Most Bill Harley material is good stuff, so even a random free track from him would have a good chance of getting mentioned here.
But "Down in the Backpack"? One of Harley's most well-known songs? Almost guaranteed to get a grin out of your 7-year-old? (And probably you, too?)
Just go here, where "Down in the Backpack," the title track from Harley's 2001 album, is free 'til the end of the month.
NYC musician Jeremy Zmuda, AKA Jeremy Plays Guitar has his new album Use Your Words coming out Sept. 28th and while he's had some sound clips from the new album up for a little while, I think, the offer of a free track from the upcoming album is new. While the album features languorous Madeleine Peyroux on a track (not to mention Kirk Douglas from the Roots), the free track -- "Jump So High," featuring Joy Dragland on vocals -- is anything but languorous. Ska for the wee ones -- pick it up here.
As previously noted, Elizabeth Mitchell will be releasing her next family music album, Sunny Day, later this year, October 5, to be exact. And she's just released a super-cute video for one of the tracks on the new disk, "Oh, John the Rabbit." You can view the video here. It's pretty simple, with Elizabeth, Daniel, Storey, bunnies, and a bunch of other kids. "John the Rabbit" is a pretty classic call-and-response song, one that Mitchell recorded on her very first kids album, You Are My Flower. Storey wasn't even born when that album was released more than a decade ago; to have her join in on this version seems pretty cool.
Anyway, if you like the video, you can also download the mp3 from that page as well for the price of an e-mail.
Update: The video's now on YouTube...
Elizabeth Mitchell - "Oh, John the Rabbit" [YouTube]
A little bit crucnchy, a little bit sweet, they're sorta like those new pretzel-based M&Ms except they come from Seattle. It's the Not-Its!, and this is a world premiere from their upcoming album Time Out to Rock, out July 20. The song's "Welcome To Our School," and features no small amount of rock and no small amount of inclusiveness either. Stream or download it here, courtesy of the band... but just for the next week. Enjoy! [Ed: And the week's over...]
It's summer (officially) and watermelons are in the grocery store, so the 4th of July isn't too far away. David Tobocman is celebrating by giving away an mp3 of a new song, "America's Our Country," which is a little bit (new) country a little bit rock and roll. It's got flags, apple pie, and baseball. Not sure I saw mom, but it covers the bases pretty much.
Tobocman's second album for families, Lemonade School will be out in August. Shoot Tobocman an e-mail at "veryhelpful AT earthlink.net" (you can figure out how to turn that into a real e-mail address) to get a copy of the mp3. Or just listen below.
David Tobocman - "America's Our Country" [YouTube]
Todd McHatton's new album Sundays at the Rocket Park comes out July 21, but there's always free music where Todd's concerned. Jeff already gave you the scoop on that album's opening track. Some of the album is like that tune, and a lot of rocks quite a bit harder. You can go to McHatton's website for lots of other downloads, some of rough versions of tunes from the new album, some from McHatton's next album.
Below is McHatton's tribute to the musician McHatton most obviously idolizes, Harry Nilsson, whose kids album The Point is the ur-type for an album made for families by a musician who typically just records for adults. (It's also, er, good.) Nilsson's birthday is June 15th, so why not write a song for Nilsson in Nilssonian style? Download away...
The release date for the new Okee Dokee Brothers Take It Outside -- August 3rd -- is approaching and the public's now starting to hear the album. The band's offering a free download of "The Naked Truth," one of the album's 13 tracks. You may or may not be able to hide your smile at listening to the resolution of the bouncy song's story, but you'll know on which side the Brothers fall regarding that question...
Not one, but two free songs from the New Jersey band StarFish, both designed to develop your child's classic rocker. "My Name is No," featured on their new album Enter Sandbox (out June 1), is more of an early '90s metal/funk affair (for kids) with 2 seconds of a 45-year-old song thrown in the mix at the end. This track'll cost you an e-mail address and zip code here.
"The StarFish Stomp" is on the new disk as well, but also on the next disk from Putumayo Kids, Rock & Roll Playground, out June 29. This is a little bit Bruce Springsteen and a little bit Tom Cochrane (mixed in with some preschool-oriented music and movement dance styling). I could change it to the "Stefan Stomp," but I don't think that'd be a big enough change to merit co-writing credit. Plus it would be utterly mystifying to your kids. Go here to download...
Why beat around the bush with this? Justin Roberts is offering you -- yes, you, well-dressed and considerate Zooglobble reader (and, er, anyone else who stumbles onto the site) -- an opportunity to download "Sleepoverland" for free. What is "Sleepoverland"? Why, it's a horn-accented pop confection replete with "ba-da-da-das" from Roberts' upcoming album Jungle Gym. It's definitely one of my favorite tracks on the new album and it's free for the price of an e-mail (which, let's face it, probably Roberts already has -- he's got mine). Just go here and follow the instructions...
The Hipwaders' track "Always Mom" from their Goodie Bag EP had totally slipped my mind when I put together my list of songs for moms for Mother's Day. Shouldn't have, 'cause it's good. And now Tito's reminded us that the song is available for a free download (the link's from last year, actually). Just click on the link right there. Now to go update that list.
A new Mother's Day song from Ralph and Ralph, free for the asking. I'm guessing that the moms out there would probably prefer something more substantial than, you know, an mp3, but maybe the non-moms out there can play it while bringing in breakfast in bed. Not found on their debut Opposites, the band is, I believe, the first family musicians to work in the word "dissed" in a kids song. Go to the website and click on "Free Download."
A lot of Zooglobble readers probably already know about Many Hands: Family Music from Haiti, the compilation produced by Dean Jones and released on the newly-formed Spare the Rock Records label. It's got a crazy-good lineup -- Dan Zanes, Pete Seeger, Elizabeth Mitchell, They Might Be Giants, and tons more -- and will benefit the Haitian People's Support Project, which supports nutritional and educational programs in orphanages, schools, and temporary shelters throughout Haiti.
Almost all of the music is new, and if the rest is as good as the free track from Rani Arbo and daisy mayhem that they're offering, it's gonna be a splendid disk. Rani and her band turn in a swinging version of "Zudio." Some of you may recognize it as "Sodeo" from one of Raffi's early, classic disks. I really like his version, but I like this one from the front, from the back, and the side side side. Stream or download the mp3 here.
Their first album Dos Ninos was a sweet little disk, and now Oklahoma's Sugar Free Allstars have a new album on its way. It's called Funky Fresh and Sugar Free, and it hits April 30. I just pointed out the new video for "Rock Awesome," and now, courtesy of the band, I get to introduce you to a free download of one the new album's funky tracks. It's called "In My Pocket," and it has more strut and attitude than a whole horn section of roosters. Enjoy.
If you want to stream more tracks from the new album go here.
Photo credit: Candi Coffman-McKinney
I don't talk a lot about Earth Day here at Zooglobble, not because I hate the Earth ("dude, what a loser planet that is") but because much of the Earth Day-related music that crosses my desk is dull, tuneless, and/or unbearably preachy.
One of the exceptions is Uncle Rock's "There Is No Away," a graceful waltz about the permanence of trash featuring stringed accompaniment and Elizabeth Mitchell. I suppose Robert could sing the classifieds accompanied by strings and Elizabeth Mitchell and and I'd probably write about it here, but the gracefulness of the song helps keep it away from the "unbearably preachy" camp. (It fits well within the big picture of the latest Uncle Rock album, er, The Big Picture, which has a few more songs with an environmental awareness.)
Even better, for a limited time, you can download the mp3 for free from Uncle Rock's homepage. Mp3s are mostly waste-free after all (more so, I suppose, if you're solar-powered).
Really, why stop with kids music videos?
You may remember last year, when Gustafer Yellowgold (AKA Morgan Taylor) faced off against the Flannery Brothers for supremacy in the 2008 edition of the John Lennon Songwriting Competition. (The Flannery Brothers took that round, and they really haven't stopped to breathe since.)
