It's been years since I've run an Oscars pool -- that happened about the time that the number of movies I saw in a theatre dropped to a dozen or so (but, hey, I love you, kids!) -- though I did catch part of last night's ceremony, including the announcement of Best Original Song, which went to Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova for their lovely and aching "Falling Slowly" from the movie Once.
It was a little surprising, the win. Alan Menken, whose brilliance as a movie-musical composer cannot be denied (think all the classic Disney animated movies from nearly 20 years ago) had the misfortune of being nominated three times with Stephen Schwartz for Enchanted in the category, which meant that voters too blinkered to recognize the best song of the three (note: "Happy Working Song," duh) split his vote.
Not that I'm complaining. It's a stunning song from a great little movie. The soundtrack is nice, but I've found that it never quite moved me the way the movie did. The soundtrack version of the Oscar-winner adds a string section which, while sweet, takes away from the central core of the movie, the way these two artists create a singular musical voice. Much better is the movie's version. Less than 20 minutes into the movie, you hear this duet, and it floors you. The clip below is from the movie.
Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova - "Falling Slowly"
And in case you feel like you need a kid-friendly version (or at least one the kids might be a little more interested in -- initially), you can click here. I wouldn't recommend it, though -- it's absolutely awful. Update: And Bill notes that MST3K alum Mike Nelson feels similarly.
Once is out on DVD now, and if you haven't seen it, you should.
Review: Meet the Squeegees - The Squeegees
Meet The SqueeGees, the first full-length CD from the Los Angeles-area band The SqueeGees, could offer me a chance to be exceedingly lazy and simply copy the review from their debut EP, The SqueeGees. Well, maybe half the review. Because half of the CD was originally found on that debut EP.
Now, that's not a bad thing, perhaps, because that means the bubbly tiny nugget of a song, "Apples Oranges & Peaches," is back, as is "Nala the Chihuahua," with its snaky melodic line and harmonies. And "The Ol' WWW," which really isn't a kids song (though it's totally kid-safe) is back to amuse the parents.
Just as with the EP, the Squeegees are at their best when they're not as concerned with the point of the song, such as the dreamy "Bubbles." "I-D-E-A," a song encouraging more environmentally conscious thinking, almost overdoes it with the hitting-over-the-head. (More amusing is the Queen-esque breakdown that starts "So you think that you would like to drive a big car? / Have you seen the gas prices today?" and ends, of course, with "I like to ride my bicycle / I like to ride my bike...")
In fact, what struck me the most on listening to the full-length CD is how much care and craft has gone into these tunes, musically speaking. The SqueeGees generally play folk-rock, but there's a lot of interesting bits squeezed in here, like in the song above, or the harmonies in "Nala the Chihuahua." Along with Samantha Tobey's clear voice, they make the most of the songs here.
I'll peg the album as most appropriate for ages 2 through 7. You can hear some tracks from the CD at the band's Myspace page.
There's a lot to recommend in Meet the SqueeGees. I like the quirky ones more than the standard ones, but that might be personal taste. In either case, there's a high attention to sonic detail that kids musicians thinking of recording debuts could do well to emulate. Recommended.Concert Review: Dan Zanes (Phoenix, February 2008)
I feel compelled to jot down a few words about the Dan Zanes show we saw a couple weeks ago, and not just because I've got this cool photo of Dan wearing a scarf my daughter gave him (you'll have to click through to see that).
I was glad to see that Phoenix managed to turn out a decent-sized crowd, a good 700 people, maybe more, in the gorgeous Orpheum Theatre. Really, for a Friday-night show that might have impeded attendance by families with younger kids, I'm pretty happy.
There were clearly families for whom this was not their first DZ show -- I recognized people from the Tucson show last April. But many, including Miss Mary Mack's younger brother, who, let's go ahead and call him Little Boy Blue, were seeing him for the first time.The Last TMBG Post... Until the Next One
It's time I dial back a bit on the They Might Be Giants Here Come the 123s madness. The album's been out for more than a couple weeks, and there's plenty of other music to talk about. Before I completely turn things over to my Here Come the 123s archive, a pair of final thoughts.
