The high point in my list of the best kids music of 2011 is this, my list of my favorite kids music albums of the year.

By "year," again, I mean albums with Nov. 1, 2010 through Oct. 31, 2011 release dates available to the general public. That means albums like Laura Veirs' Tumble Bee, with a Nov. 8, 2011 release date, have to wait another 12 months before appearing in this list. (I would be shocked -- albeit incredibly delighted -- if there were 25 albums better than that particular one in the next year.)

I do use the word "favorite" advisedly. I receive something approaching 300 family music albums every year. I review maybe 20% of those. Last year I picked out 20 albums, and cutting off this list this year at 20 just seemed cruel. But, as it turns out, increasing the number on the list to 25 didn't make things any easier. Albums from folks like Laura Doherty, Chip Taylor, Todd McHatton, and ScribbleMonster -- albums I genuinely liked -- didn't make the list. That's what happens when albums in the top 10% of everything I heard this year can't fit into the number of slots available; I had probably about 40 albums I was seriously considering for this list. So the difference between what goes in this list and what stays off is as much about personal preferences as it is about "objective" quality. (That's why I came up with the idea for Fids and Kamily, thinking that the personal preferences of many folks would be a much better approximation of "best.")

In any case, here are those 25 albums, ranked from most favorite to a little less most favorite, that I (and we) most appreciated this year. (As always, the top 10 reflects my Fids and Kamily ballot.)

1. Caspar Babypants
Sing Along!
[Review]
"I really, really like Sing Along! -- the Caspar Babypants disks have been favorites at our house for a long time, and I see no reason why this new album won't join its predecessors in heavy rotation. If he can keep it up, Chris Ballew might just create a body of work for preschoolers to rival Raffi's."

Continue reading "Best Kids Music 2011: Top 25 Albums" »

Posted by SAShepherd at 05:11 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Next up in my list of the best kids music of 2011 are my favorite songs. Now, seeing as I listen to literally thousands of kids songs every year, picking out 25 (less than 1%, probably) is very difficult, and if you asked me to make this list up next week I'm sure at least a couple of songs here would be replaced by others. Growing this list to 25 (last year's was 20) didn't make things any easier -- it just shifted the bubble.

But these 25 (listed alphabetically by song title) are definitely among the year's best recordings.

-- Bad Blue Jay - Caspar Babypants (Sing Along!)
-- Bonfire - The Jimmies (Practically Ridiculous)
Bonfire
-- Cooperate - Sugar Free Allstars & Secret Agent 23 Skidoo

-- The Crocodile Synchronised Swimming Team - Too Many Cookes (Down At The Zoo)
-- Dandelion - Steve Weeks (Dandelion)
-- Didn't Know What I Was Missing - Alastair Moock/Lori McKenna (Planting Seeds, These Are My Friends) -- listen here
-- Freeze Tag - The Not-Its (Tag, You're It!)

-- Garbage Man - Mr. Richard & The Pound Hounds (Backyard Astronauts) -- download free here
-- Henry (Hudson), How Ya Gonna Find a Way? - The Deedle Deedle Dees (Strange Dees, Indeed)

-- Hey, Josie - The Hipwaders (Golden State)
Hey, Josie!
-- Hey Pepito! - Key Wilde & Mr Clarke (Hey Pepito!) -- listen here
-- I Think I’m A Bunny - Todd McHatton (Galactic Champions of Joy)

-- John Kanakanaka - Dan Zanes and Friends (Little Nut Tree) (this is a solo performance below)

-- Let's Dance - Lucky Diaz And The Family Jam Band (Oh Lucky Day!)
-- Metaphor - The Alphabeticians (Rock)

-- Mushy Berry Pie - The Thinkers (Oh Zoooty!) -- listen here
-- A Piano Is Stuck In The Door - Beethoven's Wig Featuring Richard Perlmutter (Beethoven's Wig: Sing Along Piano Classics)

-- Place in My Heart - Frances England (Mind of My Own) -- listen here
-- Quarter Moon Shining - Chip Taylor & the Grandkids (Golden Kids Rules)

-- Please Don't Move (to Another Time Zone) - Lunch Money (Original Friend)
-- Skywriter - Baron Von Rumblebuss (Agreeably Loud!!)
-- Soft Things - Brady Rymer/Laurie Berkner (Love Me for Who I Am) -- listen here
-- Waters of March - Jamie Broza (I Want a Dog!)

-- Wisconsin Poncho - Gustafer Yellowgold (Gustafer Yellowgold's Infinity Sock)

-- Your Favorite Book - Recess Monkey (FLYING!)

Posted by SAShepherd at 12:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

It was a little harder this year picking out 10 favorite album packages in my review of the best kids music of 2011. Not because design is getting worse, but because I am slowly entering the 21st century when it comes to reviewing music.

Which means accepting electronic versions of albums in lieu of the physical CD.

Now this isn't a case of asking you kids to get off my damn lawn. Really, I'm fine with it -- while I prefer the physical product (if only because I tend to listen to music sooner that way), I understand why mp3s are easier, especially for the artist. And while receiving the slim jackets that just consist of the front and back cover and the CD mean I don't get all of the lovely album art or have lyrics handy when listening, when you have something like 1,000 or CDs in boxes, there is a certain allure in having those slim packages.

And it should be noted that the primary focus, of course, is the music encoded in the mp3s or tucked away in those slim packages. Caspar Babypants CDs (which do feature cute cover art from Kate Endle) come in slim packages -- they could come wrapped in newspapers and I'd be overjoyed to get them to listen to the music inside. But an attractive package can sometimes help break down the barriers to listening to kids music for people new to the genre who think that it's still cheap and chintzy.

This list is also a little bit like Wheel of Fortune. (Hunh?) Remember how on the final bonus round puzzle the finalist used to get to choose a few letters which (if present) would be turned by Vanna? Yeah, well everybody ended up picking "E" and "T" and "S" and other common letters. So now they automatically show those letters (along with "R," "N," and "L") and the finalist picks other letters.

I sort of feel like Smithsonian Folkways and Putumayo and Dan Zanes are sort of like the "E" and "T" and "S" of album packaging -- you're always going to get quality work for them. I'd probably be better off just eliminating them from consideration and picking, say, a Top 5.

Maybe next year. Anyway, with the caveat that it feels weird not putting Dan Zanes or Putumayo on this list (I'm sure they were lovely as always, but we received "slim" packages this time around not that I'm in any way complaining, I swear), here are my 10 favorite kids music album packages of 2011, listed in alphabetical order.

Lori Henriques
Outside My Door
It's probably unfair that Henriques' brother is Joel Henriques, proprietor of the most excellent Made By Joel website, which shares arts and crafts projects for children. But, it's important to take advantage of the talents you have in your midst, and the packaging features cute line drawings, the lyrics (important for Henriques' wordy songs), and recycled paper.

That looks lovely... just as the rest of these disks do...

Continue reading "Best Kids Music 2011: Top 10 Album Packages" »

Posted by SAShepherd at 07:41 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Frances England has written me a song.

OK, she's written you a song.

You, there in the back with the Danish? Song for you, too.

Explanation? England's written "Oh, How You've Grown" and offered the tender song on her website for free as part of her Holiday Family Creative Challenge. Not only can you download the mp3, you (that is, the non-commercial you) can use it as the soundtrack to your own family holiday scrapbook -- she's calling at an "end-of-the-year visual postcard." You can see England's own video here -- sepia makes everything more nostalgic.