Well, the battle of the bands is back, this year featuring Australian Kate Rowe and her song "Space Rabbits of Brocklevoons" against Lanny Sherwin and his tune "A Cappella" from his 2009 album Meltdown!.
"Apples and oranges" is an appropriate phrase here, because Rowe's song is a silly story song while Sherwin's is a very meta (but effective) song about, well, singing a cappella. As for me, I vote Sherwin, but it's not an easy call. Should you care to make your voice heard, you can vote here once a day through April 27th. Vote early, vote often.
A couple other points worth mentioning while we're on the subject of songwriting competitions and this one in particular...
1) You could put together a nice little compilation of free mp3s from those available on the site -- besides last year's and this year's championship battles, you can find tracks from Princess Katie and Racer Steve, more from Gustafer Yellowgold, Cathy Fink & Marcy Marxer, Eric Herman ("The Elephant Song"!), Kristin Andreassen, and more.
2) The International Songwriting Competition also has a kids music competition -- oddly enough their list of finalists for the category doesn't include any crossover with the Lennon competition. There's music there from Jon Samson, Bill Harley, and Andrew Queen. (But when I say "music there," I don't really mean that. No mp3s. In this particular equation, John Lennon > International.)
Do you have any favorite sandwiches?
Typically, I like my peanut sandwiches without additions, but perhaps you'd like a PEANUT BUTTER AND FREE sandwich. Jim "Mr. Stinky Feet" Cosgrove is offering a download of his song "Peanut Butter" from Mr. Stinky Feet's Road Trip to celebrate "National Peanut Butter & Jelly Day." (Who knew?) Anyway, it's today, April 2, so I think the free download code for the groovy song (there on the page above) Jim's offering won't last for long...
You probably don't need much more than general Irish music to celebrate St. Patrick's Day with your kids. The adults would prefer an adult libation or two, and I can't help you with that. But in case you're looking for something ever-so-slightly more kids-focused, here's a free mp3 from Irish band The Speks. "Saint Patrick's Day" is an original song which, according to the band, is "based on a section of the traditional Irish figure dance called the High Caul Cap. For the song's finale we play a traditional Irish reel called Captain Kelly's." I dig the end the most, but it's a fun tune that I also think would be of interest and use to early childhood educators. Stream (or download the mp3 for the price of an e-mail address) below...
Also: their debut album Sing-Along Songs from Glasses Island - Volume 1 is on sale digitally for just $1.99 here. If you're at all interested in Irish music appropriate for kids, it's definitely worth it at that price.
It's been awhile -- not quite light-years, but too long in any case -- since we in the rest of the solar system have heard new music from outer-space-via-Raleigh's space oddity Baron Von Rumblebuss, but it looks (and sounds) like that will change this year.
The good rocker has posted three tracks for downloading at his Reverbnation page, including the dreamy "Skywriter" and the angular power-poppy "(It Wuzza) Boo-Boo." (There's also a P.S.A. called "Flush the Toilet." They're unmastered tracks from the Baron's upcoming album, and available for the price of an e-mail. (There are also 3 other tracks from the first BVR album available for streaming, which I highly recommend doing.)
As for the new album, the Baron (who here on earth is also known as Tray Batson) reports that the new album will probably be out this summer. It'll be called Agreeably Loud (which is a pretty awesome kids music album title) and "will feature 'skits' and 'commercials' to mimic an intergalactic radio broadcast (the E- E- K)." Other tracks scheduled for inclusion on the album include "Helicopter," "Agreeably Loud", "(Ooh La, La) Play That Song," "I'm from Space," "Did You See Where the Cat Threw Up?", "Wait", "The Sound is the Thing, " and "Boulderboy." There's also another P.S.A called "Nobody Likes It When You Whine." Batson promises an "amp[ed] up... Python/SNL/Electric Co. stupid humor vibe on this one." Works for me.
I'll admit to being a little conflicted by the latest song from Ralph's World. I previously hoped that "Do the Potty Dance" would be better than the Rice Krispies jingle Ralph did. I think this new song is a wee bit better, if only because it manages to avoid mention of Pull-Ups. But if your kids have passed that stage, this wouldn't be your Number One choice.
I guess this would be the first song you don't want to play in the car for fear of triggering a Pavlovian response -- the whole point is getting them to wait to pee.
Anyway, if you want to download the song (and the video) you can go here or you can go here if you want to avoid Huggies and the greater Kimberly-Clark empire altogether.
Or if you have the urge, just watch below.
Do The Potty Dance! from Huggies Pull-Up's on Vimeo.
Today's free tune comes courtesy of Debbie and Friends, who's releasing her (their) second album, More Story Songs and Sing Alongs on March 30. For the price of an e-mail, you can get a free mp3 of "Home Run Ronnie," which mixes some '70s-era pop-rock with a story song about, well, you can probably guess the sport (March 30 is a particularly apropos date, no?). Just when you think the story's getting a little too schmaltzy, Ronnie starts talking and pulls it back ever-so-gently from the edge.
And, if you want to hear the song first, here's a storyboarded version of the upcoming video for the song.
Continue reading "Share: "Home Run Ronnie" - Debbie and Friends" »
The Bay Area's Charity and the JAMband have been pretty good about sharing tracks with the general public, and the latest is one of the coolest tracks from their latest album, the 2-CD set Party Like a Twinkle Star. This month (ignore that whole "January 2010" thing - it's new) it's their funky take on "Row Row Row Your Boat," and as lead singer/songwriter Charity Kahn suggests, it's a pretty great music-and-movement song. But you'll probably like it even stuck in carpool traffic. More details (and coloring pages) here, or just stream or download it below.
One of my favorite tracks from the upcoming Ralph's World disk All Around Ralph's World is "All About Bob."
Want to share it amongst your family and friends to see if they agree with me? OK -- Bar/None Records is offering a free download of the track -- go here to download the mp3.
Tres catchy.
Next month sees the release of Putumayo's latest kid-friendly release, Jazz Playground, and to promote the disk, they're offering a free download (well, free except for giving up an e-mail address) of the swingin' minor-key "Little Lamb Jam" by Oran Etkin with Charenee Wade on vocals -- go here directly to sign up.
You can also click on the Jazz Playground link above to hear the first 3 tracks from the album, including one of my favorite jazz-for-kids artists, gypsy jazz swing man Lewis Franco & The Missing Cats (see my review of his disk from a couple years ago here). Chris McKhool's take on "Spider-Man" is pretty cool, and it's hard to go wrong with the Cuban jazz of Jose Conde "Cumbamba."
Full track listing after the jump
Continue reading "Share: "Little Lamb Jam" - Oran Etkin with Charenee Wade" »
First a holiday album, now this: San Diego-area folk-rockers Hullabaloo are offering their new Best of Hullabaloo album for free in the month of February. As one might expect, it's a greatest hits compilation and, yeah, it seems to hit all of the band's highlights from their first six years. The band thanks Stroller Strides for making the download possible, though exactly how is not clear. (One presumes the dozens of shows they've played for the groups have probably won them a few fans in the sippy-cup-toting set.) As long as you have an e-mail address to share, go here to download it, or just click on the links below...
Track listing:
Continue reading "Share: "Best of Hullabaloo" - Hullabaloo" »
I already told you how much I liked C'mon, the second album from the groovy duo Renee and Jeremy, and especially the track "Mama Papa Love" (or, alternately, "MamaPapaLove," depending on you feel about word spacing).
Well, I'm really glad to give you the opportunity to download that great track for free, courtesy of the duo. Just use the widget below, but do it in the next week, because by next Monday night, the opportunity will be gone once more... [Ed: And so it is... but you can still get a copy of the "C'mon" title track by using the widget below.]
I haven't had a lot of opportunity to talk about John Upchurch and Mark Greenberg's awesome kids music album John and Mark's Children's Record. Well, now I do -- they've released John and Mark's Children's Record Coloring Pages, which they describe as "16 pages of mildly disconcerting fun! Color inside and/or outside the lines.... Guaranteed fun for some!" And, yeah, that pretty much sums it up -- it's like the love child of Taro Gomi and a benign David Lynch. You don't need to own the album to enjoy the coloring pages, though if you enjoy the absurdity on the disk, you'll enjoy the pages. Kids, they don't care -- they'll color anything!
