www.myspace.com/tippycanoe
Facebook: http://tinyurl.com/tippyfacebook
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/tippycanoe
Spark TV Feature: http://tinyurl.com/sparktv

Please stop on by and say hello.

Instrumentation

TIPPY CANOE is a solo performer, uke-slinger, guitarist, and vocalist.

This singular songbird frequently shares the stage with:
Mikie Lee Prasad (guitar, vocals, tambourine, harmonica)

Occasionally when on-stage in the San Franciso Bay Area as Tippy Canoe & the Paddlemen the line-up also includes:
Rick Quisol (drums)
Chris "T.G." Green (bass)
Matty Stone (percussion and official blogeographer)

Discography

"Parasols and Pekingnese" ~ the debut full-length recording presented by Late Bloomers Works LBW001 2008 (www.latebloomersworks.com)

"Shout Baby Shout, Volume 1" ~ Yanoo! Records, 2008 -- Japanese compilation of roots musicians from the U.S., Europe and Japan who all share a similar vision.

Links

• Twitter
• Facebook

Audio

• Mass Transmissions
  Listen  
• Nut Butter Baby
  Listen  
• Sleep, Sleep My Dear
  Listen  
• Champs Élysées
  Listen  
• Moodish Me
  Listen  

Lyrics

• Traveling Light
• Your Word

Video

Tippy Canoe & the Paddlemen "Mass Transmissions" (directed by Skizz Cyzyk)

Photo Gallery

Press

• "Quirky country, sensual lounge music, call it what you will...a challenger to alternative sensations such as Neko Case" [+ Show ]
  

  Parasols & Pekingese reviewed by Barrett King Quirky country, sensual lounge music, call it what...Parasols & Pekingese reviewed by Barrett King
  
  Quirky country, sensual lounge music, call it what you will: Tippy Canoe & The Paddlemen's Parasols & Pekingese is an alternative to popular country acts and a challenger to alternative sensations such as Neko Case. A Baltimore native, Tippy Canoe just rounded out an east coast run with her band, which adopts a local moniker, The Baltimore Paddlemen, when in the area.
  
  On this debut full-length, Canoe's voice can be sultry, forgivably flawed, and acrobatic as she plucks her trademark ukelele and fosters a new breed of early 20th century jazz/50s pop for the modern age. Now residing in Oakland, CA, Tippy has taken Baltimore's hip mid-century panache to the west coast. Calling it retro is too easy, you won't notice the ukelele unless you really know the sound of your stringed instruments, and pigeonholing this brand new old style simply won't be done.
  
  A charming, fun debut from a Charm City expatriate. One wonders, is "Neighbor of the Telltale Heart" a veiled reference to another Baltimorean?
  
  Visit Tippy Canoe and the Paddlemen on Myspace to learn more and buy the album.
  
  http://www.senbaltimore.com/blogs/agt/tippy-canoe-and-the-paddlemen-parasols-and-pekinge.shtml

• Women such as Jett, Hanna and Kappel are inspiring to young girls [+ Show ]
  

  "Kappel’s switch from mainstream music to a more independent sound was a brave move that sets her ap..."Kappel’s switch from mainstream music to a more independent sound was a brave move that sets her apart from a lot of female musicians, Silva said. 'I think it’s more difficult, especially for a female, to do something different and still gain respect,' she said. Silva’s favorite female musicians include Joan Jett and Kathleen Hanna, who used to sing for punk group Bikini Kill. Women such as Jett, Hanna and Kappel are inspiring to young girls, Silva said." Angela Perez, The Orion (Chico, CA)

• "Champs-Elysee is another fine moment, a somewhat poppy song with Kappel echoing Debbie Harry." Collected Sounds.com [+ Show ]
  

  Review by Anna Maria Stjärnell Michele Kappel records as Tippy Canoe and on this record the Padd...Review by Anna Maria Stjärnell
  
  Michele Kappel records as Tippy Canoe and on this record the Paddlemen support her. The music is reflected aptly on the charming cover design. Kappel even plays the ukulele.
  