Frances England - "Oh, How You've Grown" [YouTube]

Posted by SAShepherd at 08:54 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The idea of fan videos are nothing new, obviously. I don't want to think how many hundreds of thousands of them are floating around YouTube. Fan videos for kids music are somewhat rarer -- Mindy over at Kids Place Live is starting to encourage them, and Caspar Babypants has 4 or 5 of them.

But now Frances England can join the crowd. She's got a fan all the way in Norway who's made a minimal but very cute claymation (mostly) video for England's contribution to the Many Hands compilation. This might just be the first fan-made video that makes it to the KidVid Tournament...

That's What Friends Are For from Nora May on Vimeo.

Posted by SAShepherd at 08:09 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Time once again for all the news that didn't fit into a separate post due to time, interest, contractual, or legal obligations -- it's your favorite pun-titled file folder of a blog post, the Ketchup Report! Yaaay! (Cue Kermit the Frog wild arm-flailing here...)

The World of Happiness single, the "We Are the World" of the kids' biz, "A World of Happiness," is here. Except your kids might actually want to listen to this new song when they become parents themselves. Sales of the single, produced by Tor Hyams and Joanie Leeds, benefit Autism Speaks. The single includes a whole host of folks besides Leeds and Hyams -- Molly Ledford (who gets the honor of leading off the track), Frances England, Ralph Covert... it just goes on and on. A bunch of the participants will be recording a concert later this month for broadcast on Sirius/XM Radio later on. Anyway, it's $1.29 well-spent right here.

I could probably start a whole separate post listing all the recent crowdfunding projects in the kids music world. Heck, it's almost getting to the point where I could start a blog listing all the recent crowdfunding projects in the kids music world. I've been partial to Kickstarter, of course. The two most recent projects have been a Professor Banjo and his successful second-album project and Ryan SanAngelo and his not-one-but-two-Kickstarter-projects. But other sites do the same basic thing. Van Oodles didn't quite succeed in making a video for a song of his, but LA indie-rockers Ellen and Matt and Chicago's Laura Doherty are both looking for funds for their next disks. Should you feel so inclined, help out Ellen and Matt here and Laura for her new album Shining Like a Star in the widget there to the side.

-- For a limited time, Doctor Noize's "Bananas" iWhatever app is free. Download the ever-so-slightly-educational app here. (Note: may no longer be free.)

-- Finally, with Earth Day coming up, a it's time for Earth Day-related tunes. Dan Zanes has a new, original tune, "Hail the Creatures" written by Zanes for a new exhibit at the Philadelphia Zoo. You don't need to be near Philly to enjoy the track, just near an iTunes-enabled gadget that can download this, with proceeds benefiting the Zoo. (More details on the tune and the Zoo's new exhibit here.)... Bill Harley is offering a free download of "Keep It Green" from his 1996 album Big Big World -- you can get it here... And finally, DARIA is offering a mini-CD of 6 "earth friendly" songs, free just for the price of an e-mail address (and an earth-friendly suggestion).

Posted by SAShepherd at 08:16 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The sight of Nicola Heindl's illustration immediately brands it as a Putumayo disk. But take off the animated cover of Acoustic Dreamland, the latest collection from Putumayo Kids, replace it with some tastefully sepia-tinged photograph of, I don't know, a moon rising over a barn, and you could totally sell this collection at Pottery Barn, perhaps.

Which is to say that this isn't so much a kids music album as it is just a kid-friendly album. But oh what a nicely curated album it is. I never would have pegged Wilco as a source for lullabies, but Mark Erelli's version of "My Darling" outshines the original, methinks. Ditto for Elizabeth Mitchell's cover of the Allman Brothers' "Blue Sky." Kids musicians aren't totally shut out here -- Frances England records a new song, "Here With Me," for the collection, and Kesang Marstrand lends a song from her excellent lullaby collection as well. As with many Putumayo disks, however, the value in the collection isn't so much the individual songs as much as it is the fact that someone has spent the time finding the tracks and saving the listener the effort.

The album is appropriate for all ages, though the lullaby nature of means that you're more likely to spin it with kids ages 5 and less. You can sample some of the tracks here. I can totally see Acoustic Dreamland being used at nap time or quiet time or during a nighttime feeding. And, buried on a hard drive and stripped of its album art, long past your kids nap, eat at night, or are ever quiet, listened by you and you alone. Recommended.

Posted by SAShepherd at 04:54 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Back with another list of random notes from around the kids music world...

-- I'm a fan of Symphony Space's Just Kidding series, even 3,000 miles away, but I don't typically talk about single shows in that or any series. Having said that, I have it on good authority that Elizabeth Mitchell is planning on attending the Lunch Money Just Kidding concert on Saturday, January 29 (at 11 AM) and make a "guest appearance" for some songs. NYC fans, I expect you to be there -- not to be missed, I'm telling you.

-- Continuing in the category of single shows meriting mention, if you're not tired out after the Lunch Money show (or if you're busy that morning), there's another show in NYC that afternoon. It's an event called "KIDS ROCK!" -- it's a big 'ol benefit concert for KIDS NEED A MELODY, which provides developmental music classes to young children living in the shelter system. It's also Saturday the 29th (from 1 to 4 PM) at Crash Mansion in the Bowery in NYC. It's hosted by Bob McGrath and will feature performances by Rebecca Frezza and Big Truck, Suzi Shelton with guitarist Steve Elliot, Jeremy Plays Guitar, The Fuzzy Lemons, Joanie Leeds, and Baze and His Silly Friends. Not bad, eh?

-- Moving out of the city (sort of), word from Florida's Mr. Richard that he's leading David Weinstone's Music For Aardvarks classes in Orlando. Mr. Richard isn't the first kindie musicians with his own career to participate in these types of classes. Audra Tsanos has done MFA classes in NYC for years, Rebecca Frezza got her start doing Music Together, and Enzo Garcia is another. But Mr. Richard, who's definitely on the shortlist for the title of hardest-working guy in kids music, may be the first to join those types of classes after starting his own, independent kindie career.

-- I noted this on Facebook yesterday, but the first video from Moona Luna is up. You can watch the currently exclusive video here (or just go straight to YouTube here).

-- Frances England has a whole bunch of creative resolutions (designed very, er, creatively of course) and not only that she's pulled in a bunch of creative resolutions from folks like Caspar Babypants, Drew from Recess Monkey, Joe from the Okee Dokee Brothers and lots, lots more. Worth a perusal.

-- Finally, in the category of self-promotion, Australian newspaper The Age dips its toes into the world of Australian kindie music and picks out the two best, Holly Throbsy and The Mudcakes. (It also cites this site, but not in a policeman-sort-of-way. The good way.)

Posted by SAShepherd at 04:43 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Another Ketchup Report, slathering kids music news all across the internet with all-natural ingredients.

-- Bill Harley channels a little Dylan and Guthrie on his song "Enough Is a Feast," which he's now offering as a free download here through Thanksgiving. (If you want to contribute to or volunteer at a food bank at this time of year when food is maybe even more important than it usually is, Harley suggests finding one here.)

-- I'm a longtime fan of the Tricycle Music Fest, even after its cross-country move to San Francisco. Check out the videos from last month's edition here, including "Tricycle," of course, from Frances England and other videos from Charity Kahn and the Time Outs.

-- Twin Cities folks, heads up, Clementown, the Okee Dokee Brothers, and Adam Levy are playing a benefit show on Saturday, December 4 for friends of Clementown's, Krista and Terry, who've both been diagnosed with cancer. Great lineup, good cause. More details here.