And although Tight Ship Records have taken down their free mp3s from the page, the Bloodshot Records page for the disk has a couple available for you (including the previously un-offered ("The Elephant Leads The Way") to try out if for some unfathomable reason you don't already have the disk.
John and Mark's Children's Record Coloring Pages [pdf]
You know, if Bob Dylan can record a Christmas album, why can't Lou Reed?
What's that? He hasn't released a Christmas album? But I swear, this sounds just like Lou Reed!
Oh, it's just the Bay Area's Sippy Cups, returning to their song-parody roots by reworking "I'm Waiting For the Man" into "Waiting For My Man (The Santa Claus Mix)." And it's free for the downloading or streaming here. (What, "The Gift" wasn't appropriate enough?)
Photo credit: Peter Ellenby
In the midst of Hanukkah, and only a week or so before the solstice, Christmas, and Kwanzaa, it's prime time for holiday music. No sooner do I post about a free track than the folks at Jitterbug's let me know about their holiday playlist. It's a good one and even better, it's a free one, available for downloading or streaming. Music from The Hipwaders, Brady Rymer, Didi Pop, Gustafer Yellowgold, Princess Katie & Racer Steve, Rock Daddy Rock, and David Tobocman. Good stuff (I've already talked about a few songs on the list), downloadable here and in a few cases, nowhere else.
A lot of the Christmas songs I've been posting or mentioning have tended toward the silly, goofy, and light.
This song is not any of those.
But I like it nonetheless. It's from the Irish band The Speks, a band whose debut album Sing-Along Songs from Glasses Island I like and really should've mentioned here by now and don't really have a reason for not doing so. Perhaps I'd heard waaay too much Irish music on a "Prairie Home Companion" episode about the time I got their disk. Anyway, they typically do traditional kids songs with an Irish music twist (that's the cover to their debut Sing-Along Songs from Glasses Island at top), but this song is a little different from most of their music. It's a modern take on a Christmas song that features a children's choir from County Clare in Ireland. It teeters on the edge of sappy, but doesn't fall over the edge.
Download the song here. A video and more free songs after the jump.
Continue reading "Listen To This: "How Many Sleeps 'til Christmas?"" »
The seasonal goodies continue (and will continue on later today). Right now it's Alabama's Tangerine Tambourine doing their best Supremes-covering-a-Gene-Autry-cover. (Uh, that was complicated.) Anyway, fun stuff...
Tangerine Tambourine - "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" [mp3]
(Yeah, I know Jeff just posted it, too... sometimes it just takes a while for all of us to get around to a mass e-mail.)
Anybody who releases a free Christmas EP which includes "A Christmas Song for Harry Nilsson" is OK by me.
Todd McHatton is OK by me.
Fans of the Jellydots and the Hipwaders (and the Flaming Lips and Matthew Sweet) should check it out. Fans of Santa, too, perhaps.
I've had a mp3 download archive from the very beginning here at Zooglobble, but this is a new one -- Dan Zanes is offering a free download of the "Water For The Elephants" live video (mp4) from the Dan Zanes and Friends DVD The Fine Friends Are Here. More significant, perhaps, you can download 3 other videos here for $1.99 each (my favorite of those is "Wonder Wheel," though "Pollito Chicken" has a certain energy). Zanes has been in the vanguard of getting his music out there in different ways -- we'll see how this one works...
New music from ScribbleMonster, even if it's a re-worked version of a previous release, even if it's holiday-themed and therefore has a somewhat limited shelf life, is always welcome. So get yourself over to the ScribbleStore and download the sweet "With a Smile (It's Christmastime)" for free -- I do so dig multiple singers singing multiple melodies.
Photo credit: the band.
New music from San Francisco's Charity and the JAMband and the best part is you can listen to the whole thing. Following in the steps of the Nields' Rock All Day, Rock All Night, Party Like a Twinkle Star features one up-tempo CD, one down-tempo CD. Or, as Charity puts it, "10 songs for rocking out... 10 songs for tucking in."
You can download the (rocking out, sort of) song "We Are Stardust" for free here. Or just listen to the whole darn thing below. (Click on "Download" to purchase it for $20 from the band.)
Lots of good holiday music from good kids music artists coming down the pike this season, and here's one more from San Diego's Hullabaloo. It's called Holiday Hullabaloo, and in the spirit of giving, it's free. Gratis. Frei. Stream it below, or download away. It's got the familiar roots-folk Hullabaloo sound -- my favorite track is the Christmas rockabilly "Jolly Old St. Nicholas."
Well, for those of you wondering how Dan Zanes would tackle one of the more iconic Broadway melodies of the past half-century, now's your chance. If you were intrigued before, then I'm sure you'll want to download the title track and listen for yourself. Go here for the mp3, courtesy of Festival Five Records. 76 Trombones is out Nov. 17th. No trouble in River City for downloading this, I promise.
Some of you (like, er, me) haven't yet finished your Halloween kids music mix CD, but sometimes procrastination pays off. Key Wilde & Mr. Clarke put together a new track titled, simply, "Halloween," which features some mean surf guitar and has offered it to you, my readers, for your listening and downloading pleasure. It's a demo, but sounds pretty good anyway; I'd also note that the very littles may be slightly spooked by the track, but it's fine, really, for kids. And adults, too.
By the way, that digital EP of theirs will be appearing "any day" now, according to Wilde.
Key Wilde & Mr. Clarke - "Halloween" [mp3]
Here it is, folks, the title track from the new Renee & Jeremy album, C'mon. As I mentioned before, the duo's using some interesting methods to distribute and promote their new album, due out November 10. They've hooked up with TopSpin, who among other albums, helped distribute the recent David Byrne/Brian Eno collaboration.
Anyway, to get a free mp3 of the title track -- and you want to get it, because it's a wonderfully zippy and slightly mellow song perfect for a fall morning -- just enter your e-mail in the widget below. And if you want to spread the word, just click on "share" below.
This is how big Bill Harley is. While waiting for NPR to air his essay on singing the national anthem, Harley has a backup NPR piece ready to air. Seeking to join the kids music fight against H1N1 spearheaded by the Jimmies and Chromeo Harley writes a song about washing one's hands ("Wash Your Hands," natch) for airing on NPR. You can listen to a clip in the embedded player below, but you may as well just go to Harley's website and download the mp3 for free.
As previously noted, Dan Zanes' next DVD, The Fine Friends Are Here, will be out next week. Zanes and his (fine) friends were recorded live at Brooklyn's Jalopy Theatre, and, yeah, they're all up there on that tiny stage.
Want the audio from the title track in a nice, portable mp3 format? Well, here you go. (Thanks, Razor and Tie!) For those of you more visually-oriented, check out the DVD video below. Like I said, tiny stage...
Dan Zanes and Friends - "The Fine Friends Are Here" [Myspace]
Dan Zanes and Friends - The Fine Friends Are Here
(You're also welcome to go here and order the disk with free shipping through the 22nd. Just enter "ZANESDVD" at checkout.)
I already gave you the mp3 of "I Am A Paleontologist" from They Might Be Giants' so-close-you-can-taste-it CD/DVD set Here Comes Science. But because some people are more visual in nature, here's the video for the song. It comes from their "Friday Night Family Podcast," though for whatever reason this video appeared in their regular podcast. In any case, subscribe to both, 'K? And, yes, those sketched John and Johns appear all through the DVD, the puppets having been resigned to the dustbin of TMBG history.
They Might Be Giants - "I Am A Paleontologist"
Oh, and in a neat little equivalency, the song I featured the video for, "Electric Car," is now available for downloading here.
As promised earlier today, here's that free mp3 courtesy of They Might Be Giants -- the completely rocking ode to diggin' up dinosaur bones, "I Am a Paleontologist," which features Danny Weinkauf on vocals. It's from Here Comes Science, the CD/DVD out next week on Amazon/iTunes (and everywhere on Sept. 22).
