Readers Who Need Readers: Road Trip (Eastern U.S. Edition)

I got the following e-mail a few days back...
Hello from a Maine homeschooling Mom... My 8-year-old son has the incredible opportunity to drive from Maine to Mississippi next month with his grandparents. I'm putting together some 'on the road' school for him including short studies of each state he will go through. I'm wondering if there are albums that feature different regional music in the USA? Or, if you could recommend at good blues album for kids so that they can celebrate properly once they are in Mississippi.
Unlike many "Readers Who Need Readers" segments, I was able to answer the question (in part) -- click through to see my response, which comes with some help -- and offer some more suggestions to fill in the gaps.

Recess Monkey - Live At Modified Arts

OK, it's not quite Live At Budokan, and I'm definitely no Scorcese or Demme, but I've got 12+ minutes of video from Recess Monkey's show at Phoenix's Modified Arts. One's below, four more after the jump. Recess Monkey - "S-L-Double-E-P-Over" Drew's foot reminds me, vaguely, of the Robert Klein "I can't stop my leg" bit.

Disney Music Block Party... Now, With Less Block

Gosh, I go to the trouble to set up a "Disney Music Block Party Tour" tag, and Gwyneth notes today that most of the tour dates have been cancelled. Only the Long Island show is still on. Just my luck. The ticket prices did seem a bit high (though you were getting a lot of music and other stuff for those prices), so perhaps attendance was an issue. Or maybe karma for not venturing west of the Mississippi. If I find out something else, I'll let you know... Update: This from AEG Live, via Disney -- "Due to unforeseen circumstances, The Disney Music Block shows at the (name of building) has been cancelled. We are sorry for any inconvenience and refunds are available at the point of purchase." Doesn't really answer much, does it?

Concert Review: Recess Monkey (Phoenix, August 2008)

VanAtModifiedArts.jpgRecess Monkey have come and gone, but I'd be remiss if I didn't post a few photos from the show, along with my thoughts. (It should be noted that since I, well, presented the show, this really isn't a "review.") Readers who've already purchased the band's latest disk, Tabby Road, will recognize the band's iconic Honda Element and trailer. OK, perhaps it's not really iconic, but maybe it'll become like Abbey Road and find itself in hundreds of thousands of pictures as the years go by. Hey, wait, guys -- they totally need to ship that thing to London and have it photographed crossing the Abbey Road intersection. How mind-blowing would that be? OK, not really at all, but still, kinda cool. RecessMonkeyLive.jpgAnyway, the band got to Modified about 1:30, got set up, and waited for the throngs to arrive. And sure enough, by 3 PM, there was a healthy crowd of people (not quite full, but definitely not empty, ready to rock out. Actually, with the air conditioning not being very strong on a 114-degree day, there was comparatively little rocking out, though one of the fun parts of seeing a band live after they've played songs for a while was seeing how the audience interaction developed -- "Down Down Down" and "Boogie Monster" are two songs that really do lend themselves to crowd participation. And of course, the band sounded really good live. After close to an hour of playing, the band wrapped up with "Why Did the Chicken Cross the Road." We had dinner at the grandparents' to get to, so we didn't literally see them off, but you can find out much more about the day at the band's ever-amusing tour blog. Thanks very much to the band for making room in their schedule for Phoenix. It was a great show. We hope it's not the last time -- as the band's suggested before, spring training makes for an excellent excuse to visit the Valley of the Sun. More photos after the jump, and videos from the show later today.

A, Um, Reminder

I know, I know, I've told you many times before, but in case you need to be reminded, Recess Monkey continues its national tour on Sunday right here in Phoenix at Modified Arts downtown (407 E. Roosevelt). Doors open at 2:30, show starts at 3:00, with tickets $6 for adults, $3 for kids, and free for infants. Don't miss the fun at Modified's first kids' show. Just think, when they're hosting shows for kids weekly, you'll be able to say you were there.

Video: "Davy Crockett in Outer Space" - They Might Be Giants

I'm a little late in pointing this out, but They Might Be Giants have released a video for their contribution to the considerably-better-than-the-hipsters-might-expect Disney Music Block Party compilation, "Ballad of Davy Crockett in Outer Space." The song is a decidedly odd updating of the theme song, but the video is totally low-tech in the best way. They Might Be Giants - "Ballad of Davy Crockett in Outer Space" Yes, that's a real chalkboard. Want proof? Read all about the behind-the-scenes process here.