Business Spotlight: RCM Inc. and Chappellocke Publishing Inc.

by Vera-Jane Goodin

SBJ Contributing Writer

sbj@sbj.net

Ruell Chappell isn't a stranger to the music business. The former Ozark Mountain Dare Devil started RCM Inc. about 30 years ago as a commercial audio production company.

"I just didn't want to stay on the road any more and the recording studio was all I knew. I found a way to make it a viable business, instead of just recording songs," Chappell said.

Serving clients such as Panera Bread, Premier Health Plans, Youngblood Volkswagen and Prime Trucking, RCM provides writing, producing and recording of commercial audio products including jingles, Sales on Hold messages, radio spots and TV audio. Chappell's standard jingle package costs $2,999.

RCM Inc. grosses about $200,000 a year, Chappell estimated. Clients are worldwide.

In the next five years, Chappell said, "I see (RCM) growing as far as quality and size of clients I work with, not in number of clients. I try to increase the client quality and not the numbers, that way I can handle them."

Chappell described his business philosophy as giving clients his very best for a fair price. He added that he likes to make the client happy and be reliable and trustworthy.

RCM is unique, Chappell said, "Because it's totally custom work. If someone wants something built from the ground up, that's what I do. It's not prefab music. When someone comes to me and does a jingle with me and radio production, it's a totally customized product. Another thing that sets me apart is I have a (question and answer) process I go through with my clients to try to find out what they need."

The success of RCM has allowed Chappell to join forces with Lori Anne Locke and go into a more creative business ChappelLocke Publishing Inc. which Chappell termed more risky.

It was something Chappell had wanted to do for a long time. Under ChappelLocke Publishing Inc. which was started in 2003, Chappell and Locke do CDs, DVDs and other creative products for the general public and businesses that deal with the general public, Chappell said.

The company's first product is "Storm's Comin': The True Story of the Young Brothers Massacre," a CD album/DVD music video and documentary, which puts history to music.

According to records with Springfield-Greene County Library online resources, the Jan. 2, 1932, shootout in Brookline left six law enforcement officers dead two with the Greene County Sheriff's Office and four with the Springfield Police Department.

The officers were attempting to arrest Harry Young, wanted for the murder of Republic City Marshal Mark Noe, when the gunfight erupted. Young and his brother, Jennings Young, fled and were later found dead from gunshot wounds inflicted in a murder/suicide in Houston, Texas.

The story hits close to home for Chappell because his father almost rode along with the paddy wagon driver sent to pick up the Young Boys; the driver was killed. Chappell also met Frank Pike, the surviving police officer of the massacre.

Chappell wrote some music for a proposed movie version of the event. The movie wasn't made, but the Young Brothers remained a project Chappell wanted to do. When Locke came along, he selected the Young Brothers Massacre as their first writing project.

"We divided the events and people between us and wrote a kind of chronological musical story of the event," Chappell said.

Locke said: "We decided we wanted to use period instruments from 1932 so we had to learn to play them. Then we had to speak for the people we chose to write about."

Once word got out about the project, Chappell said it became necessary to create a DVD with a short documentary about the massacre.

"It was a national story, but one that happened here. When we got local media coverage, we made the album available. But the problem was that unless people knew the story, the album didn't make sense, although the songs were good. We had to produce a DVD with a short documentary. Through visuals connected to the music, we made it easier to understand the songs," Chappell said.

The "Young Brothers Massacre" CD, the only product under the ChappelLocke Publishing label, is available online at the ChappelLocke.com site, as well as at Barnes & Noble, Borders Books, Springfield Music and Caveman by Vintage Stock. The CD sells for $15 on ChappelLocke's Web site.

"We'd love to have a documentary made of the CD. Since Lori and I are known as ChappelLocke, we would like to become known for writing for movies and documentaries," Chappell said. "It took us a year to do the first one. We'll probably do an album a year with smaller project in between."

Chappell and Locke are the only employees with RCM and ChappelLocke Publishing. If other professional help is needed, they are called in, as with talent for voice-overs or to produce videos like the DVD documentary for the album.

The studio occupies the lower level of Chappell's home.