And, no, I don't know most of those dinosaurs. Maybe I should learn...
Download the track here or stream it below...
Putumayo Kids' Picnic Playground tour wasn't much of a tour -- just four or five cities, I think. They seemed to draw a nice crowd, though, if this video from Rhythm Child's performance in LA was any indication. This video features Norman Jones going all quadruple-time on his "Bowl of Cherries" (which will sound familiar to those of you who have "Pick A Bale of Cotton" imprinted on your brain thanks to Raffi or Leadbelly).
The song's on the Picnic Playground, as well as on their upcoming album of the same name. (By the way, you can download a free mp3 of "The Shaker Song," which isn't necessarily a favorite of mine -- "Cherries" is a lot better -- at Rhythm Child's website.)
Rhythm Child - "Bowl of Cherries" (Live)
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...
I can't say that I'm the biggest Laughing Pizza fan -- pizzas can't laugh, for one thing, they're food -- but they've got a new song posted for streaming or downloading that's lots of fun -- "Let's Go Play". It's probably going to be posted for a limited time, so grab it now if you care to...
I've mentioned how the Bay Area's Charity and the JAMband has given away mp3s for the past few months. Well, for a little less than a day, you can download a copy of their 2006 album Rock Your Socks Off for free. That's right -- in honor of Charity's son Silas' 7th birthday, she's offering a free download of the album. I liked it 3 years ago, and still like it today. Just go here and enter the code "SiSiJAMS" at checkout by 10 AM SF time on the 7th. You can even download free songbooks for that and the rest of her JAMband CDs.
No word on whether or not you need to give Silas a present in exchange for the sweet goodie bag schwag.
I post plenty of heads ups on free mp3s, but this one is a bigger deal. The Bay Area's The Sippy Cups have managed to get themselves the first free iTunes download in the Children's Music category. For the next week, iTunes users can go here to download "Seven is the New 14," one of the better (and funnier) tracks from their new album The Time Machine. ("Three and three? Not seven.") I expect a lot of clueless comments on iTunes from folks who aren't really part of the kids music demographic, but I think most readers here are going to like it. The Time Machine is out today as an iTunes exclusive, next week everywhere.
This video from Brooklyn's AudraRox has been out there for a year now, but I'm only now just finding it. It's for "Best Friends Forever," a selection from the new Sesame Street: Being Green DVD. It's a sharp-looking video (yay for Sesame Workshop's deep pockets!) and a fun song.... which is now (newly) available for your downloading pleasure here. I love the line "Warm in the middle / cold at the ends..."
AudraRox - "Best Friends Forever"
There's more, of course.
Continue reading "Video (and mp3): "Best Friends Forever" - AudraRox" »
Pete Seeger might not have an official website of his own -- this Wikipedia page will have to do for a link -- but definitely resides in the 21st century. How many other 90-year-olds do you know who are offering a couple free mp3 downloads to promote their latest release? That's right, Smithsonian Folkways is re-releasing the American Favorite Ballads Volumes 1-5 box set, which itself was an expanded version of a collection of songs recorded from 1957 through 1962. You can go here to download Seeger's renditions of "Buffalo Gals" and "Oh Mary Don't You Weep" and then decide if you need 139 tracks (nearly six hours) of Pete Seeger in his sweet, crystal-clear voice accompanied by his banjo-picking. (You probably do.) Not all of it is "kids music," strictly speaking, but there's more than enough tracks that'll be familiar with anyone with more than a couple kids' disks in their collection.
That would be Lloyd Miller of the Brooklyn band The Deedle Deedle Dees. I'm a big fan of the Dees, of course, for many reasons -- they rock, they're lots of fun in concert, and they know how to craft educational songs you'll listen to for purely un-educational reasons (hint: they craft actual stories). Also, they're a great bunch of guys.
It probably won't come as much of a surprise to you, then, that Miller doesn't just write original songs about historical figures, but he's also a collector of old songs. Miller merges those two aspects of his musical life on a set of mp3s he's posted to his Bandcamp page. They're songs from the 2009 edition of his annual Mother's Day singalong. Says Miller:
I recorded these tracks so that my bandmates for the event could learn the tunes. Like all the recordings on this page, these recordings are very raw. But I kind of like them. I thought I might as well put them online so everyone could have them.In days of old (ie, 10 years ago? 5 years ago?), artists like Miller would have held on to them for a decade then released them on a B-sides/rarities collection. Now they get posted online for your free streaming or downloading enjoyment.
I'll re-empasize Lloyd's point -- these are definitely lo-fi recordings (midway through one track on his Nature Babies collection from last year, his phone starts ringing) and shouldn't be considered final products or actual releases. And he has an occasionally uneasy relationship with some of the songs (Miller, on his bluesy "Wheels on the Bus" from Sing Along With Lloyd -- "'Wheels on the Bus' is lame. I never liked it and I still don't. Even so, my daughter only wanted this song before bed for about a year and a half."). But they're still interesting to listen to for various reasons -- the singalong disk is great for parents wondering how to inject a little variety into songs they sing on a daily basis. But it's the new stuff I'm going to post below...
This is either the last song you'll need for Mother's Day 2009 or the first one you'll need for Mother's Day 2010 -- "Happy Mother's Day" from Seattle's Harmonica Pocket. A sweet little love song.
(Pssst... here's another song for your listening pleasure: Woody Guthrie's "Little Sacka Sugar". Think of it as the gift the mom gives back to her kids.)
San Diego-area band Hullabaloo has been particularly prolific over the past few years, releasing 3 albums in about 3 years, plus a DVD. Now they're prepping they're latest disk, High Roller, and they've posted the title track at their music page. It's an appealing 2-minute country/folk track with a hint of blues thrown in that includes the phrase "rolling on 3-point-5 inch wheels," which made me laugh.
Besides the track itself, you also have the chance to have your wee one's face grace the new album cover. Go here for instructions on how to enter, but the gist of it is that you'll submit a picture of your kid to the band's Facebook page. Then I, along with Warren and Ryan Loyko (Rattle-N-Roll birth announcements), will each pick a semi-finalist face from all the entries, leading to an online vote to pick the winner. Entries are due May 15th. Will it be as iconic as Paul Simonon slamming his guitar on the London Calling cover? We shall see....
I guess that since technically speaking we could still call the whole H1N1 flu virus thing a near-pandemic, I'm not actually late with this. And, hey, washing your hands never goes out of style.
So, yeah, head on over to David Tobocman's site to pick up the jaunty "Brush Your Teeth" as a
Of course, having started down this public health path, there is the painfully obvious (if very, very cool) video selection...
Continue reading "Does The CDC Have a Kids Music Division?" »
We're longtime library supporters (primarily usage, though we've been known to pay a late fine or four) here, so here's the first item this week in honor of National Library Week (April 12-18) and National Library Workers Day (April 14). To celebrate and recognize librarians everywhere Jim Cosgrove is releasing a pair of new singles – “Rockin’ The Library” and “Library Ann” (it took me a minute to get the pun there) -- AND offering free downloads of these two songs at his website from now until the end of National Library Week. The librarian in your life, particularly if they serve the children's section, will likely enjoy them, and even the non-librarians (read: your kids) will find them worth a virtual spin. To download, go to Cosgrove's store and enter the coupon code “read” at checkout.
A few months back, I let you know about San Francisco's Charity and the JAMband decision to start offering monthly free downloads at their website. Well, they're still going, and in case the past few slower-tempo songs were, well, not quite jam-my enough, the April Song of the Month might be up your alley. "Pancakes" is as close as the band gets to a rave-up, telling the story of how pancakes are made from the very beginning. A fun song to listen to while making pancakes, even you're assembling them from Bisquick. (And if you've missed the other songs, go back and get 'em here.)
You read that right. 7 tracks (listed after the jump) available for free downloading via Amazon - all killer, no filler.
I mean, you probably have a lot of them already, but still. (And if you're missing some, some other albums are on sale in MP3 format, too.) The offer's only valid through April 21, though.
