Video: "(It's Just a) Dumb Ol' Stick" - Molly Ledford & Billy Kelly

Who knew that a dumb old stick could inspire a delightful little song?  Or that trees could inspire an entire album of delightful little songs?  Molly Ledford & Billy Kelly, that's who!  Now, those two artists, who've spent an entire kindie career writing songs that recognize the beauty and humor in everyday objects, have turned their attention to the sticks.  In this video for "(It's Just a) Dumb Ol' Stick," sticks of all shapes, bumps, and sizes get their day in the video sun.  Or maybe it's a scrapbooking spotlight -- anyway, it's a fun video for a fun song.

Molly Ledford & Billy Kelly - "(It's Just a) Dump Ol' Stick" [YouTube]

Review: Beehives and Bedheads - Duke Otherwise

Duke Otherwise Beehives and Bedheads album cover

If you're going to give yourself a stage name of "Duke Otherwise," you'd better not go halfway.  No, I expect the full arch distance of royalty, mixed up with an oddity that recollects Bowie (David) and Burton (Tim).

Thankfully, Duke Otherwise, AKA Noah Reimer, gives each song on his brand new Beehives and Bedheads the full flourish, and then some.  Looking for an album that provides guidance on moving through early childhood life transitions?  Move along, then, because this album kicks off with a song called “Dancing Pig” that answers the question, “What would a Tom Waits song about a prancing porcine sound like?,” and never really gets any less weird from there.  The zippy “What Kind of Hairdo Do You Do?” crams in at least dozen hair-related cultural references ranging from Medusa to Kid and Play.  “Nose and Ears” uses a jazzy clarinet tune to accompany a consideration of the implications of living to the age of one thousand while your nose and ears never stop growing.

I could go on describing odd scenarios out of Shel Silverstein and or perhaps Roald Dahl in gentler moments, or waste many electrons jotting down the nifty wordplay on many tracks.  If it sounds a bit like Zak Morgan, then that may be a case of affinity as Morgan makes appearances on a handful of tracks.  On and on the album careens, winding up with the next-to-last track “Kitty Wampus,” about a bus driver with an exceedingly poor sense of direction and featuring at the end a chorus of kids pleading, “Are we there yet, are we there yet?...”  And, then after all the flights of fancy, the album gently lands with “Whistle Like Bird,” an ode to musician and well-known whistler Andrew Bird (with Morgan doing his best Andrew Bird whistling impersonation).

The album will most tickle the fancies of kids ages 5 through 9.  Clocking in at about 32 minutes in length, the twelve tracks breeze by.

I am all for a broad range of kids music -- straight-ahead celebratory pop, songs that explore emotional depths, and even though I don’t always talk about it, even music that helps literally learn things.  But part of that should also include imagination and skewed viewpoints that take the young listener out of the everyday.  Beehives and Bedheads does that nearly perfectly.  Highly recommended.

Note: I received a copy of this album for possible review.

Monday Morning Smile: "Furry Happy Monsters" (Sesame Street)

I know, I've posted before about R.E.M. performing a reworked version of "Shiny Happy People" on Sesame Street.  I don't care -- this is such a joyful and funny piece, nearly perfect in every detail, that I still think about semi-regularly.

R.E.M. - "Shiny Happy People (Furry Happy Monsters)" (from Sesame Street) [YouTube]

Review: Simpatico - Renee and Friends

Renee and Friends Simpatico album cover

When I think of kids' music duets, the very first duo that comes to my mind is Renee Stahl and Jeremy Toback, AKA Renee and Jeremy.

In fact, they're about the first five duos that come to mind.  Sure, there are other duos -- The Okee Dokee Brothers, Key Wilde & Mr. Clarke, Molly Ledford & Billy Kelly, to name three I particularly like -- but the artistic talent they share with the world is not primarily derived from their vocal harmonies the way R&J's is.  Their three full-length albums do such a wonderful job highlighting their blended voices that, well, like I said, no other duo in kids' music comes close for me.