-- I'm also a fan of the "Listen To Your Buds" campaign encouraging kids not to turn up their speakers (or headphones) to 11. This fall's performers? Oran Etkin, who's performing in Philadelphia public schools this week and Brady Rymer.

-- Gustafer Yellowgold, back on (off-)Broadway! Gustafer Yellowgold’s Infinity Sock will have a run of Saturday performances (11 AM and 1 PM) at the DR2 Theatre, 103 E. 15th St. New York City, from February 26 through April 2. It apparently will include the song "Wisconsin Poncho," which is "set in an all-cheese clothing store." This, friends, is why I love kids music.

-- The Kindiependent concert at the Seattle Public Library some of you may have heard about? 1,500 people, folks. Strength in numbers, that's what it's about. The group's got a couple new concert series coming up in the Seattle area starting this fall, too...

Posted by SAShepherd at 06:17 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Whatever daydreams I had of becoming a rock star when I was a young turk have long since faded away. But I have wondered about recording some basic, traditional songs for my kids, if only for them to have a record of the songs we sang when they were kids.

And then there's Frances England, who has gone from recording the fine Fascinating Creatures as a DIY project for a preschool fundraiser almost five years ago to recording her third album Mind of My Own with kindie uber-producer Tor Hyams and getting Mates of State to sing with her on her Topspin-approved album. Those are pretty good rockstar daydreams.

One of the key charms of England's first two albums was the lo-fi intimacy England achieved that fit her folky sound. But if on those albums she was willing to make the recordings be akin to a secret shared between friends, on the new album she's a proud 4-year-old, sharing the news with all the world. The good news is that she's done that without sacrificing the charm of those first albums. She mixes both straight-ahead Americana pop-rockers, such as the title (and leadoff) track and "Jacques Cousteau" and laid-back folktunes such as "Red Balloon." England's songwriting is much stronger, with more hooks while finding more similes and getting to the heart of the song in as many words as it needs, and no more. The songs tend to be more about feelings and friendships than concrete events of childhood -- no songs about learning to brush one's teeth here.

Sonically, England's band and numerous guest performers (such as the Jellydots' Doug Snyder) perform admirably. Hyams gives the recording a warm, clear sound and brings out musical textures (the violin in "Do You Hear the Birds Singing?," the whistling and bike bells on "Bicycle") to keep the songs sounding fresh. And that song with Mates of State ("Place in Your Heart")? Every bit as awesome as you'd expect.

The album is most appropriate for kids ages 3 through 7. You can listen to the entire 37-minute album using the widget below. (And, yeah, the artwork is still England's handiwork and is quite lovely to look at.)

In my review of Fascinating Creatures, I said that I didn't think the CD or Frances England would stay secret for long, and that has proven to be an accurate prediction. Even better, she's gotten better as she's become well-known. She still has a sound all her own, while making room for an increasing number of friends. With Mind of My Own, Frances England makes clear her family music career is no daydream -- it's here, and that's a good thing. Highly recommended.

Disclosure note: I was given a copy of the album for possible review.

Posted by SAShepherd at 08:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I optimistically titled my first attempt at a generic roundup of Volume 1, but, hey, here's Volume 2! All the news too small for its own post, super-sized for you.

-- As previously noted, Tor Hyams was developing a new podcast and the first episode of Kindiecast premiered last weekend. Thirty minutes, 8 songs -- stream or download it here. (And today the website notes that Recess Monkey has another batch of songs ready to go, but those guys write songs in their sleep, I think.) Anyways, iTunes podcasting will be happening shortly...

-- Speaking of Hyams, Frances England's Mind of My Own (produced by Hyams) is released Nov. 9th and she's got a lot of new stuff associated with the release. This weekend she's got a new show on Sirius-XM's Kids Place Live (check there for details), she's selling artwork, and, while I have a vague memory that Frances told me about these "Creative Family Challenges" contests, the first one is now here and embedded below:

-- Speaking of upcoming albums, The Baby Grands release their new album The Baby Grands II on Nov. 16, and today only they're running a deal on Plum District's Atlanta site to get that and their debut album for just $9 plus shipping... I like the creative thinking on getting their music out in front of a wide audience...

-- To complete the upcoming album trifecta, The Boogers' second album Let's Go! comes out Nov. 23rd and they're letting you have one of the energetic album's best tracks, "Otto's Orange Day," for the price of an e-mail address. Go here to grab it.

-- The Deedle Deedle Dees' Lloyd Miller will be recording his November sing-a-alongs in Brooklyn for a new album to be released soon. For free. Woot!

-- Gustafer Yellowgold has a blog. Yes, a blog.

Posted by SAShepherd at 11:53 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Day 3s of music festivals, be it of the 2010 Austin City Limits Music Festival or something, tend to be be a little more laid back, if only because everybody's so d*** tired. Nothing against Day 1 and Day 2, of course, but being anywhere with 65,000 or more other folks for 8 hours at a time will tend to leave you a little tired.

In addition, because most of the acts at the AKL stage play two sets, if you've been there Friday and Saturday, you've seen most if not all of the acts perform once already. So you might be tempted to wander around a little bit more.

Unless, of course, your kids still want to play at the AKL stage. And, er, Elizabeth Mitchell is playing again. That was all perfectly fine by me. One of the advantages of Mitchell's comparatively deep catalog of music is that multiple sets don't have to be the same. She did play a couple new songs compared to her set on Saturday, and she also sang more in Spanish, certainly reflecting her excitement over her forthcoming album with Suni Paz. I also need to give special props to daughter Storey. During "School Days," you could hear another band's soundcheck coming through (presumably) the wireless mikes. It was totally odd and threw most of us in the audience for a loop. But Storey just kept on singing, seemingly unperturbed. It was interesting to me (as a parent) seeing her be so unflappable on stage and later on (and on Saturday) being like most other 9-year-olds, eagerly waiting her turn to sing at the video karaoke stage.

Continue reading "Austin Kiddie Limits (ACL Music Festival) 2010: Day 3 Report and Final Thoughts" »

Posted by SAShepherd at 05:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Waking up for Day 2 of the 2010 Austin City Limits Music Festival, I was really sore, stiff from the large amount of walking I did on Day 1. I mean, I normally walk a lot at ACL, but Friday's walking seemed... longer. Maybe it was the crowds, who knows, but that's advice number #1 for parents at ACL: stretch.

Anyway, my primary goal on Day 2 at the Austin Kiddie Limits stage was to get there in time to see Elizabeth Mitchell and Frances England. We caught the very last song of the Jellydots' set, then settled in. The kids, having been fortified with Cheetos at the media area, angled for the kefir at the Lifeway Kefir booth (because for them, flavored kefir = flavored yogurt = treat). And we were eager to hear Mitchell, whom we'd never seen in concert before and who'd been a part of our family's lives since Miss Mary Mack was still crawling around on the floor.

Elizabeth Mitchell's set was reasonably mellow, but not overly so. The crowd, which seemed reasonably full on Friday, was more so on Day 2 as people brought their kids on the weekend, and it brought an energy to artists' sets on the weekend.

I hadn't appreciated how much Mitchell's and husband Daniel Littleton's daughter Storey is now a part of the set. She sang on most (all?) of the songs, sometime taking lead. I wouldn't call her a pro -- that's actually praise from my perspective -- but she was poised. Ella Childs joined them for the Japanese song "The Chestnut Tree," and as I looked around, I was pleasantly surprised to see how many parents were joining along with their kids on the hand motions Mitchell, Storey, and Ella led them in or how many were attempting the Spanish-language version of "John the Rabbit" Mitchell tried out.