First, my conjecture that the album might break the Billboard Top 10 proved too optimistic. Thus far, their peak chart position is #172. Given that Herbie Hancock's sales of 5,044 albums that same week put him at #159, it would appear TMBG probably sold just under 5,000 copies their first week. Now, given that they also debuted at #9 on the Kid Audio Chart, and only dropped to #10 in week 2, it's not unlikely that they'll continue to sell four or five thousand albums a week, especially given the ongoing promotion. But doubtful that they'll make the Billboard Top 10.
And for those of you who are already awaiting the next TMBG kids' album, the reported album on the planets and science is definitely a go. This article quotes a Disney executive as saying that the album could be released as early as next year. The podcasts will go on forever, one can only hope...
It's Never Too Early To Start Thinking About Summer Music Festivals
I've hear rumors of particular bands being booked for C3's twin titans of summer kid-friendly music festivals, Kidzapalooza and Austin Kiddie Limits, and some of those rumors would appear to be inching toward the realm of reality.
Austin Kiddie Limits has posted some new tracks on its Myspace page. New to the page are The Jimmies, Buck Howdy, Uncle Rock, and Mr. RAY. These artists would all appear to be on the bill for AKL, set for September 26 through 28. (Buck Howdy already has AKL dates on his live calendar.) And The Jimmies have a Kidzapalooza date set on their calendar. (Kidzapalooza is set for August 1 through 3.)
These aren't all the bands I've heard rumors of, so more will be announced at some point, to be sure. But, hey, it's only February -- ACL is 7 months away, after all. Now you can plan your summer 2008 road trips accordingly.
Herbie Hancock, the Muppets, and You
I realize that the Grammys have been over for more than a week now, but I wanted to put a few final thoughts down for the 50th Annual Grammy Awards and, in particular, the kids music field...
I've already shared with you Buck Howdy's thoughts on his trip to the awards, but Buck wasn't the only one visiting. Cathy Fink and Marcy Marxer paid a visit, too. The duo has won Grammys before, and Cathy was a nominee this year for Best Traditional Folk Album, with Banjo Talkin'. They attended a number of events and took a bunch of photos. I don't think I ever quite appreciated how much like a convention the Grammys are for the music industry.
And my friend Joel Rinsema, executive director for the Phoenix Bach Choir, nominated for five Grammys along with the Kansas City Choir, did win one award, sort of -- Best Engineered Album, Classical, which goes to the engineer. Still, that's a "Grammy Winner!" sticker they can slap on the CD. "We are thrilled," says Joel, who goes on to say...
"We had an absolute blast at the Grammys. The whole thing was surreal; from the Biltmore Hotel, to the pre-telecast and telecast award ceremonies and of course the post-Grammy bash (the bash looked more like the set from the movie Caligula, to be honest!). It was especially exciting sitting with 80 other people who were there for our nominations. I can definitely say that people knew which disc we were pulling for, especially when the winner was announced for best engineered classical album. I don't think John Newton, our engineer on "Passion Week" expected the eruption that happened when his name was called as the winner. It was a thrilling ride to be on, but to be honest it feels good to have it all behind us. Some have said "congratulations and condolences" (we didn't take home the REAL big awards - Best Classical or Choral Performance). My response is "are you crazy!? We are THRILLED that our disc won a Grammy!" It truly was an honor and we look forward to the next time our hard work is recognized in this manner. It is not the reason we do what we do, but it certainly is gratifying to be recognized for making the right decisions and producing high-quality art."
But you can't talk about this year's Grammys without talking about Herbie Hancock's stunning Album of the Year win for River: The Joni Letters, beating contenders such as Kanye West and saving Amy Winehouse from winning the Christopher Cross slate (AOTY, Song of the Year, Record of the Year, and Best New Artist). Most of the criticism of the win seemed to be along the lines of, "not popular enough, from an artist way past their artistic peak."
Sound familiar? Yeah, I had the same thought many of you may have had when I read who won Sunday afternoon for best children's music recording -- the Muppets? Not to mention a Christmas album? You've got to be kidding me.