  Reel after Reel sees Kappel sound as lovely as Erin McKeown, and the band play with great dexterity.
  
  Sleep, Sleep My Dear is a becalmed song with an intriguing melody and Kappel at her most seductive. Madigan Shive of Bonfire Madigan guests on cello.
  
  Monday Night Man is an amusing song with lead vocals by Paddleman Mikie Lee Prasad, who also wrote the song. Kappel sings neat backup vocals to the jazzy song.
  
  Champs-Elysee is another fine moment, a somewhat poppy song with Kappel echoing Debbie Harry.
  
  This is a lovely record all told.
  

• "Interest in the ukulele is really growing" Baltimore Sun [+ Show ]
  

  http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/local/bal-md.ukelele30jun30,0,3823002.story by Jennifer McMenamin ...http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/local/bal-md.ukelele30jun30,0,3823002.story
  by Jennifer McMenamin
  
  Fewer Hawaiian Shirts, more rock & roll.
  
  Excerpt:
  The party marked the last stop in a 10-gig tour for Uni and for Tippy Canoe, a uke player who grew up in Harford County and lived in Baltimore's Mount Vernon neighborhood before moving to Oakland, Calif., in the early 1990s. Victoria Vox, a Wisconsin native who now lives in Baltimore, and an ensemble band called the Go-Pills that includes a ukulele player also performed.
  
  "Interest in the ukulele is really growing," said Canoe, whose real name is Michele Kappel. "I've been enjoying folks' surprise in how many forms it takes. A lot of people think it's just Hawaiian or old stuff. But it's very versatile. You can really put your own stamp on it."
  

• "Tippy's voice can tap both Patsy Cline and Billie Holiday and the Paddlemen themselves are so good they're easy to miss in a sense." Rock and Roll and Meandering Nonsense Blog [+ Show ]
  

  Wednesday, July 09, 2008 Review: Tippy Canoe and the Paddlemen Parasols and Pekingese Label: La...Wednesday, July 09, 2008
  Review: Tippy Canoe and the Paddlemen
  Parasols and Pekingese
  Label: Late Bloomers Works
  
  Released: May 31, 2008
  Rock & Roll & Meandering Nonsense Review
  
  One look at the cover of Parasols and Pekingese leaves little doubt where the album is going. It mixes art deco style with the painted effects of a pre-linen postcard. As the cover suggests, Tippy Canoe and the Paddlemen look back to simpler, more honest times. There's nothing new in that. Americana bands and folk-punk bands among others have been at it for quite awhile. The better artists are steeped in these days gone by while others just have a kitschy veneer. It doesn't take long (probably a matter of seconds, not minutes) to recognize that Tippy and her band are the former.
  
  From the rollicking rootsy country of "Mass Transmissions" to the dark sensuality of "Sleep, Sleep My Dear" and everything in between, Tippy Canoe and the Paddlemen prove that theirs is more than a passing interest in the treasure trove of the past. Tippy's voice can tap both Patsy Cline and Billie Holiday and the Paddlemen themselves are so good they're easy to miss in a sense. There isn't a self-serving note played with all focus on the songs and not the players.
  
  While "Neighbor of the Tell-Tale Heart" is the album's most memorable track with it's rich, old time country sound and undeniable hook, it is perhaps "Champs-Élysées" that gives greatest testament to the band's strength. Anytime, a band can fit the Pretenders into an old-time album this seemlessly, they have to be good, pure and simple.
  
  While looking to the past for inspiration is fairly common these days, Tippy Canoe and the Paddlemen easily stand out. Not only is their music completely immersed in the past, but it also exists very much in the present.
  
