Chappie, Don't Cry

Reissue cover artwork.
Artist	Fishmans
Type	Studio album
Released	May 21, 1991
Genre	Pop Reggae
Length	54:17
Label	Virgin Japan
Producer	Kazufumi Kodama

Chappie, Don't Cry is the debut studio album by Fishmans. It was first released on May 21, 1991 by record label Virgin Japan, their only release with the label before transferring to Media Remoras. Chappie was their only album produced by Kazufumi Kodama, mostly recorded in Melbourne, Australia from February 3-28, 1991. The album had been intermittently recorded before this however, going back as far as mid October 1990. On Fishmans' official website, a blurb describes the album:

A timeless masterpiece of a debut album... Its tenderness is infinite, with innocence that seems to cry. Fishmans were brilliant when walking in the footsteps of rocksteady!

This mention of rocksteady is mainly from influence by Kodama, who pitched the idea to create an album with the band by simply stating "let's make a rocksteady album". Chappie is a mixture of two sensibilities, this aforementioned "rocksteady" style and a more straighforward pop reggae. This latter style bears more similarity to Kodama's own band Mute Beat, a favorite of band leader Shinji Sato.

Chappie was released to a lukewarm response, selling poorly but being praised by reggae critics at the time. As stated by drummer Kin-Ichi Motegi during The Fishmans Movie, their label stopped short of allowing the band even a display in their own record label, then finding only a few copies of the album on general store shelves. As such, Chappie is remembered by the band as a fun, yet disappointing first record.

Under the album's entry in the CD Extra Dictionary, it's explained that "Chappie" was a dog of Yuzuru Kashiwabara's during this album's recording. Because he was so far away from home while recording the album in Australia, its' title is meant to convey that the band misses, cares for and thinks of his dog while they are away.

Track listing

1. "ひっくりかえってた2人" (5:43)
2. "ひこうき" (6:05)
3. "Special Night" (5:36)
4. "Good Morning" (4:21)
5. "夏の思い出" (3:21)
6. "Future" (8:25)
7. "いなごが飛んでる" (3:42)
8. "Go Go Clubですれ違い" (5:45)
9. "チャンス" (5:42)
10. "ピアノ"  (5:37)

Artwork/Packaging

Scans are from 1998 reissue PCCA-01182.

Back.

Booklet inside.

Booklet page.

CD.

Insert front.

Insert back.

Obi strip.

Personnel

Band Members

• Shinji Sato (vocals, cornet, acoustic guitar)
• Hakase (keyboards)
• Kin-Ichi Motegi (drums, vocals, cowbell)
• Kensuke Ojima (electric guitar, acoustic guitar, vocals)
• Yuzuru Kashiwabara (bass)

Other Personnel

• Kazufumi "Echo" Kodama (producer, arrangements)
• Masayoshi Okawa (co-producer)
• Peter Blyton (recording engineer, mixing)
• Atsushi Tsunoda (recording engineer, mixing)
• Makoto Morimoto (recording engineer, mixing)
• Stewart Day (assistant engineer)
• Masaaki Kato (mastering engineer)
• Kyoko Mashita (coordinator in Australia)
• Ann Clarkson (assistant coordinator in Australia)
• Akihiko Yamamoto (A&R)
• Akira Watanabe (A&R)
• Masamichi Okazaki (executive producer)
• Yoshiyuki Okuda (executive producer)
• Ichiro Asatsuma (executive producer)
• Chie Noji (artist manager)
• Taichi Akashi (art direction, design)
• Hitoshi Iwakiri (photography)
• Marty Williams (photography)
• Momotaro (photography)

Special Thanks

• Ken-ichi "ANATANO" Okeda
• Tsukasa Fukuoka
• Masahiro Araki
• Jim
• Gary
• Lawrence
• Calue
• Scott
• Rebecca
• Nicole
• Libby
• Angus
• Helen
• Kaoru Seino
• Hiroshi Matsuo
• Eri-chan
• Hisamatsu
• Neri

Issues

• 1991 - VJCA-00004 (CD, Virgin Japan, Japan)

Release is a digipak, meaning artwork is elongated lengthwise.

• 1992 - MRCA-20007 (CD, Media Remoras, Japan)
• 1998 - PCCA-01182 (CD, Pony Canyon, Japan) - Part of reissue series Fishmans Reissue-Series.
• 1998 - PCJA-00031 (Limited 12", Pony Canyon, Japan) - Part of reissue series Fishmans Reissue-Series
• 2009 - PCCA-50124 (CD, Pony Canyon, Japan)
• 2016 - PCCA-50245 (25th Anniversary Limited CD, Pony Canyon, Japan) - Part of reissue series Fishmans 25 - Silver Anniversary! 2016.
• 2021 - PCJA-00086 (30th Anniversary Limited 12", Pony Canyon, Japan) - Part of reissue series 30th Anniv. Fishmans.