We had to miss Tom Freund's set on Friday, so after grabbing some lunch at the food court, we dashed back to see him play. He was a nice fit between Mitchell and England -- his fun Hug Trees album is a low-key disk for the most part. He was joined here in Austin by Abra Moore, who appeared with Freund on his album as well.

Moore had by far the most distinctive performance outfit of the AKL stage (sorry Verve Pipe guys all wearing ties) -- leis, big glasses, and a whole bunch of purple balloons, which she sported while bouncing on a big ol' pink exercise ball. By comparison, Freund (also sporting a collared shirt and tie) looked positively restrained. There was nothing revelatory about the set, but like I said, Hug Trees is fun, and so I enjoyed getting to hear the roots-pop songs live.

Next up Frances England. England (as well as Mitchell and her family) hung out a lot at the AKL stage for the weekend, seeing the other performers. In fact, generally, it was a much greater social gathering than I recall previous AKL stages being. For whatever reason, it just seemed like the performers hung out a lot more front stage (as opposed to backstage) listening to the other acts -- the Okee Dokee Brothers wanted to see Elizabeth Mitchell, for example, while Mitchell wanted to catch England's set. It was a very family vibe.

England's set was a little less of a surprise for me because I'd seen her in Brooklyn and so I knew she and her band would deliver a solid indie-folk set. England's husband, bassist John Funke, got down from the stage to lead the kids in some movement activities on one of the quieter songs, and by this point there were a fair number of kids to be led.

The special guest for Saturday was Peter DiStefano playing with AKL producer Tor Hyams. DiStefano was the guitarist with Perry Farrell in Porno for Pyros, and so, as he'd done in guest sets at Kidzapalooza, DiStefano and Tor played PFP's big hit "Pets" as well as "Sympathy for the Devil." While the renditions definitely rocked from an adult perspective, it's not entirely clear what kids get out of those songs -- between "Sympathy" and the School of Rock kids, sometimes it feels like the AKL stage is both the youngest and oldest stage at ACL. But they did do the undeniably cool thing of having a bunch of kids get up on stage to strum DiStefano's guitar and then hang out on stage while they were playing. It was fun to see a bit of the controlled chaos of the crowd/AKL area make it up there.

The final act of the day was Sugar Free Allstars. Again, I'd seen them in Brooklyn, but of course my kids hadn't, so it was a chance for my kids (or at least Little Boy Blue) to get up and dance. Perhaps more than any other AKL act, SFA worked hard at trying to get the kids in the crowd to interact -- not that the other acts ignored the kids, just that Chris Wiser and Dr. Rock have a lot of energy on stage that they're trying to transfer to the audience.

We went offsite for dinner, and the kids went back home, but I was determined to come back and see LCD Soundsystem who I also saw here back in 2007 (and who also had one of my favorite all-time quotations). I saw about 75% of James Murphy et al's set back then and the last 25% in 2010. Maybe one of these days I'll see a complete set. While his new album This Is Happening doesn't hit me quite as much as its predecessor Sound of Silver, it's still pretty darn good. And I can't stress how great they are live.

After that I sampled from various acts -- Ozomatli had a party going on under the Clear 4G tent, while Matt and Kim were incredibly hyper (which I gather is normal for them in their sets). Also, I've never seen a band pander as much to the crowd the duo did -- really, it's OK, just chill a bit. Still, they were on fire -- Kim is a toddler, energy-wise, on the drums. And I wrapped it up with 3 songs from Muse (my neighbor would have been very disappointed in me if I hadn't seen just a little bit of their act). I totally get why their live show is sometimes called the best rock show in the world right now. It had lasers, a video show, bombasticity -- like U2, except if that band had a dystopian rather than utopian bent.

But after another full day of music, it was time to head back home to recover and see my kids. So I made my way back through the Muse crowds, waited for what seemed way too long at 8:45 to catch the shuttle bus back to Republic Square, and headed home.

Posted by SAShepherd at 05:53 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

San Francisco's Frances England may be a pro at making lovely handmade art, but she's also good at that newfangled electronic stuff. As I noted this summer, England's signed up with the folks at Topspin to get her music heard far and wide.

And so it is that her new, not-even-yet-released album Mind of My Own is available for your streaming pleasure. Just click away below. Might I suggest the leadoff title track, or #6 ("Place in Your Heart," with Mates of State), or perhaps #9 ("Cookies and Milk," featuring the Jellydots' Doug Snyder)? Or perhaps just the whole thing. And once you've done that go here and give her other albums a spin. Mind of My Own is released Nov. 9th.

Posted by SAShepherd at 08:06 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)

I mentioned before the slew of release concerts being put on to celebrate the release of Many Hands: Family Music for Haiti. Three concerts down, three more to go. If they're at all like the one in Mill Valley, California, featuring Elizabeth Mitchell and Frances England, they're special affairs. At the show, they both played their tracks from the compilation, which are among my favorites on the record. For Frances' contribution, her original "That's What Friends Are For," Mitchell and husband Dan Littleton helped out. The song's called, "That's What Friends Are For" -- how could they not?

Frances England w/ Elizabeth Mitchell and Daniel Littleton - "That's What Friends Are For" [YouTube]

After the jump, Mitchell's contribution, featuring a nice violin solo from Mitchell/Littleton (and Jon Langford) compatriot Jean Cook...

Continue reading "Live Video: Elizabeth Mitchell / Frances England" »

Posted by SAShepherd at 09:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

Ironically for an album called Mind of My Own, Frances England has pulled together a lot of musical talent to help her make her third kindie rock record. (It's true, her Kindiefest appearance was not a one-off, it's a much more rocking record than her first two.) She's got a full band behind her and Tor Hyams produced the record. Not to mention a whole host of guest musicians, including Doug Snyder from the Jellydots, make an appearance. And, yes, the rumors are true -- Mates of State make an appearance on "Place in Your Heart," with a joyful singalong chorus that's bound to make a lot of family music radio playlists. Luckily, England's handiwork hasn't change from her first, very DIY affair -- its still her papercut artwork gracing the cover.

Anyway, Mind of My Own is out November 9th. The tracklist is after the jump.

Continue reading "Mind of My Own: Frances England Gets Some Help" »

Posted by SAShepherd at 05:12 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

A couple years ago, Frances England released an e-card with "Daddy O" just in time for Father's Day. Now, she's on YouTube. Sing along! (Or play along, if you're good at reading chords.)

Frances England - "Daddy O" [YouTube]

Posted by SAShepherd at 08:42 AM | Permalink | Comments (4)

I think the first time I became aware of the Topspin media widget was a couple years ago when David Bryne and Brian Eno promoted their new album Everything That Happens Will Happen Today using it. As someone who writes a website, the content-filled nature of the widget appealed to me, but it appealed to me as a fan as well. Sure, from a listener perspective, it's just a way to give an e-mail address to get an mp3, but it did it in such an elegant and well-designed way that it typically was the only type of widget that I'd actually respond to.

In time I realized that kids musicians were starting to use the widget, too. At this point enough of them are using the platform that I thought it'd be worth asking the users what they thought of it and its good (and bad) points. Among the artists who responded were Debbie Cavalier, Jeremy Toback, and Kevin Salem from Little Monster Records, along with one of his artists, Key Wilde. I also talked some with Mike King from Berkleemusic -- if you need an overview of Topspin, you could do far worse than checking out the videos King made with Topspin CEO Ian Rogers.