  Ratings
  Satriani: 8/10
  Zappa: 8/10
  Dylan: 8/10
  Aretha: 8/10
  Overall: 8/10
  
  posted by bob_vinyl at 12:53 PM
  LINK: http://rnrnonsense.toomanyvoices.com/2008/01/review-tippy-canoe-and-paddlemen.html

• "A jovial lass sings and strums a ukulele. Her stage name is Tippy Canoe. My journey has not yet begun, and already we’re trapped in a deleted scene from Mulholland Dr." Spin Magazine [+ Show ]
  

  Rapid Ear Movement, A Review of the 12th Annual Noise Pop Festival by Rob Harvilla WEDNESDAY 6:...Rapid Ear Movement, A Review of the 12th Annual Noise Pop Festival by Rob Harvilla
  
  WEDNESDAY
  6:41 p.m., Thee Parkside
  A jovial lass sings and strums a ukulele. Her stage name is Tippy Canoe. My journey has not yet begun, and already we’re trapped in a deleted scene from Mulholland Dr.
  

• "Tippy Canoe plays the ukulele and sings with a honeyed voice that makes you wanna paint her on the nose of an old WWII bomber plane." Zero Magazine [+ Show ]
  

  City Slick - San Francisco and East Bay Scene by Eric Shea I was also very recently asked to play...City Slick - San Francisco and East Bay Scene by Eric Shea
  
  I was also very recently asked to play at the Rite Spot in San Francisco with the lovely Ms. Tippy Canoe. Tippy (or Michele Kappel as she is sometimes called) also plays drums and sings in the estrogen punk pop band, Kirby Grips. As Tippy Canoe, she sings these sweet little songs that pull inspiration from early vaudeville and western swing acts of yore. But that is not to say that she's another Lavay Smith or Devil Doll or swing throwback thing. Nope, Tippy Canoe plays the ukulele and sings with a honeyed voice that makes you wanna paint her on the nose of an old WWII bomber plane. She's actually more inspired by this late-'70s group out of Prague who performed songs from the '20s. They were called the Original Prague Syncopated Orchestra. But Tippy will do totally off-the-cuff songs. Like she'll take a Depeche Mode song and turn it into what she calls "ukulele-driven doo wop country ‘20s jazz pop" and it totally works because she approaches the song not with so much camp as with a heartfelt assertiveness and natural confidence. She likes to play in a round-robin style, which is cool by me because I snapped my wrist skateboarding in September and I'm still kind of recovering from that, so it's a bit difficult for me to play my guitar for more than six or seven songs at a time.

• "A lady whose good-humored ditties and earnest prettiness are right in line with the charm of her instrument. " San Francisco Weekly [+ Show ]
  

  Tippy's Tops- Up with Ukuleles by Hiya Swanhuyser There can be little doubt that the ukulele revo...Tippy's Tops- Up with Ukuleles by Hiya Swanhuyser
  
  There can be little doubt that the ukulele revolution is on. And we know that anyone capable of smiling can be made to do so via the little guitar, in the right hands.
  
  One of the torchbearers for this movement is Tippy Canoe, the alter ego of Michele Kappel, a lady whose good-humored ditties and earnest prettiness are right in line with the charm of her instrument. But she's hardly a simple revivalist: She describes her music as "ukulele-driven du-wop country '20s jazz pop." Tonight she performs alongside Songs From a Random House and Ralph Carney's Hulagins, starting at 8:30 at the Make-Out Room, 3225 22nd St. (at Mission), S.F. Admission is $8; call 647-2888 or visit www.makeoutroom.com.
  -- Hiya Swanhuyser
  
  sfweekly.com | originally published: April 21, 2004
  

• "Kappel’s lilting vocals -- that bring to mind Patsy Cline -- sing a mix of covers and originals." West Coast Performer [+ Show ]
  

  Profile by Kathleen Walker What do you do when your critically-acclaimed all girl power pop band ...Profile by Kathleen Walker
  