I'm a bit late with this, but I never worry too much about being late with new music, this time it's Uncle Rock, who posted some new tracks on his Myspace page. Uncle Rock is more willing to throw out his musical experiments for your enjoyment than a lot of kids artists, and here they're demos he's recording for tracks on his next album. "There Is No Away" is an atmospheric story song, "Buddy Holly Has the Hiccups" is about as silly/historical as you'd expect, an updated "Garbage Barge," and more. I'm guessing a more environmental vibe and more of a explicit tip of the cap to his musical predecessors on the next go-round.
Also, there's some more music at Uncle Rock's ReverbNation page I haven't before heard "A Very Good Question," which that poses the question "What if I woke up with purple skin?" It is indeed a very good question. And a very good song.
A little late in posting this, but worth it nonetheless -- Wired's Geekdad posted an mp3 of the awesome track "We R Super Heroes from Robbert Bobbert and the Bubble Machine's upcoming self-titled debut. Trust me, folks, it's an awesome track.
If that wasn't cool enough, he also secured a video from Todd Webb, who drew the comic book accompanying the album. The video (scored to another Robbert Bobbert track) features Webb showing exactly how to draw Robbert Bobbert. In a single take. Cool.
I know, I know, everyone in the DC area and the country and the world is focused on another event this week, but after Tuesday's celebrations, the DC-area duo Cathy Fink and Marcy Marxer are looking ahead just a wee bit to National Pie Day on January 23rd.
Just like Cathy and Marcy, I love pie, but unlike them, I haven't recorded a whole song about it.
Lucky for me and you, they're letting me post their track "I Love Pie" for your listening and downloading pleasure for a limited time. It's from their Grammy-nominated album Scat Like That! and in addition to being a zippy celebration of pie, the track features some useful Spanish phrases. (Though I'm disappointed they did not see fit to include "pastel de pacana" in their list of pies.) Thanks to Cathy and Marcy, it's yours to enjoy for a limited time.
Cathy Fink and Marcy Marxer - "Scat Like That" (mp3)
How about "snazzy"?
Check out Lunch Money's fancy new website.
More importantly, check out the availability of two more tracks from the fantastic Dizzy: "I Love My Library" (any song with a Nancy Drew reference works for me) and the title track.
It's an oasis of pleasantness in an In. Sane. day for me.
Go here to listen.
I like to think I've done a pretty good job of introducing a lot of great artists to a larger audience here at this website, but for whatever reason I've had particularly good luck with the Seattle area. Recess Monkey, Central Services Board of Education, Johnny Bregar -- all of 'em you heard about here first. That's not to mention all the other artists up there in Washington State -- Harmonica Pocket, Eric Herman, Eric Ode, the Not-Its -- all of which makes me wonder what's in the water (or coffee) up there.
Well, I've got another Seattle name for you today -- Caspar Babypants (Edit: link fixed). Now, you might recognize the person behind Caspar Babypants -- Chris Ballew, lead vocalist for the Presidents of the United States of America (and, may as well get it out of the way, yes, the band that brought you "Lump").
But even if you don't, you owe it to yourself to hightail yourself over right now to the Babypants site, which features four seven sweet tracks for your listening and downloading pleasure -- "The Brown and Lonely Worm," "Small Black Ant," "The Island Hop," and "Monkey River." Some are traditional, some are original from Ballew's efforts in kids music, and "Monkey River," well, Ballew once put out an album that featured twelve different versions of that tune, so that one's been around awhile. All of them are so, so sweet -- soulful, laid-back music for fans of Elizabeth Mitchell, Dan Zanes, Dog on Fleas, or Session Americana. You may find yourself listening to them as often as you did "Lump" back in the day. (Edit: Chris has just added "Little Broken Truck," which features an awesome little "buh-beep-beep" fill, "Baby Bear," and a '60s-styled "Three Blind Mice.")
Anyway, the tracks are from Babypants' first album, Here I Am!, which will be out next month. I chatted briefly with Ballew via e-mail, and he said that he's a huge Elizabeth Mitchell fan, calling her his "inspiration" for the disk. He also says he's got three more albums in the works.
I, for one, cannot wait. Album art and track listing after the jump.
Continue reading "Listen To This: Caspar Babypants (Chris Ballew)" »
Elizabeth Mitchell has posted a couple new tracks on her Myspace page. The first, "Little Bird Hops," she posted before (and it's still there for the taking, if you'd like to).
So the bigger news is a new track from Elizabeth Mitchell and fellow Smithsonian Folkways artist Suni Paz, whom she sang with in LA back in September. Mitchell's posted a duet of the traditional Argentinian lullaby "Arrorro." The lyrics (courtesy of here) sound like a balm to tired parents of newborns:
Sleep my baby, sleep my sun,
Sleep piece of my heart.
This beautiful baby wants to sleep
But the sandman won't come.
Sleep piece of my heart.
Speaking of artists with Twin Cities roots, I've been hearing that Peter Himmelman was prepping the follow-up to his excellent 2007 album My Green Kite, but now I (and you) can actually hear the follow-up, or at least tiny portions thereof. From the sound of it, if you liked Kite, you're gonna like this.
Himmelman's posted clips from 3 new kids' songs at his music page. The songs are the ska-tinged "Imagination," the XTC-ish "King Ferdinand," which is cursed with the shortest clip, and the bluesy title track.
What's that? Title track what? The album will be called My Trampoline, thereby continuing Himmelman's run of "My" albums -- this'll make five. Makes you think he and Elizabeth Mitchell totally need to duet on a You Are My... album...
Another video from Washington's Eric Herman, this one for his "The Tale of the Sun and the Moon" (available on his mellow Snail's Pace compilation). The song, based on a Kenn Nesbitt poem, is not my favorite tune of Herman's by any stretch, but I think the video really adds a lot. The illustrations from Lauren Wilson have an ever-so-slight Gustafer Yellowgold quality to them, though I'll admit to missing Eric's wife Roseann's animations.
Eric Herman - "The Tale of the Sun and the Moon"
Oh, and all of you who had Sugar Free Allstars, ScribbleMonster, and Eric Herman in the "Name The Next Kids' Music Collaboration" pool, congratulations...
Continue reading "Video (and More!): "The Tale of the Sun and the Moon" - Eric Herman" »
San Francisco's Charity and the JAMband has always been good about offering mp3s on their website, and now word comes from Charity that she's going to be offering these on a monthly basis.
The first one, for December, is a sweet little acoustic expansion of "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star". Definitely worth the time to listen (and download). Sign up at the top of the page to be notified of future downloads.
'Tis the season for Thanksgiving songs and while Thanksgiving tends to get short shrift musically compared to, say, Halloween or the Christmas/Hanukkah time, there are a few songs out there. Adding their names to the list, Cathy Fink & Marcy Marxer are offering up a free download of their song "Thank You" (off of Pocket Full of Stardust). It's a bit too sweet perhaps, but what do you expect? It's a Thanksgiving song. It also features lines like "Thank you for birds that are chased by my cat / Mom says I shouldn’t be thankful for that."
Pick up the song here.
I've told you before -- you have until tonight to enter the contest to win a 4-pack of tickets to Dan Zanes Holiday House Party shows in San Francisco, Seattle, and New York City. The show's gonna be a blast, methinks. Enter now!...
But Dan hasn't forgotten people who won't be near those fine cities, too -- if you go here you can download "Colas" from Dan's fine Nueva York! CD. He's offering it as a celebration of Heifer International, an organization our family has supported in the past (particularly around this time of year).
And to get you in the holiday mood a little bit more, here's an old (but related) video...
Continue reading "One Last Reminder (Plus Bonus Video and Song): Win Dan Zanes Tickets" »
It's been awhile since we've heard from San Francisco's Charity and the JAMband, but Charity's just posted on her website a couple of tracks that she says are "a couple of the most-loved songs from my kids' time" at their preschool. You can stream or download a peppy "Rattlin' Bog" or a very atmospheric Wise Old Owl", along with chord/lyric sheets.
And for those of you wondering when we'll get another funky full album, she notes in her newsletter that it's...
