Chappell & Dave Holt - Stone & Fire (2014)

Singer/songwriters who with piano, guitar & voices offer a musical statement-
a crossroads where jazz, blues, folk & gospel meet creating something both familiar & new, traditional & unconventional

Originally from Canada, Dave studied piano at Toronto’s Royal Conservatory. The 60’s brought rock ‘n’ roll, blues, jazz, and a move to Northern California. He toured and recorded with Rosalie Sorrels and Frontier; accompanied blues/jazz singer Pamela Polland, with his mastery of the James P. Johnson piano style; fronted his own band before he and Chappell became partners. He earned an SFSU BA and Master’s in Creative Writing, has become a published award-winning poet, and is often in demand to perform his poetry accompanied by his Indian drum and Chappell on guitar and vocals.

Chappell, daughter of a Navy chaplain, grew up singing folk and gospel music, ending up in San Diego when he retired. She left for Northern California during the 70’s folk music revival with guitar, autoharp & dulcimer, inspired by the new singer/songwriters. She began to explore merging poetry with music in songwriting, performed extensively, wrote and recorded for independent films, including Dewitt Jones’ “The New England of Robert Frost,” and has been an in-demand studio singer. She is an artist, a professional seamstress specializing in restoration of vintage and antique clothing and accessories, as well as paintings, mannequins, figurines, and is a graphics designer. She has taught art classes and demonstrations for many art groups.