#66 Chris Ballew: Fame, Fatherhood, and Caspar Babypants (2020)

08/10/22 • 29 min

Even before his third birthday, Chris Ballew was transfixed by music. He would sit on the floor in his parents’ Seattle-area home and listen to The Beatles’ seminal 1967 album Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, and not long after he was writing and performing his own songs. By the mid-90s he was fronting the Presidents of the United States of America - one of the hottest bands in rock'n'roll - and appearing regularly on MTV. But he was quietly harboring a secret: “On a gut level, I wanted out immediately.” On this episode of Paternal from 2020, Ballew looks back at his early experiences with fame, and examines the instinct that led him to leave modern rock behind to take on a new stage presence: celebrated children’s musician Caspar Babypants.

Ballew has released 17 albums and been nominated for a Grammy during his career as Caspar, all driven by a desire to imbue his music with the same lyrical elements he found in the music of the Beatles, and to help weary parents make it through the day.

Songs Featured In This Episode:

Spider John - Caspar Babypants
A Day In The Life - The Beatles
Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band - Caspar Babypants
Naked and Famous - The Presidents of The United States of America
Kick Out The Jams - The Presidents of The United States of America
Sun Go - Caspar Babypants (featuring Frances England)
Nap In The Afternoon - Caspar Babypants

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Songs Featured In This Episode:

Spider John - Caspar Babypants
A Day In The Life - The Beatles
Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band - Caspar Babypants
Naked and Famous - The Presidents of The United States of America
Kick Out The Jams - The Presidents of The United States of America
Sun Go - Caspar Babypants (featuring Frances England)
Nap In The Afternoon - Caspar Babypants

Previous Episode

#65 Steve Leder: Twelve Questions to Tell a Life Story

Steve Leder is a husband, father, bestselling author and, as the senior rabbi at Wilshire Boulevard Temple in Los Angeles, one the most influential religious leaders in America. During his 35 years at Southern California’s oldest synagogue he has proven to be something of an expert in the human experience, and overseen not just regular services at the temple, but also countless weddings - including that of his friend and Academy Award winning screenwriter Aaron Sorkin - and his fair share of funerals, of which he has performed more than a thousand in his career. Not bad for the son of a junkman from Minnesota.

On this episode of Paternal, Leder reflects on what he’s learned about fathers and sons over the years and why men struggle when they face adversity alone, as well as the life and legacy of his own dad and how he’s tried to become a better father himself. He also discusses his 2022 book For You When I Am Gone, which includes a dozen essential questions Leder asked 40 people to better understand how they define love, what makes them happy, and what decisions they regret most in their lives.

Next Episode

#67 Paternal Workshop: The Problem In Your Group Chat

Award-winning research psychologist and professor Dr. Michael Addis returns to Paternal for the latest in a series of special episodes, this time to discuss how male group dynamics work, and what happens when one guy crosses the line. He also explains why some men lean on misogyny or homophobia in order to win over a crowd of new male friends, and the stakes for everyone involved.

He also introduces the concept of TRAP (trigger, response, avoidance pattern) and why it’s crucial for men to identify what kind of events serve as triggers in their life, as well as how to incrementally improve their responses over time. Dr. Addis is a professor in the Department of Psychology at Clark University in Worcester, Mass. He also provides personal coaching and consultation for men at www.incontextcoaching.com.