What should I make, then, of Stahl's new effort, Simpatico? She recorded this album with fellow Los Angeles singer/songwriter Rich Jacques and a bunch of musicians and friends -- and friends who are musicians -- and dubbed the group Renee and Friends.  It's not a completely new approach from the R&J work -- this is not an album of death metal polka -- but it branches out in some different directions.  At its most puzzling, those directions include a solo spoken-word piece by Colin Hay (best known Stateside for being the lead singer of Men at Work) and the chestnut "Happiness" from the musical You're A Good Man, Charlie Brown, sung solo by actress/performer (and friend of Stahl's dating back to high school) Molly Shannon.  Neither are bad, just feel out of place on an album that at its best uses Stahl's warm voice as both lead voice and harmonic partner.

Those stronger tracks include the opening track "Gather Round," with Lisa Loeb, an ode to gathering over food with friends and family, which should be on any future Thanksgiving kindie playlist, however rare that occurrence.  Her duet with Glen Phillips of Toad the Wet Sprocket on  "You Were Meant to Be" is particularly gorgeous.  For me, while her duets with Maya Rudolph (on Prince's "Starfish and Coffee") and Caspar Babypants and Rolfe Kent (on "I Am Not Afraid") are enjoyable, the heart of the album is really the last four tracks.  That's where the feeling of enveloping love and support that's animated the Renee and Jeremy work is paired with vocal arrangements that best showcase Stahl's voice as lead and harmony. 

The 35-minute album is most appropriate for kids ages 2 through 7, though with the exception of two or maybe three tracks, this is easily an album you could play for yourself with no kids around at all.  You can hear 3 of the album's tracks here.

I've considered Renee and Jeremy's albums to be the sonic equivalent of comfort food warming the heart served by two very talented chefs.  If Simpatico doesn't reach quite those heights, perhaps that's just because I've become so accustomed to those two particular cooks.  But this album features enough dishes worth enjoying with the family to be worth trying something new.  Definitely recommended.

Note: I received a copy of this album for possible review.

Listen To This: "Little Chicken" - Rudy Trubitt

Rudy Trubitt answers the question: what if Chicken Weebus decided to open up for Supertramp during their late '70s heyday?

I mean, I'm pretty sure that nobody's ever asked that question, but "Little Chicken" answers it anyway.  (And it's good to hear new music from the San Francisco-based Trubitt.)

Rudy Trubitt - "Little Chicken" [Soundcloud] [CD Baby]

Review: Songs, Stories and Friends 2: Where the Path Will Wind - Charlie Hope

Charlie Hope Where the Path Will Wind album cover

I think highly of Charlie Hope. When you've compared Hope (favorably) with Raffi, you've clearly set a high bar for any artist, right?

So let's drain this review of Hope's latest album, Songs, Stories and Friends 2: Where the Path Will Wind of any tension whatsoever and say that I like it lot, but that your family's enjoyment of it will depend on what you expect from your audio entertainment.

This new album, Hope's fifth, takes a slightly different path (pun unintended, I swear) than her previous album, the delightful Sing As We Go! and instead echoes that album's predecessor, Songs, Stories and Friends: Let's Go Play!.  Unlike the more song-focused Sing, this album throws more stories and friends into the mix, all in service of an overall nature theme.  There are a couple audio games of "I Spy," some spoken word poems, and -- as always -- Hope's mother, who gives "The Three Little Pigs" a far less confrontational telling.

Now I'm always the biggest fan of Hope's voice and songwriting, so my favorite selections on the album are the songs, especially the traditional folk song "Barges," the sweet original "Like an Evergreen," and another original, "If I Were a Bird," which somehow manages to combine both flute and a soaring chorus.  Producer Michael Langford surrounds Hope's lovely-as-ever voice with tasteful arrangements, folk-y but not stuffy.

The 46-minute album will be of most interest to kids ages 2 through 6 -- you can listen to a medley of songs here.

Where the Path Will Wind is essentially an audio magazine, an aural equivalent, perhaps, to her Sing As We Go! video series.  If you're looking for a purely musical experience, therefore, this may not fit those expectations.  But will it engage your favorite preschooler or kindergartener?  You bet.  Definitely recommended.

Note: I received a copy of this album for possible review.