What made you interested in working with Topspin?
Most artists came to Topspin via some personal connection -- Debbie Cavalier first heard about Topspin nearly two years ago when, as the Dean of Continuing Education at Berklee, they started to plan the development of the “Marketing Music with Topsin” course. Jeremy Tobck knew Topspin cofounder Shamal Ranasinghe when he was developing the idea for Topspin, and was "super intrigued" by his idea of deepening the direct relationship between artists and fans. Toback says that Ranasinghe, dug Renee & Jeremy, wanted then to be beta users, and "helped convince us that we had built enough on our own to benefit" from the platform.

As for Kevin Salem, he says that Robert Schneider’s manager told him about it, though he "was slow to respond." (Robert Schneider is another Topspin artist, both for the Apples in Stereo as well as his Little Monster Robbert Bobbert project.) But the Topspin representative was an "old acquaintance" from Salem's time as a solo artist after giving him a quick tutorial, Salem thought it could "help plug the considerable holes in [his] physical distribution network." He also says he thought it could help create "unique products" for the fans and "shift the ratio of physical-to-digital sales in our genre." [I'd note that at Kindiefest, Salem noted that the next Little Monster release, a compilation, will be entirely digitally distributed.]

Continue reading "Topspin and the Kindie Artist" »

Posted by SAShepherd at 05:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Of all the sets I was anticipating at Kindiefest this year, Frances England's was probably at the top of the list. Many of the others I'd seen (heck, I'd even booked Justin Roberts and Recess Monkey for shows myself), but Frances was not one of them, and despite my relative West Coast proximity, her comparative touring seclusion meant that my chances of doing so were not great.

Based on other, older YouTube clips of her live show, I'd wondered how England would fit in among the rockers on the showcase. How would those delicate songs translate live?

I'm stupid and need not have worried, of course, because they kicked butt live. England and her band turned "Busy as a Bee" from her debut Fascinating Creatures into a shuffling rocker that picked up momentum every time the quartet headed into the chorus. The other old songs had a similarly-beefed up sound, and the new songs from her fall release (we hope) tentatively titled Mind of My Own also sounded rambunctious and ragged in a good way, as if the little toddlers England once wrote for were getting comfortable in their own skin and exploring the world and getting into troubles of their own.

Oh, and the red hats the band whipped out for "Jacques Cousteau," another new track? Second only to Recess Monkey's silver pants in Kindiefest attire. (Pictures below.) So, yeah, I'm glad I made the trip.

Frances England - "Mind of My Own" (Live at Kindiefest 2010) [YouTube]

Two more songs (including another new one) and pictures after the jump...

Continue reading "Kindiefest 2010: Frances England" »

Posted by SAShepherd at 05:22 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

One of the most winning songs off Frances England's debut disk Fascinating Creatures was "Blueberry Pancakes," whose chorus features England singing "blueberry paa-aaaaaaaan-cakes." (If you've heard it, you'll know I've transcribed that chorus accurately.) It was an obvious television ad waiting to be made, though it wasn't written with that in mind.

Well, Bisquick's ad agency finally got a listen, and drafted the tune for use in a Bisquick television ad. So I asked Frances a few questions about how the TV ad came about, which she's answered below.

As for the unasked question -- what does the ad look like? -- well, it's a live-action video depicting a family making, well, blueberry pancakes. Pretty simple, actually. Can't show it to you, though, as England reports that there are no internet rights associated with showing the video. (Tell you what, play 15 seconds of the song while your family makes pancakes this Saturday, and light and edit well. There you go.)

Zooglobble: "Blueberry Pancakes" seemed like an obvious fit for a pancake ad from the first time I heard -- how was the initial contact made?
Frances England: They contacted me. Apparently, they had already started production on the commercial when someone heard my song and they ended up kind of synchronizing their footage to the song.

Continue reading "Art and Commerce: Frances England and the Bisquick Blueberry Pancakes Ad" »

Posted by SAShepherd at 03:14 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Well, yesterday, I posted some old new school Sesame Street, so today I thought I'd post some new old school Sesame Street, courtesy of the Bay Area's Hipwaders.

Yesterday they posted a couple new mp3s for your downloading enjoyment. The first track is the theme from the show, which, unbeknownst to me, actually runs a couple minutes long (and has lyrics to go with it). The second track is Frances England's "The Books I Like To Read." (This cover was captured on YouTube last year.) Both covers rock in typical Hipwaders style and worth heading over to download...

(It also makes me think that kids music artists could do waaaaay more in having guest appearances on each others' albums.)

Oh, the Hipwaders have their Kindie Christmas album on their way to the printer, but it's August in Phoenix -- I find it very hard to think about winter at the moment...

Posted by SAShepherd at 03:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

After listening to Frances England sing the alphabet for Australian e-mag LMNOP, I've realized I'm in the camp where I would happily listen to Frances sing the phone book for a little while. Or my daughter's math homework. Really, I'm not picky, folks. (Go to the LMNOP homepage to listen. Hat tip: the Monkeytail & Wellington blog.)

Posted by SAShepherd at 04:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

This is how much I trust Frances England and her music.

For the life of me I can't get this video to work, but it's new music from Frances, celebrating her kids' preschool, Sunset Co-op Nursery School in San Francisco. Seeing as her career got started from recording Fascinating Creatures as a preschool fundraiser, I'm guessing she likes the place.

So I'm posting it in hopes that you'll tell me what it sounds like. (And eventually I'll get it to work myself.)

Update: I got a chance to hear it last night. My instincts were correct. For somebody unconnected to the school, it was a pleasant chance to hear Frances sing about something meaningful to her. I'm sure those connected to the school loooove the song.

Sunset Shines On Me from Frances England on Vimeo.

Posted by SAShepherd at 02:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (5)

OK, it's no "Tricycle," but it's nice to see Frances England post some live video, if only because I'd heard about the slide show she was bringing out for some of her shows. Here she is doing the mellow "Animal Inside You" with Jeff Koch on drums and Tim Thurman on guitar at the July CD release party for her fine, fine Family Tree CD. And lots of animal pictures.

Frances England - "Animal Inside You" (Live)

That's not all...

Continue reading "Live Videos From Frances England" »

Posted by SAShepherd at 09:33 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

So I've been getting newsletters from Elizabeth Mitchell on a regular basis talking about her late summer tour of the West Coast. I knew, therefore, that she was going to be singing with Renee & Jeremy earlier this month (Suni Paz in LA was a surprise) and Frances England and Charity Kahn this past weekend. I even knew (I think) that she was going to sing with Justin Roberts last month. (They sang the Velvet Underground's "Sunday Morning.")

What I didn't expect is that nobody was going to upload any video to the Internet. C'mon, people! I don't have one of those fancy iPhones or other cell phones with a camera in them, but somebody out there must've gone to the show with one in hand.

And now I hear that the lads from Recess Monkey are going to be joining Elizabeth on stage for their shows in Seattle this Saturday.

Seattle -- you can do it! Video! Video! Video! (Hey, I gave you, like, fiveRecess Monkey videos.)

(Note: Unless, of course, recording is expressly prohibited by the terms and conditions of the ticket entry. Then, er, forget I ever asked.)

Posted by SAShepherd at 08:22 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

It's not like the Bay Area's Hipwaders haven't done their fair share of covers -- one check of their Myspace or YouTube pages will find any number of Disney or cartoon covers by the band.

