Best (Robert Earl Keen album)

Best, a compilation album by folk singer-songwriter Robert Earl Keen, released by Koch Records on November 7, 2006. The album features songs from six of Keen's previous albums: No Kinda Dancer, A Bigger Piece of Sky, No. 2 Live Dinner, Farm Fresh Onions, What I Really Mean, and Live at the Ryman: The Greatest Show Ever Been Gave.

Reception
The AllMusic review by Mark Deming gave the album 3½ stars stating: "Robert Earl Keen is an archetypal Texas singer/songwriter, someone who can mine both laughter and tragedy from life along the dusty margins of life in the Lone Star State... a comprehensive and well-programmed compilation offering a fully rounded introduction to his music would be more than welcome. However, 2007's Best isn't quite that album... If you're looking for a concise, career-spanning overview of Robert Earl Keen's long career in music, Best isn't as much help as you might wish, but the consistent quality is a sure convincer."

Track listing
All tracks by Robert Earl Keen except where noted
 * 1) "No Kinda Dancer" – 3:07
 * 2) "Willie" – 2:36
 * 3) "Armadillo Jackal" – 3:26
 * 4) "Paint the Town Beige" – 4:34
 * 5) "Whenever Kindness Fails" – 3:38
 * 6) "Corpus Christi Bay" – 3:59
 * 7) "Merry Christmas from the Family" – 3:54
 * 8) "The Road Intro" – 5:08
 * 9) "The Road Goes on Forever" – 7:45
 * 10) "Furnace Fan" – 3:58
 * 11) "All I Have Is Today" – 3:28
 * 12) "Let the Music Play" (Keen, Bill Whitbeck) – 5:36
 * 13) "For Love" – 4:24
 * 14) "Mr. Wolf and Mama Bear" – 3:46
 * 15) "Ride" – 3:45
 * 16) "Feeling Good Again" – 3:15
 * 17) "Gringo Honeymoon" – 4:53
 * 18) "I'm Comin' Home" – 4:17

Personnel

 * Robert Pool – Fender Bass
 * Dan Augustine – horn arrangements, trombone, tuba
 * Danny Barnes – banjo
 * Rich Brotherton – audio production, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, rhythm guitar, producer, vocal harmony
 * Nick Connolly – organ
 * Bryan Duckworth – fiddle
 * Dave Durocher – drums, vocal harmony, backing vocals
 * Joe Ely – pedal steel
 * Denice Franke – vocal harmony, vocals, backing vocals
 * Nanci Griffith – vocal harmony, backing vocals
 * Fred Gumaer – drums
 * John Hagen – cello
 * Melissa Story Haycraft – executive producer
 * Dan Huckabee – dobro
 * Robert Earl Keen Jr. – audio production, acoustic guitar, rhythm guitar, producer, vocals
 * Mike Landschoot – acoustic guitar, electric guitar
 * Randy LeRoy – mastering
 * Lyle Lovett – vocal harmony, backing vocals
 * Lloyd Maines – audio production, pedal steel, producer
 * George Marinelli – electric guitar, vocal harmony, backing vocals
 * Ian McLagan – organ
 * Eamon McLoughlin – fiddle, viola
 * Marty Muse – pedal steel
 * Riley Osborne – piano
 * Chuck Rhodes – production coordination
 * Phil Richey – trumpet
 * Elliott Rogers – backing vocals
 * Bill Schas – trombone
 * Michael Snow – bodhran, tenor banjo
 * Jay Spell – accordion
 * Tommy Spurlock – acoustic guitar, gut string guitar, lap steel guitar, pedal steel
 * Marty Stuart – mandolin
 * Paul Sweeney – mandolin
 * Garry Tallent – electric bass, upright bass
 * Tom Van Schaik – drums, percussion
 * Garry Velletri – audio production, producer
 * Bill Whitbeck – bass, electric bass
 * Elizabeth Yoon – art direction, design
 * Jonathan Yudkin – violin