"just about ready for the world. I've been singing about sunsets and moons and stars and dreams and owls and the light and love that inevitably shine through, despite, and because of the darkness."She also is reluctant to call it a CD and calls it a playlist instead. But I'm gonna call it a CD -- I'm old school like that.
Arizona has early balloting, but even though I had my mail-in ballot, I took it to the polls this morning. I also took my kids. Given the historical nature of the election, no matter who wins (especially if you're an Arizona resident), I wanted Miss Mary Mack and Little Boy Blue to say they went to the polls on Election Day 2008. (Oddly enough, there were hardly any Obama or McCain signs at the polling place, so the kids got their photos taken in front of assorted signs for the Legislature, school board, and propositions.) They'll thank me when they're older, they will.
Even though you don't get a day off, Election Day is a holiday to me. A party for democracy, how aweome is that?
My sense is that my (United States) readership probably will exhibit a near 100% turnout this year, but if you need some more kids music to get you in the proper frame of mind to vote (or to register for the next election), Brady Rymer has posted "My United States," a bluesy roots-rocker that, well, lists the United States. Check out the rhyme scheme (and his take on "Mississippi") and listen to or download the track here.
Well, I've told you about the second season of Yo Gabba Gabba! -- that's going strong. And I've told you about the upcoming soundtrack, set to be released tomorrow through iTunes.
Now both are set to come together in one giant you-got-peanut-butter-in-my-chocolate sort of combination.
Because I've got an mp3 from that soundtrack for your listening pleasure that -- unlike most of the rest of the album -- is actually a Season Two track.
Trust me, even if you're all Yo Gabba Whatta?, you're going to want to hear this...
Continue reading "Listen To This: "Lovely, Love My Family" - The Roots (Yo Gabba Gabba!)" »
I've already talked about the new Yo Gabba Gabba! CD coming out next week, but you don't have to wait 'til then to get some YGG-related tunes.
Vancouver's The Salteens have released two new songs they recorded for the show. If you follow that link and give 'em an e-mail address, you'll instantaneously start downloading two tracks they recorded for the show -- "All My Friends" and "Count on my Hands." Of the two, "All My Friends" is the poppier and more straight-forward song; "Count" is a little more didactic, but cute in its own way. One of the songs, according to lead singer Scott Walker, was used in the current Season Two, but with different lyrics.
On a side note, Salteens fans will be a bit disappointed with the forthcoming CD as the wrong Salteens song will be on disk. Apparently everyone loves "I'm So Happy I Can Dance," but the disk features "Be Kind To Animals."
Continue reading "New Music From Yo Gabba Gabba. (Sorta. Kinda.)" »
If you spend a lot of time listening to and reviewing music as I do, parts of your living space can quickly get overrun with disks. Now, I've long believed that kids music will be one of the last holdouts against the unstoppable tide of digital music transmission, if only because giving your 3-year-old or the parents-to-be an access code or iTunes gift certificate for a great new CD just seems, well, weird.
But I also understand that as a generation of folks who've always bypassed the physical medium of music consumption enter parenthood, I'm gonna become the exception, not the rule. Of course, getting people to pay for that music is the tough part. There are lots of places where you can download music legally, but I've recently started exploring one site that's got a decent selection of kids music that -- for the moment, anyway -- you can get for free or nearly free.
Amie Street combines the catchphrases "social networking" and "digital music" into a store where members determine the price of music (from primarily independent artists). Most albums and tracks are introduced to the store at a $0 price. As more members buy the digital albums, the price rises to a maximum of 98 cents per track (or roughly $10 for an album). Members who buy albums get the opportunity to recommend tracks off those albums (see, for example, mine), and as the price of those tracks increase, members get additional credit to the their account. (And Amazon is an investor, so clearly somebody thinks it might just succeed.)
So, anyway, I probably lost you at "free or nearly free," so after the jump I'll mention the artists currently available on the site, plus an easy way to pick up a little credit to get you started. Trust me, if you're a longtime reader, you'll find a lot of familiar names on the list...
Well, when you're Gustafer Yellowgold, why, yes, you can. Morgan Taylor credited the writing of "Mint Green Bee" to the yellow dude with the mellow 'tude (except, of course, as pertaining to cheese or cake), and now Gustafer's won Session I of the Children's Division of the 2008 John Lennon Songwriting Contest. Go there to download a copy of the song and congratulations to him for joining other previous Grand Prize Winners such as Joe McDermott, Kristen Andreassen, Thaddeus Rex, and Cathy Fink & Marcy Marxer.
A few weeks ago, I got a note from Jeremy Toback, half of the LA duo Renee and Jeremy (you guess which half) which said that they were going into the studio to record the follow-up to their sweet and hypnotic debut It's A Big World!. Toback described the album as "definitely not lullabies... groovy and sweet. A little light, a little dark, like smores."
Well, music from those recording sessions are starting to trickle out. Luxury Wafers, the blog of the ChessVolt studios where Toback and Renee Stahl are recording the new album, has posted five new live mp3s for listening or downloading. "Share" is definitely the more upbeat of the tracks, while "Is It Really Any Wonder?" is a little more downtempo along the lines of the first album. If you liked the first album, you're gonna like those. (And if you haven't heard the first album, live tracks of "Free," "Night Mantra," and "We Are One" are there for your enjoyment, too.)
Toback wrote in to clarify that they're actually recording the album at his house -- they just finished this past week. So those tracks up above, which were definitely demo-style anyway, have nothing to do with the actual recording session for the album, photos of which are after the jump.
OK, I probably have. But, you know, I tell you all about shows like Kidzapalooza or the KC Jiggle Jam and nobody seems to mind that much, so why should I be so worried about telling you about a Phoenix show most of you won't get to see (live, anyway).
So for those of you who might not care about tomorrow's show because they're, like, 1,000 miles away, here's a stellar interview with Terrible Twos main man Matt Pryor. It's only maybe a quarter about the Twos (as opposed to Pryor's solo album), but there's also some great stuff on there about what it's like to be a working musician with family. Oh, and there are some mp3s from the first album plus some demos definitely worth checking out.
And just so you don't forget: Wednesday, Aug. 20th -- the Terrible Twos at Modified Arts (407 E. Roosevelt) in Phoenix. Doors at 5:30; show at 6:00. Tickets just $5 for adults, $3 for kids...
I gave you a chance before to download a track from the upcoming Central Services kids' project. If you missed it, well, too late, because I've taken it down.
But the band's let me put another track up, and I thought it'd be appropriate to post the companion track, the slower "Heading Home," which captures how my daughter feels when she comes home on the bus after a long day at school. Though in a good way, musically.
Anyway, Central Services Presents The Board of Education (I think I've got that name right) will be available for the whole world to hear in just a week or two. Until then, you can enjoy this track for a limited time.
Central Services Board of Education - "Heading Home" (Too late!)
It's no secret I've been a big fan of Central Services Board of Education ever since I caught wind of them many, many months ago. Their self-titled debut will be formally released late this summer, but I've been spinning the album for awhile now, and I've got to tell you, the opening prologue, "Rise and Shine," is my favorite album-opener in quite some time. It's a rip-roarin' song with sparkling keyboards, horns, and vocal gymnastics -- if you're not awake after hearing this, well, you may have some medical problems of some sort.
What's that, you say? You want to hear this fine track? OK, courtesy of the band, here you go (for a limited time only):
Central Services Board of Education - "Prologue - Rise and Shine" (too late!)
If you're from Seattle, you probably recognize the DJ's voice at the beginning of the track -- it's John Richards, host of KEXP's Morning Show, known locally as "John in the Morning." A canny move by the band, but, hey, Richards' a daddy, too.
I have written multiple times (OK, twice thus far) about the band Central Services Board of Education, the kids' music offshoot of Seattle indie-pop band Central Services. Count myself as a CSBOE fan, though one of just a few because, you know, they haven't actually released an album.
Well, soon enough that group will expand, because this afternoon the band said that they've finished the album and will have pre-release copies at their first-ever full-band performance Sunday along with Recess Monkey at Northwest Folklife. The band says they're targeting a release right around "back to school" time.