But recently they've started doing something new -- covering their contemporaries.

First, they posted "What Am I Gonna Do?" on their Myspace page and gave much love to the song's creators, Austin's Telephone Company. I agree with Tito -- it's about time that the Company's long-unreleased album Panda Brain change that status. The Hipwaders' version is really, really cool, giving it a cool guitar line to go with the slightly surreal lyrics.

Then, today they posted "The Books I Like To Read," from fellow Bay Area artist Frances England, off her first CD, Fascinating Creatures. It's a live video from about a month ago, and while the Hipwaders don't do any major alterations to the uptempo song in their cover, it's just interesting -- and refreshing -- to hear kids' artists cover their contemporaries.

The Hipwaders - "The Books I Like To Read" (Frances England cover)

Posted by SAShepherd at 04:36 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Perhaps it's too late for you to burn a list of songs for your dad for Father's Day onto CD. Well, then, Frances England has come to the rescue, providing an e-card to send to your favorite Daddy-ish guys. The music on the e-card? England's "Daddy-O," of course. (And file away "Best Friends Forever" and "Thinking of You" cards for future use.)

But if you're like me -- you know, a dad -- and you feel a little weird sending yourself a Father's Day e-card, you'll feel much less weird reading a whole bunch of dad-related interviews over at Yosi's Indie Kids Rock blog. Lots of kids music dads join in the fun, including Ralph Covert, the guys from Hot Peas 'n' Butter, Mr. RAY, Robbie Schaefer, Ernie & Neal, and ScribbleJim (whose submitted family photo I think is a hoot). Worth a couple minutes of your time, even if you're not a dad.

Posted by SAShepherd at 08:28 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

San Francisco's Frances England was a Zooglobble first -- the first-ever artist interview on this site. Since that time, England's debut Fascinating Creatures continued to win universal acclaim and England herself added a second child to her family. Two years later, her even-stronger follow-up Family Tree (review) seems certain to attract even more acclaim.

England recently answered some questions about what she's been doing the past couple years, how life has changed for her, and how it hasn't. Read on for Frances' trick to overcoming stage nervousness, the inspiration for "Animal Friends," and her plans for live shows.

Zooglobble: When we last talked 2 years ago, Fascinating Creatures was just beginning to get noticed in the world at large. Can you pinpoint a certain moment at which you said to yourself, "Oh, my, something really big is going on here"?
Frances England: Well, in the wide world of music I don’t know how big this all really is but definitely for me, what happened with Fascinating Creatures was shocking - probably because I had no expectations. Not too long after I began selling the CD online, I remember getting these emails saying that random people in Hong Kong were buying it, then it was Australia, and New Zealand and all these far away places.

And it was just really weird to think about how far this little homespun CD had gone, especially considering where it all got started – in our bathroom. (I wrote all of the songs for FC while my first son, Liam, was taking baths). I was also really blown away to be named the sole winner of the 2007 Oppenheim Award. As a mom, I’ve used that very recognizable seal of theirs to scout out quality products for years, so I was really honored by that.

How did life change for you as a result of Fascinating Creatures' success?

Continue reading "Interview: Frances England" »

Posted by SAShepherd at 10:50 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

It's safe to say the path San Francisco artist Frances England took to get to Family Tree, her second album, has not been often duplicated. England, who had never been a working musician, recorded her first album, Fascinating Creatures, as her contribution to her son's preschool fundraiser. And then somehow others heard the CD and soon enough England began sending copies of it, as she puts it in the liner notes of the new CD, "half way around the world." She was no longer a secret, as those of us who first heard her described England. But while Fascinating Creatures was certainly a fine album (with all the accolades to prove it), the question remained -- could she duplicate her success?

The answer is yes.

In many ways, Family Tree sounds a lot like its predecessor -- a melding of folk and lo-fi indie pop originals that stands out from most of the kids music world in its sound and centeredness, for lack of a better word. England's disks have a way of conjuring musical worlds that start with the security of home life and look outward, all the while sounding like Yo La Tengo or Elizabeth Mitchell or Tanya Donnelly. The debut had songs about tricycles, pancakes, and books we've all read as families; this new CD has songs about ice cream ("I Scream, You Scream"), grandparents ("Fast Train To Grandma's"), and playing with restless energy ("Free To Be Me").

But in other ways, this album shows growth from the debut. For one thing, England broadens her musical palette here, playing with a full band (Tim Thurman and Jeff Koch doing a lot of the work) on the majority of tracks. On the slightly-slow leadoff title track, for example, she offers up banjo while Dog on Fleas' Dean Jones guests on horn. "Best Friends," which also features England on banjo, may as well be a Sufjan Stevens knockoff, but in a good way. Elsewhere England rocks out ("Free To Be Me"), does country (the chugging "Fast Train to Grandma's," with nifty guitar work by Jay Heiselmann), and writes a classic folk song ("Spring Has Sprung").

In addition to the music, England is also challenging herself lyrically, writing a little more indirectly. "Tugboat" (which also features the Jellydots' Doug Snyder) is a sweet little song about how both the child and the parent -- exactly who is not clear -- will be the tugboat that always helps push the other back home. "Tea Party" is a fanciful story of a girl's (and boy's) tea party which includes a bird's commentary on the action. I think England's musical sensibility is still ahead of her lyrical skills (the directness of "Animal Friends," which encourages saving endangered animals, comes off a little flat, for example), but both have grown in the past couple years, no doubt.

Kids ages 3 through 7 will most appreciate the themes here. You can listen to tracks from the album at its CDBaby page. The album is officially released Tuesday, but CDBaby already has copies ready to ship. I should also note the lovely packaging which features (according to England) cut paper and acrylic paint using a roller to give it texture.

With Family Tree, Frances England continues on the promise of her debut, creating a musical world both adventurous and safe. Fans of Fascinating Creatures will thoroughly enjoy the new disk. And there are still lots more people out there who should be her fans. Goodness gracious, this is fabulous; I can hardly wait for disk #3. Definitely recommended.

Posted by SAShepherd at 09:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

That's right, Frances England has announced an album title -- Family Tree -- and a release date -- spring 2008 -- for her 2nd CD. OK, "spring 2008" isn't really a release date (release season, perhaps?), but I know Frances has been working on the album for a while now, and to see her publicly commit to a title and release timeframe makes me happy.

I think artists in this genre tend to be more willing to have deadlines slip if only because many of them, unsurprisingly, have young kids. I'll be interested to hear what subjects England, whose own family tree is larger than when she released Fascinating Creatures, tackles now...

Posted by SAShepherd at 10:56 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Well, I've finally gotten around to picking winners in a couple of recent contests and just want to share the results. Both the East and West Coasts represent.

First, in the contest to win the New York-based Deedle Deedle Dees' excellent new album, Freedom in a Box (review) for a local school or library, I randomly selected longtime reader and West Coast resident Katy, who offered four historical personages her family would love a Deedle Deedle Dees song about: Amelia Earhart, Abigail Adams, Benny Benson, and Eleanor Roosevelt. Lloyd Miller (Ulysses Dee) will actually record a song for Katy and her family using those people. No word yet on whether Lloyd will choose one or create his own historical mash-up of multiple characters. Anyway, thanks very much to Lloyd on that item.

