Chip Richter is the most fun, upbeat singer-songwriter I can think of. And I'm not saying that just because we've been listening to him on the radio, the tape deck, the CD and DVD players and now our iPods for the last dozen years or more.
We first heard Chip on WCRF in the late 90's and have been swinging, singing, bopping and dancing with him and our growing family ever since. Just last week I had the privilege to deliver Chip's newest CD, Are We Almost There? (available here and soon on iTunes) to my nieces and nephews in Virginia. It was my privilege because it was their total delight—the shrieks and excitement told the whole story:
"Yay, more Chip!!!!"
You can follow Chip on Twitter and that's how today's story came about. I check into Twitter a couple of times a day and today I saw that he was going to be in Warrensville Heights this morning and Beachwood this afternoon for library shows. Those libraries are just a few miles away from us, so we thought we'd drop by and enjoy him in concert!
Did I mention that Chip is awesome? It's been six or so years since we've seen each other in person but that didn't stop him from recognizing me and my family and being excited about it. He even remembered the woodworking project I'd done for him some time ago (hopefully in a good way)!
Well, he got tuned up, sang his traditional (mandatory?) "Hey There, How Do You Do?" (mp3) introduction song and I think we had kids bouncing, dancing and singing along from that point on.
When Chip is singing and playing, the kids all get blurry!
Of course since it's summertime, we just had to sing "Ice Cream" (mp3) and a new one, "Ridin' My Bike" from his new CD that had everyone with imaginary helmets on, 
riding their "bikes" around the room. He treated us to the story of how he and his daughter (when she was six) came up with "Ladybug's Living Room" (mp3) and then led us all in singing it.
It all ended way too soon, but that's the way things go sometimes. And we'd never have caught him if we hadn't made the effort to get there. Summertime is like that. Ice cream melts, opportunities fade away, songs go unsung and bike rides remain unridden, unless—unless we get out there and eat it, sing it, ride it, swing it and enjoy it.
Thanks, Chip, for a totally enjoyable afternoon. I'm off to go ride my bike before we're due at the pool. Thanks!