Can't make it to Seattle to pick up a pre-release copy to tide your family over this long summer? Well, then get yourself over to their Myspace page, where they've posted a zippy new track, "8 Is A Number" ('cause everyone's doing number songs this spring, dontcha know?). It's available for download in handy mp3 format, along with a "director's cut" version of the totally awesome "The Lonely Tomato." Both now with added horns!
I promised you more Barenaked Ladies stuff today -- this time it's a heads up that if you liked "7 8 9" from the video earlier today, for a limited time you can download that song for free here.
Gordie Howe fans need this in their collection, pronto.
The kids music genre includes, of course, those songs explicitly written for kids. But it also includes those songs re-appropriated for kids, though perhaps not originally intended for that audience.
It was in the latter category that I thought "Crayola Doesn't Make a Color For Your Eyes," from Boston-based artist Kristin Andreassen and her solo album Kiss Me Hello, fell into when I first heard it (or, rather, saw the YouTube video below).
It's a love song, ostensibly, but it's about crayons. What a perfect re-appropriated song!, I thought.
And then I found out it won the "Children's Song of the Year" in the John Lennon Songwriting Contest back in 2006. Other winners in the category include Joe McDermott, Thaddeus Rex, and Cathy Fink & Marcy Marxer, so clearly it's not some out-of-left-field award. Andreassen wrote the song when she was teaching dance in grade schools.
Oh, well, loss of my preconceived notion is your gain, as you can go to the link above and download the track. Lots of fun.
Or you can just be mesmerized by the live rendition of the patty-cake on the album track. If your kids are anything like Miss Mary Mack, they'll be fascinated by the fact they keep that up for nearly 4 minutes.
Easter's coming way too early -- the earliest you will ever see it (unless you live to, like, 203) -- so you'll forgive me if I barely get this out in time. The Bay Area's Hipwaders have posted a pretty cool version of "Here Comes Peter Cottontail" at their Myspace page for streaming and downloading. Their shuffling Bakersfield-sounding rendition will have you hip-hip-hoppity-hip-hip-hoppa-ing until you run screaming because the phrase is lodged in your brain. Permanently. Like it is in mine.
So maybe that's why I waited 'til now...
Never called the florist? Didn't have time to buy chocolate? Oh, well, the Internet has provided a couple free mp3s for your listening pleasure.
First up, Charity Kahn from the Bay Area-basedCharity and the JAMband has posted "Moon Hug," a mellow love song just as appropriate for a parental mash note to a child. Kahn says in an e-mail that she's working on a new album and the track is from that upcoming album.
And, across the Bay, the Hipwaders have posted "Valentine" at their Myspace page. It's more of a puppy-love song straight out of the '60s.
Both are available for download today only...
The New York band Astrograss has, at least in its music for kids, always had an affinity for words -- after all, its first EP for kids (review here) set its bluegrass-y jazz (or jazzy bluegrass) to the lyrics of Shel Silverstein.
So it's no surprise that the first song the band's made available from their upcoming album, tentatively called Let Me Stay Up All Night continues with the fanciful wordplay. Called "There Their They're," it includes the zen-like phrase, "Someday, when I learn to spell 'spell'..." and is set to Astrograss' adventurous musical stylings.
Plenty of kids' bands say that they don't sound like anyone else -- Astrograss is one of the few that can back up that claim.
Listen to (and download) "There Their They're" here. Let Me Stay Up All Night is out March 9.
I've said before (though maybe not to any of you) that if you miss hearing the power-pop that saturated the airwaves in the early '90s, then kids' music might just be your best option. There are few better at that particular subgenre than the Jim Dague and the rest of his compatriots in ScribbleMonster.
They've got a new album, Songs With No Character, coming out this spring, and they've just added a couple songs from the album available for downloading and listening on their Myspace page. Both tracks have been floating around for awhile now. "Spare the Rock Spoil the Child" was, as you might expect, originally crafted for the Spare the Rock radio show and rocks mightily. "The Song of LIFE" has been around in a live version since spring 2007, but now is up in full studio glory. It's actually a (comparatively) mellow track, and really as geared toward the parents as the kids, but it's sweet in its own way. It's reminiscent of one of the great masters of power-pop, Fountains of Wayne, in their more country-ish moments (think "Valley Winter Song," for example).
And, hey, even if you're not sure about those songs, go to the Myspace page and listen to "I Wish I Lived in Michigan," "The Fur Trade," and "Chocolate Milk" along with 'em. It's 10 or so minutes of great music.
Head on over to Dan Zanes' new blog, The Welcome Table, for a free download of a track recorded as part of the session for Zanes' upcoming 2008 album En Latino.
The new song, "Colas," is not a tribute to highly sugared carbonated beverages. Rather, it is (in DZ's words), "is a traditional son jarocho from Veracruz, Mexico introduced to me by the Villa-Lobos Brothers, a trio from Veracruz now living in Nueva York." The opening riff sounds a bit like "Catch That Train," but then it moves into a slightly more traditional sound. Zanes' Spanish sounds passable. The whole track is a bunch of fun.
Many months ago, I exchanged e-mails with Gregory Hollow Tree of the L.A.-based the Hollow Trees -- known to his kin as Greg McIlvaine -- about what lay ahead for the band. He said what lay ahead was "the Hollow Trees v. 2.0."
He wasn't kidding. What used to be a pretty small band has now morphed into the kids' music equivalent of the Polyphonic Spree or We're From Barcelona -- I'd checked out their new lineup 3 or 4 weeks ago and was shocked to see all the names listed there.
Well, since I last visited their website they've announced their new CD -- Welcome to Nelsonville -- and posted 3 mp3s: go here to listen to the fun traditional "Ain't Gonna Rain No More" (a sequel in spirit to their first album's "Jack Was Every Inch a Sailor"), a shuffling Hollow Tree original "Hootenanny", and a zippity cover of "Skoodle Um Skoo." All three tracks just sound good. The band may have swelled to indie-pop size, but they're still making a great Americana roots and folk sound. (Hat tip to Gwyneth for the heads up.)
In case you haven't checked out Offsprung's forums, cheekily called The Playground, it might be worth a little time. For example, this thread (noted by loyal reader Katy) unearthed a video on YouTube for "My Children, Be Joyful," by the Canadian band Rock Plaza Central. (Well, if "unearthed" is the verb for a video featured on YouTube's front page and with nearly 300,000 views.)
The video takes entirely unrelated footage from the Canadian television show Nanalan, which, I gotta say, looks suspiciously like a little show called Jack's Big Music Show. Or vice versa. Anyway, the song builds up to a frenzy (la la la's, violins, and, like, a dozen horns) and the frenetic puppets somehow fit perfectly. And, yeah, it's joyful.
Not bad for a song from an album (Are We Not Horses, released in the States this year) that is "all about robotic horses. Robotic horses who think they are real horses. For real. Caught in a battle between good and evil. Between angels and humans. And after eradicating the world of the angels, wondering if they fought for the right side." Yeah, that might not be so much for the kids. Or maybe. I don't know. I kinda want to find out, though.
By the way, if you want to get the track for free, head on over to the band's Myspace page to download it and three others.
What songs are bringing you and your family more joy?
This has been available for awhile, but I wanted to point out that Brady Rymer has three new songs available for download as part of his Children's Dimetapp Breathe & Boogie Tour. Go here to download "Healthy Livin'" and "Even the Animals Sneeze," a couple mid-tempo folk-rockers that would've sounded fine on his recent Every Day is a Birthday CD.
Also available for download is "We are the Sniffles," which also has a video on the site. I'm sorta bummed because it's the best of the three tracks -- propulsive, great harmonies -- but it's got a couple shout-outs to Dimetapp (both in the song and on the video). It's worth a spin, though, because aside from the commercial reference (which kinda kills any repeat-listening value for me), it shows Rymer and his band at their best.
