Dale Watson Is Taking His Chicken $hit Bingo On The Road
Have you heard about the legend of Dale Watson’s “Chicken Shit Bingo”? He’s been hosting the event on Sundays since 2000 at places like Austin’s legendary Ginny’s Little Longhorn Saloon, and now at his own bar just outside of San Antonio in St. Hedwig called the Big ‘T’ Roadhouse. If you’re ever in central Texas and want a dose of full fledged Texas authenticity, it is a sight to see.
The premise is that you mark off the floor of a chicken cage in a grid, then sell tickets corresponding to the squares. And wherever the chicken does his business, a winner is declared. If it sounds like a hoot of a time but you happen to not be able to make it down to a honky tonk in Texas, that’s okay, because Dale Watson is bringing the Chicken Shit Bingo experience to you, and in a couple of forms.
On August 19th, Dale Watson will be releasing his latest record called Live at the Big ‘T’ Roadhouse, Chicken S#!+ Sunday via Red House Records. Mixed in with the Chicken Shit revelry, you’ll hear Dale Watson and his Lone Stars perform classic Dale Watson songs like “I Lie When I Drink,” and “I Gotta Drive,” as well as covers such as Jerry Reed’s “Amos Moses” and Merle Haggard’s “The Bottle Let Me Down.”
But just in case the magic of Chicken Shit Bingo doesn’t translate for you coming out of a pair of speakers, Dale is bringing the Chicken Shit show on the road as well.
“If you take music on the road you might as well take the Texas experience on the road too. It’s all in fun, just having a little bit of our southern heritage out there,” Watson tells The Guardian about his decision to bring Chicken Shit bingo with him. “I seen it in Bellflower, California, back in the 80s when I was doing a house gig. Back there they did it illegally. They locked the doors and only let people in they knew and the house took a cut. Whenever the house takes a cut that’s when it’s gambling. We don’t do that. The money goes to one person.”
And for those wondering if playing bingo with a chicken might cause Dale Watson to run “afowl” with animal rights folks, Dale insists, “When we first started it, PETA came out but we got the longest living and probably the only chickens in the US who have their own vet. I think they were pretty satisfied with the fact that it’s all in fun and we’re not making chicken doing anything it don’t normally do … We thought maybe it would go maybe a month. We didn’t think it would be such an amazing hit that it was.”
No specific news yet of which upcoming tour dates might feature a live version of Chicken Shit Bingo, but keep an eye on his tour dates and get those Chicken Shit dollars ready.
Andrew
August 13, 2016 @ 10:52 am
Looks like fun! Still need to see Dale in concert and have him sign my guitar!
I miss Steve Gaines
August 13, 2016 @ 11:43 am
Been to a Quail Unlimited meeting they had a live male, chance to win a shotgun, pretty cool!
mountain
August 13, 2016 @ 12:47 pm
Got to see him in a small bar in Columbus, Ohio back in June. So good live. He is a great dude, fun to talk to as well.
Bertox
August 13, 2016 @ 2:08 pm
I brought one of my guitars for him to sign at Blanco’s in Houston about 10 or 12 years ago. He was very gracious and even strummed it for a bit. His live show is fantastic; he engages a crowd like no other. A true entertainer. His Lone Star Beer plugs in between songs are a must-see!
ElectricOutcast
August 13, 2016 @ 12:19 pm
Reminds me of a time when I was making deliveries to some Animal Hospitals and one of my usual stops outside of Atlanta had this chicken and apparently they had it’s hair and feathers fluffed up like what you’d see when looking at a poodle. Well it turns out that chicken was a rescue animal from an abusive home (don’t know exactly where) but ever since rescuing that thing, that same animal hospital treated that chicken like it was the official mascot.
For the record: I probably won’t attend this thing anyway if it ever came to my city because the concept just sounds flat out gross.
Bertox
August 13, 2016 @ 1:58 pm
I went to Ginny’s for Chicken Shit Bingo last summer; it was beyond packed out! It was a lot of fun and I enjoyed the he’ll out of the music and draught beer, but the line was so long for each bingo drawing that I wasn’t able to play. That left me in a fowl mood…
Bertox
August 13, 2016 @ 2:00 pm
HELL, I hate auto-correct
Dean
August 13, 2016 @ 2:47 pm
I saw Dale in Chicago and it was a great show. I don’t know what was more impressive the music or his ability to drink. His humor is top notch and his crowd was very eclectic. If your going to buy him a drink make sure it’s from the top shelf
Jackie Treehorn
August 13, 2016 @ 6:39 pm
Top shelf? Hell, he drinks fucking lone star. 🙂 That shit will do the job, but top shelf it ain’t. The last time I saw him live, we were buying him Busch pounders by the six pack and he and the band were slugging them right down.
Michael P
August 14, 2016 @ 6:03 am
As a Texan living where I can’t get Lone Star, let me tell you – that stuff is nectar from heaven. Lord, how I miss it.
David Fuller
August 14, 2016 @ 3:32 am
As a note of possible interest, in 1980 Mojo Nixon and Skid Roper released an album containing a song called “Chicken Drop” which outlines the method by which Chicken Shit Bingo is played. The rest of the album is damn fine, too.
Roland of Gilead
August 14, 2016 @ 5:59 am
My wife was watching some travel show on TV one night,they were doing a profile of Austin TX. Anyway the dork that hosts the show went to Ginnys to play chicken shit bingo.Well of course he wins and when he collects his prize ,l’m like “Holy shit that’s Dale Watson !!!” Her response was “Who’s Dale Watson?”
Harpo
August 14, 2016 @ 7:40 am
You don’t have to me from the south to play this game, I’ve played in Iowa, and northern Missouri,also have
seen it played with a cow.
Jim Bob
August 14, 2016 @ 11:09 am
This chicken shit makes me wish I lived in TX. Badly. Jeff City, MO blows. Anyone in TX need to hire a CPA? I’ll move there so quick heads’ll be fucking spinning
Fat Freddy's Cat
August 15, 2016 @ 5:09 am
I’ve never played chicken shit bingo; I’ve played cow patty bingo.
I saw Dale in a recent live show with Jim Heath of The Reverend Horton Heat. That was one fantastic show. Not just the music but the marvelous comedy, which was mostly off-the-cuff.
Mike
August 17, 2016 @ 10:57 am
My town’s Halloween festival used to do the same thing with a cow. lol