  What do you do when your critically-acclaimed all girl power pop band goes on hiatus?
  Practice your ukelele of course. Michele Kappel , drummer, co-vocalist and co-songwriter
  for Sympathy for the Record Industry’s Kirby Grips has branched out, or shall we say
  paddled out. She’s called on her vast library of musical knowledge to create her alter ego,
  Tippy Canoe. Canoe was originally inspired by the Original Prague Syncopated Orchestra. They were a group out of
  Prague in the late 70s and early ‘80s who did recordings of original ‘20s songs. Anita Carter, Dinah Washington and Queen
  were also huge influences. She describes her material as “ukulele -driven du wop country ‘20s jazz pop.” She’s aware that
  that’s a lot to digest. “I know a lot of people can’t get their minds around all of that combined, but it’s going to work
  because it’s real.”
  Kappel’s lilting vocals that bring to mind Patsy Cline sing a mix of covers and originals. Her covers span the gamut,
  as you can imagine. Merle Haggard, Nick Lowe and Depeche Mode. interpretations have been known to emanate from
  her strings. She also plays a lot of Jack Teagarden’s songs. Teagarden was a trombonist popular in the ‘30s-’50s, who
  sang in a lazy, Southern Gentleman drawl. She will be playing out solo and with a revolving cast of characters, and is
  excited about the fact that her more eclectic sound will enable her to play on more bills than the Grips allowed. “I love
  the flexibility of playing so many different styles,” Kappel says. “I can play with indie rockers, country, retro,
  singer-songwriters. I’m beyond excited to mix it u p with all of those cats.”
  Elton (Chantigs) engineered it. The all star cast helping to paddle this Canoe’s introduction to the world included
  Chris “TG” Green (Frisky Frolics, Mini Pearl Necklace, Atomic Cocktail) on bass, Pat Johnson (May Days,
  Penelope Houston Band) on guitar and Bart Davenport on guitar and harmonica. Plans include recording a full-length in the Fall,
  tentatively titled “Capsized” and to “get in my pickup truck and tour, tour, tour.” www.angelfire.com/vamp/tippycanoe.
  

• "Guaranteed to melt your heart or at least your cares away." KZSU Radio [+ Show ]
  

  The Stanford University radio station we affectionately call KZSU has kindly added "Sneak Peek" to i...The Stanford University radio station we affectionately call KZSU has kindly added "Sneak Peek" to it's playlist. (Thanks B.C.!)
  
  Please go ahead and attack the station with requests for it.
  http://www.kzsu.org/
  request line:650-723-9010
  
  Here's their review:
  by Your Imaginary Friend
  Reviewed 2004-10-05
  
  The ever gracious Michele from the Kirby Grips sends us this sampler EP of her solo project. Her distinctive voice wasn’t always up-front in the Grips, but here you have it in full splendor, guaranteed to melt your heart or at least your cares away. Backed by a handful of all star local SF musicians, this has an “old time” vaudeville/cabaret feel, folksy a bit with her ukelele and the fine upright bass of The Paddleman, while not feeling at all indulgent or trite like the plethora of local hipsters plundering all things retro, western as of late. Her recent appearance on Wed Night Live had the whole station enamoured. This cd will do it too.
  
  1) folksy western w/ harmonica and banjo sounding thing
  2) simple, beautiful, 2 step dance inducing
  3) minimal, just her beautiful voice, ukelele and bells/clave, so pretty
  4) latin, tropical Mexico flavor
  5) oh my, a priceless cover of “why must I be a teenager in love” except she substitutes with “thirtysomething”, sweet

Setlist

TIPPY TUNES:
Mass Transmissions
22nd Street
Back Seat Driver
Shine A Light in the Dark
Sweet Love (Sha la la lala)
Champs Elysee
Neighbor of the Tell-Tale Heart
Traveling Light
Sleep, Sleep My Dear
Puerto Angel
When You've Gone Too Far
Your Word
Moodish Me
Reel After Reel
Hear Me Out
Shy Or Snob
Step
I'm Cooked
+ more.

MIKIE LEE PRASAD ORIGINALS:
Monday Night Man
I Need You
North of Mediocre
Call Me Dear
Christmas All Year Round

CERTIFIED PRE-OWNED SONGS:
Stars Fell On Alabama - Jack Teagarden (amongst others)
I'm Sticking With You - The Velvet Underground
I've Got A Feeling I'm Falling - Elsie Carlisle (amongst others)
Now We're Getting Somewhere - Crowded House
Goodbye - Mary Hopkin
Teenager In Love - Dion & the Belmonts
Shake the Disease - Depeche Mode
Come Back My Love - The Cardinals
Play The Game - Queen
and on and on when the spirit moves...

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