Chippy, also known as Songs from "Chippy", is an album by Terry Allen, Joe Ely, Butch Hancock, Robert Earl Keen, Wayne Hancock, Jo Harvey Allen, and Jo Carol Pierce. It contains original music from the musical, Chippy, which was written by Jo Harvey and Terry Allen and commissioned by the American Music Theater Festival, Philadelphia, where it received its world premiere in 1994. The setting of the musical is West Texas in the 1930s.

Production

The album was recorded at Joe Ely's home studio. It was produced by Ely and Terry Allen.

Critical reception

The Los Angeles Times called Chippy "one of the best albums of the year in country music, or any other genre," writing that "crusty singing voices abound, and they are utterly persuasive in creating the illusion that we are listening to people who moved across a landscape of barrooms and oil fields more than 50 years ago." The Orlando Sentinel wrote that "it's particularly wonderful to hear Ely back in an acoustic country vein, especially with his former bandmate Lloyd Maines on steel guitar and dobro." Spin deemed it "a dusty grab bag of gritty and smart West Texas tunery." The Santa Fe New Mexican opined that "even without the benefit of the dialogue and sets, however, the Songs From Chippy set makes an evocative, moving collection centered on our particularly American obsession with the open road." Rolling Stone wrote that it "captures the uneven stage show's high points; spoken-word snippets are inserted between the best songs."

Track listing

Personnel