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. I n 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, Barbara Manning, 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 and with her band The Paddlemen. This singular songbird frequently shares the stage with: Mikie Lee Prasad (guitar, vocals, tambourine, harmonica) When on-stage in the San Franciso Bay Area as Tippy Canoe & the Paddlemen the line-up also includes: Christopher Fisher (drums) Eric Reedy (bass) ---who conjure up a tight-knit mesh of rhythm to compliment her old-timey pop melodies. Additional assistance on recordings or live has been provided by Rick Quisol, Chris "TG" Green, Sandra Mello, Brian Mello, Antonette Goroch, Yanos Lustig, Uni & her Ukelele, The Paper Dolls, Madigan Shive, Bart Davenport, Pat Johnson, Elton Ridge, Dave and Bill Fisher.  Tippy Canoe at Atomic Books, Baltimore, MD ~ June 2008 Photo by Craig Lammes |
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