Second, in our contest related to the KidVid Tournament 2007 final, the randomly-selected voter was East Coast resident Christine, a big fan of the Portland (Oregon)-based Captain Bogg & Salty and voted for "Pieces of 8ight." Because she already has all three of the band's albums (including Pegleg Tango), she asked for a copy of San Francisco-based Frances England's Fascinating Creatures CD. Thanks both to Captain Bogg and his crew and to Frances for offering their CDs as prizes. (I'm sure I will have another opportunity to give the Bogg CD away.)

Posted by SAShepherd at 05:47 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

After a furious day and a half of voting from more than 100 readers, we have a winner in our first (and probably not last) KidVid Tournament:

PIECES OF 8IGHT! from Captain Bogg & Salty

Frances England's "Tricycle" put up a good fight, but when you've got one of that video's stars, England's son Liam, voting for the competition, well, you know you're facing an unstoppable force.

So the heartiest of congratulations from this landlubber to Captain Bogg's crew and to all the artists whose videos have amused us here the past few weeks. You have acquitted yourself admirably. I cannot offer you pieces of 8ight, but I can offer you my admiration.

I will be randomly selecting a winner from the voters in the final and asking which CD they'd like to receive.

Now, for one last time, your KidVid Tournament 2007 champion, "Pieces of 8ight," from Captain Bogg & Salty:

(And because what tournament would be complete without "One Shining Moment"?)

Posted by SAShepherd at 08:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

If you haven't voted yet (and, frankly, with the number of times I've posted this, how could you not), go here and do so.

Lots of pirate talk, lots of tricycles, and a relative minimum of trash talk. (Heck, Frances and Captain Bogg voted for each other's videos, so, really, no put-downs needed.) Plus, you could win a free copy of one of the finalists' CDs.

Avoid scurvy, win the Tour de France in your underpants, and vote now.

Posted by SAShepherd at 01:53 PM | Permalink

Well, we're down to the final contest of KidVid Tournament 2007: "Pieces of 8ight" from Captain Bogg & Salty up against "Tricycle" from Frances England.

I'm really looking forward how these two fun (but completely different) videos do when pitted against one another.

Now, I'm expecting more than 100 comments below based on the response these videos generated previously. One of those lucky voters will get their choice of the CD from which these songs are drawn, courtesy of the artists themselves. (Thanks, artists themselves!) The randomly-selected voter will get to choose, and you're not restricted to the band you voted for -- perhaps you're a huge Captain Bogg & Salty fan and want to see what all the Frances England fuss is about.

Vote in the comments below. Rules: Video with most votes wins. One vote per e-mail address, please. Votes due by Tuesday 11 PM-ish East Coast time.

And remember, this contest is for entertainment purposes only. Please -- no wagering.

"Pieces of 8ight" - Captain Bogg & Salty

This video, directed by Vince Malone, is from the band's fund second album, Pegleg Tango. It's got a sly sense of humor ("Go Bobcats.") and captures the band's energy and sense of play.

"Tricycle" - Frances England

This video is for a song off of England's fabulous debut CD, Fascinating Creatures. The video's director, Jane Holland, says that they "shot and produced the simple little video from a child's eye view." It's simple, but the approach fits the song quite well.

Posted by SAShepherd at 08:33 AM | Permalink | Comments (123)

Our second semi-final for KidVid Tournament 2007 is the underdog side of the bracket -- two artists that knocked off #1 seeds. We've got a #2 seed, "Tricycle" from Frances England, going against "I Hope My Mama Says YES!" - AudraRox, the #3 seed. These are both cute videos, but for completely different reasons. Another tough call.

Vote in the comments below. Rules: Video with most votes wins. One vote per e-mail address, please. Votes due by Friday 11 PM-ish East Coast time.

[Note: As I've said before, sorry about just showing links instead of embedding the videos. I'm trying to keep the playing field relatively level here -- if I can't show both videos here (i.e., they're not both on YouTube and clearly placed there at the artists' request) I'm only going to show the links for both of 'em.]

"Tricycle" - Frances England

To view this video, click on the YouTubed version here.

"I Hope My Mama Says YES!" - AudraRox

To view this video, head to Jack's Big Music Show player. Roll over the picture of a red-hair-streaked Audra on the right, kid on the left.

Posted by SAShepherd at 08:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (40)

Round 1 wasn't enough -- now the popular videos start going head-to-head.

Round 2 of KidVid Tournament 2007 kicks off with the final in the Lead Belly Region, pitting the #1 seed "I Hog The Ground (Groundhog Song)" from Steve Burns and Steven Drozd against the #2 seed, "Tricycle" from Frances England.

Vote in the comments below. Rules: Video with most votes wins. One vote per e-mail address, please. Votes due by Thursday 11 PM-ish East Coast time.

[Note: As always, sorry about just showing links instead of embedding the videos. I'm trying to keep the playing field relatively level here -- if I can't show both videos here (i.e., they're not both on YouTube and clearly placed there at the artists' request) I'm only going to show the links for both of 'em.]

"I Hog The Ground (Groundhog Song)" - Steve Burns and Steven Drozd
When the more-accessible version inevitably gets removed (again), go to Jack's Big Music Show player to watch. Currently it's the video that plays whenever you go to the page, but if it's not the case later, just roll over the picture of a balding guy with the "I [Heart] Ground" shirt and click.

"Tricycle" - Frances England
To view this video, click on the YouTubed version here.

Posted by SAShepherd at 07:47 PM | Permalink | Comments (15)

Well, Day 2 of Zooglobble's KidVid Tournament 2007 is also in the books. Frances England's "Tricycle" (#2 seed) beat out Sir Jerry's "Bees, Butterflies and Bugs" (#3 seed), while in a small upset (a phrase I'd use with caution considering the relative lack of thought that went into the these) #3 seed AudraRox with "I Hope My Mama Says YES!" trumped Gustafer Yellowgold's "I'm From the Sun."

Thanks to everyone who's voted so far. The next set of matchups will be posted Monday midday.

And if you haven't yet voted for the as-yet-unfilled 16th video slot, go here and do so before Monday night. The competition is heating up.

Posted by SAShepherd at 01:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The other matchup on the second day of KidVid Tournament 2007 pits the #2 seed in the Lead BellyRegion, "Tricycle" from Frances England against the #3 seed, "Bees, Butterflies and Bugs" from Sir Jerry.

Vote in the comments below. Rules: Video with most votes wins. One vote per e-mail address, please. Votes due by Saturday noon-ish East Coast time.

[Note: Sorry about just showing links instead of embedding the videos. I'm trying to keep the playing field relatively level here -- if I can't show both videos here (i.e., they're not both on YouTube and clearly placed there at the artists' request) I'm only going to show the links for both of 'em.]

"Tricycle" - Frances England
To view this video, click on the YouTubed version here.

"Bees, Butterflies and Bugs" - Sir Jerry
To view this video, head to Sir Jerry's website. After clicking to "Enter the Website" and the website loads, click on the blue-skied landscape in the lower-right-hand corner. You want the video, not the live clip.

Posted by SAShepherd at 08:09 AM | Permalink | Comments (8)

Why, yes, yes it would. Frances England's got herself a spiffied-up website and a video and slideshow to boot. Now if only Lunch Money and the Jellydots would jump in with videos for their awesome three- and two-wheeled songs...

Posted by SAShepherd at 03:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Those East Coast and Midwestern bloggers beat me to the punch, but congratulations to Frances England for winning a Oppenheim Platinum award for her fabulous debut Fascinating Creatures.