Rymer, incidentally, will be releasing his latest album, Brady Rymer and the Little Band That Could, on March 4. You can hear one of the songs from the upcoming CD, "Road Trip" by attending one of his final shows on this tour in Rochester (NY), Houston, Dallas, and Madison, New Jersey (details here) and picking up the free six-song Rymer CD they're distributing.
So, yeah, I'm just waiting for the edited version...
News from Josephine Cameron that she'll be releasing one track a week for free from her upcoming September release American Songs Vol. 2 at Cameron's Myspace page. First up, "Oh Sister," which is actually a Cameron original, a slow track about friendship and support. There's nothing particularly kid-focused about the track (and it's probably too slow to keep younger kids engaged, at least on CD), but it sounds like it'll be at home among a host of other much more traditional songs. Fans of Cameron's last CD, Close Your Eyes (review) and other traditional music should make sure to stop by the Myspace page weekly as tracks are added...
The other day, I posted a video of the Jellydots performing a new cut, "San Diego," as part of the Tricycle Music Fest in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Well, the finished version of The Jellydots' "San Diego" is now available as a free download from their Myspace page. It'll be on their upcoming release Changing Skies, which is, according to the page, "almost done!" (Interjection Doug's.)
I think you'll find it a valuable addition to our modern lifestyle. Or, at the very least, your family's mp3 collection.
"Night Mantra" is one of the standout tracks on Renee and Jeremy's It's A Big World CD. On Mother's Day it'll be available at their Myspace page. That and a hand-drawn CD case and you're good to go, right?
Ahhhh... a new Elizabeth Mitchell mp3, just in time for Mother's Day.
"Little Bird Hops" would've sounded great on You Are My Little Bird -- mellow, with nifty guitar work, and less than 90 second, pfft, it flies away.
I know that Mr. David has had a new tune -- "Hey It's Lunchtime" -- available for listening or downloading on his Myspace page for awhile. It's kind of an angular post-punk tune delivered in his loose style.
That tune is growing on me, but his new single -- the title track from his upcoming Jump in the Jumpy House album (tentatively scheduled for an August release) -- is an immediately accessible and fun track.
And, courtesy of Mr. David, I'm proud to offer it to you for your own enjoyment.
Mr. David - Jump in the Jumpy House
That nifty, insistent guitar lead comes courtesy of Greg Lisher from Camper Van Beethoven. If you, or someone you know, is getting one of those bouncy houses (sorry, I call 'em "bouncy houses") for a kids' birthday party, you need to have this as the soundtrack -- nails the pogoing aspect of those things to a T.
Earth Day songs generally preach, and I think one thing that a lot of parents really dislike about a lot of kids' music is when that music tells listeners what to do. So, the trick in writing an Earth Day song for kids that parents will tolerate is writing a catchy tune.
Which Recess Monkey did with "3Rs for Ours," which debuted on last weekend's Spare the Rock show and is now available for listening and downloading at the band's Myspace page.
Yeah, it's April 25th, but get it now anyway. Because every day is Earth Day, right?
Those of you in the New York City area may be heading down to Central Park for Sunday's Green Apple Music & Arts Festival -- if you do, you may get to hear some new songs from Brady Rymer when he plays on the same stage as Laurie Berkner.
Luckily for those of us for whom a trip to NYC this weekend would be so not carbon-neutral, Time Out New York Kids has posted rough cuts mp3s of a couple new songs at the end of an interview with Brady and Laurie.
The first song, "One True You," is one of those midtempo feel-good Rymer songs that I don't have any great affinity for, although Rymer does these songs better than just about anyone. (And, if you're an adoptive parent, don't worry, the "families look like one another" theme is in the first verse only.) My preferrred song is the second, "Road Trip," which is a rave-up and lots of fun.
Appropriate, perhaps, for our own road trip to Tucson this weekend.
(Have I mentioned we're seeing Dan Zanes this weekend?)
What is in Seattle's water? Johnny Bregar, Recess Monkey, not to mention Eric Herman and Eric Ode... they're really approaching critical mass, kids-music-scene-wise.
And now there's Central Services Board of Education, an offshoot of the indie-pop band Central Services.
Go listen (and download, should you desire, and you likely will) their first four songs, which I'm going to describe as "Schoolhouse Rock!-meets-The-Shins." Or maybe "Ben-Folds-meets-Dr-Demento."
Or maybe "awesome."
With densely-packed wordplay and pop-cultural allusions, it's probably more for (or most appreciated by) kids ages 6 and older. My favorite track is "The Lonely Tomato," which somehow manages to be highly educational, metaphorical, and catchy all at the same time. All four tracks are worth checking out.
(And then go over to Central Services' myspace page while you're at it.)
In time for Valentine's Day (mostly), San Francisco-based Charity and the JAMband have posted a new mp3 on their website, the lullaby "Juggle the Stars." It's a good song, but different stylistically from the funky jams Charity's best known for. (Makes me wonder what their upcoming album will sound like.)
If you're looking for a more uptempo Valentine's Day song, try their song "No Doubt About It."
Both songs are available at the band's Songs page.
I'll have more words on Christmas albums old and young later in the month, but for now, a brief note -- Mr. David has a new song up at his Myspace site -- "Frosty the Snowman." Available for download, it's a laid-back, slightly spacy take on the song made famous by Jimmy Durante. Sounds exactly what you'd think "Frosty the Snowman" sung by Mr. David would sound like. (And that's a good thing.)
Remember the other day when I talked about Little Monster Records and wondered who the mysterious "Ralph & Ralph" were?
You don't? Really?
Oh, well, you're probably not getting enough sleep.
Anyway, I still don't know who they are, but maybe some of the eagle-eared readers out there can identify voices from the new Ralph & Ralph track posted on their "Sounds" page. "Ralph and Ralph's Song" is a slow, loping song that Randy Newman might write and includes the following couplet, which is either a 1) biting meta-commentary on the digital music distribution process or 2) feel-good life lesson.
"A record costs money / but a song is for free."
Indeed.
The new website for the Little Monster Records label isn't quite ready for prime time, with more "under construction" signs than Berlin in the 1990s. (Yes, I realize that Berlin wouldn't literally have "under construction" signs. Work with me here, folks -- I've never seen so many cranes in a city.)
But probably due to the low-key nature of this website, we don't really care as long as the content's good, and in this case, with mp3s from All Together Now (the recently-released Beatles tribute CD) and upcoming Little Monster releases from Robbert Bobbert, Gustafer Yellowgold, Soulville, and Medeski, Martin & Wood, the content's good. The Robbert Bobbert and Gustafer tracks can also be heard on their myspace pages, but the Soulville and MMW tracks are new to me. MMW's "Where's the Music?" is funky and amusing, and I like both Soulville tracks, too.
No, I have no idea who "Ralph & Ralph" are.
Before I get to the Purple Stripes, a quick story:
Shortly after the NPR interview, I got an e-mail from an Australian comic who was looking for a review I'd done of his CD here on the website. He'd apparently sold some of his albums at CDBaby from people who were referred there from here.
Here's the thing: I'd never even heard of him or the CD, let alone reviewed it.
I told him that if he got me a copy of the CD (which did sound like it'd be fairly amusing and even somewhat apropos for the site), I'd review it here, and then at least it would all make sense. Haven't heard a reply to the offer, though.
I bring this up as a way of saying I must be huge in Australia, because Karl Richter, with the new Australian label Bing!Bang!Bong!, is the first person to ask me to post a kids' music artist's mp3 here on Zooglobble. And since the song is from the new Australian kids' music duo The Purple Stripes, I said I'd be happy to oblige:
The Purple Stripes - The Circle Song (Too late!)
While my favorite song from their 2006 EP is "Bing! Bang! Bong!" (available at their Myspace page), I think "The Circle Song" is more indicative of their EP as a whole -- sweet female harmonizing in a folk-pop way, with just guitar and the bare minimum of percussion for accompaniment. Those looking for a kids' music equivalent of The White Stripes will be disappointed -- it's a little more of a blend of Laurie Berkner and Lunch Money.
Good stuff and a promising debut. Their EP will be on the iTunes Music Store soon.