(And, on a completely unrelated note, every time I hear about the Oppenheim awards, I keep on wanting to call it the Oppenheimer awards, thanks mostly to the Old 97's, who had a great track by that name off their 1999 CD Fight Songs. Unfortunately, that track's not available at their website, but you can hear samples from that album and others here.

Posted by SAShepherd at 08:56 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Welcome to those of you finding us because of the Salon article on "kindie rockers". (Welcome also, as always, to people looking for downloads of and lyrics to "Great Big World," from Hoodwinked. I still can't help you with those, despite your insistent pleas.) Thanks, Salon, for the link, and for posting some fabulous mp3s from said rockers. (Scott Lamb's article is worth sitting through the Honda ad non-subscribers will have to watch in order to read the article -- it's a nice summing up of the current state of kids' music.)

If you're new to the site, I encourage you to look around -- links to other kids'-music-related blogs as well as to every full album review (including Justin Roberts, Dan Zanes, Laurie Berkner, and Milkshake) can be found on the right. If you're wondering what to get that 4-year-old nephew for his birthday, check out my page of album recommendations by age. I treat kids' music the way any parent who really likes music would -- with my own set of interests but with an understanding that perhaps not every song off Spoon's Gimme Fiction is going to appeal to my 5-year-old (let alone my 1-year-old).

There's so much great kids' music being made, and not just by the rockers mentioned in the article who have made their way to kids' TV screens. Dig in -- you're bound to find something you and the kids in your life will really like.

Saturday AM edit: You know, I could actually help readers "dig in" if I specifically mentioned a few artists and albums that readers might not be familiar with if they're only sticking to the TV/Noggin crowd. No disrespect meant to the Noggin crowd -- Zanes, Roberts, and TMBG, in particular, are all among my favorites kids' artists -- but these four albums are tremendous, too.
Silly Reflection, by Lunch Money (review)
If You Ever See An Owl, by the Terrible Twos (review)
Fascinating Creatures, by Francis England (review)
Gustafer Yellowgold's Wide Wild World DVD, by Morgan Taylor (review)

Posted by SAShepherd at 11:27 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

This week at Zooglobble, we're going from LA to New York (with a review of Dan Zanes' Catch That Train!) and back again. See -- we exhibit both East Coast and West Coast Bias! (I can do the Chicago thing -- Justin Roberts and Ralph's World -- only so often. Though there are more reviews coming from those two, too.)

Also, it's been just over a month since the NPR interview that sent many of you here. Thanks again to everyone who's read, commented, e-mailed, or linked here. Also, many thanks to all the artists who have sent me their CD or DVD. I'm still working my way through them all, and while I won't review all of them here, I've got a lot of reviews (and other things) lined up in the weeks ahead.

Finally, here are links to a few posts in case you missed 'em the first time around.

Frances England's Fascinating Creatures -- review, interview
Lunch Money's Silly Reflection -- review
Bruce Springsteen's We Shall Overcome (The Seeger Sessions) -- review
Gustafer Yellowgold's Wide Wild World DVD -- review
Anne Hathaway's "Great Big World", from the Hoodwinked Soundtrack -- review. Goodness, there are lots of people wanting lyrics and mp3s for that song. (Too bad I don't actually have the lyrics or mp3s.)

Thanks again for reading.

Posted by SAShepherd at 06:12 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

After listening to Frances England's debut album Fascinating Creatures, I thought she would be a great artist to kick off an occasional series of interviews here on the website. I wanted to find out more about one of the most unique children's music albums I've heard in quite some time and the artist behind it.

England graciously agreed to the interview, even admitting that it was a "great excuse to stop studying." (Hey, anything I can do to help. I remember my own graduate school days.) Thank you very much, Frances.

This is a long interview, but worth your time.

*********************

What sort of musical background or experience did you have prior to recording the CD?
I started playing the violin when I was young but slowly gave it up as I hit my teens and started playing guitar in college. I’ve never been in a formal band but have always enjoyed sitting around singing and playing music with people (mostly around campfires or at small parties and get-togethers).

What led you to recording Fascinating Creatures?
A couple of different things. After my son was born I started collecting kid’s music and for the most part was pretty disappointed in what I was finding (this is of course before I knew about cool blogs like yours that shine a bright, guiding light on this genre of music). [Ed. note: I swear, I made no request for such a comment.] Slowly, I started replacing the stuff I loved listening to – indie artists and bands like the Postal Service, Sufjan Stevens, M. Ward – with the Wiggles and Raffi. Don’t get me wrong, I know there is value in some of that stuff and Liam is a huge Wiggles fan but it wasn’t the type of music we could genuinely enjoy together. So I started writing songs that I hoped would appeal to both of us...

Continue reading "Interview: Frances England" »

Posted by SAShepherd at 07:08 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I initially approached Frances England's 2006 debut album Fascinating Creatures as if I were playing a game of "spot-the-influence." Did I hear Elizabeth Mitchell (who recorded a low-key and lo-fi debut CD a number of years ago)? Did I hear Cat Power or Yo La Tengo, a couple artists England herself cites an influences?

And after a couple spin-throughs, I thought that to play that game was unfair to England, who has recorded one of the most adventurous children's music albums in some time, quite unlike anything out there at the moment.

England wrote all 13 songs on the album and recorded it with her husband's cousin Billy Riggs. Lyrically, England covers the 4-year-old waterfront -- tricycles ("Tricycle"); trains, trucks, boats and airplanes ("Where Do They Go?"); and the fun of a blueberry pancake breakfast ("Blueberry Pancakes") -- without talking down to the listener. These aren't new topics for children's music, but lines like "Tell me where do all the big boats go? / As they crash against the wild, dark sea / With containers stacked both high and low / The captain steers towards land and safety" aren't a typical children's music lyric.

Musically, the first half of the CD is a low-key affair, primarily acoustic guitars and light percussion. But on "Charlie Parker," the middle song on the album, that the album kicks into a higher gear, adding electric guitar and drums. It's a little odd to hear a rock song about jazz greats (albeit with some scat singing), but it works. The next song, "Digging in the Dirt," about gardening (natch), is an even fuzzier rock song. Eventually the CD winds down again, returning to acoustic guitar and England's voice.

Although England's voice reminds me a little bit of the nasally twang of folksinger Iris DeMent (particularly on "Where Do They Go?"), it wasn't until I heard England rock out that I figured out who she reminded me most of -- Tanya Donnelly in her Belly years, alternative rock in which Donnelly's voice was used as another instrument along with the wall of guitar sound. England yodels, yips, and in general provides the musical variation on the simple instrumental backup.

The album isn't perfect -- the mix of instruments on the rock songs sounded a bit muddied to my ears, for example. And England can sometimes try to fit too many syllables into a lyric. (One of my favorite songs on the CD, the closer "Little Bright Star," doesn't do that, and shines -- pun unintended -- for it.)

But that's quibbling. Fascinating Creatures is a good album, a very promising debut. (My wife likes it, and she's a much harsher critic of these kids CDs than I am.) It's probably best for kids age 2 through 7. Right now the CD is available through CD Baby, where you can hear samples of each track.

Finally, the copy I received was attractively packaged in a slimline case and burned on a nicely printed CDR, which may or may not be the version available for purchase. Those of you looking for a more complete package as with CDs from more established artists may be surprised. But what my copy lacked in heft it more than made up for in the feeling that here was something that I could say was the start of something big, like it was a little secret known to only a few. But I don't think this CD or Ms. England will stay secret for long. Recommended.

Posted by SAShepherd at 07:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)