I've been on a bit of a Smithsonian Folkways kick this week, working through some of their older stuff. In part that's because I know the annual Smithsonian Folklife Festival is being held this week. I went to the Festival one summer about 15 years ago, and I thought it was one of the cooler events I had the chance to attend in DC. They always pick 2 or 3 folk traditions to focus on and one of the foci of the 2009 edition is called "Giving Voice: The Power of Words in African American Culture." As part of a family concert today, Ella Jenkins and Christylez Bacon performed and there's video.
Non-embeddable video, but oh well... Go here to see video (right now it's at the top but I'm sure you'll have to scroll down as the Festival goes on). There's nothing particularly amazing about Jenkins' video except the fact that every single person is participating. Seriously, I've been to enough kids' shows to see how a lot of adults don't typically do all the interacting their kids do -- not here, which I think says volumes about Jenkins' command of an audience. (Look at all those adults up in front with her.) And Christylez does some pretty cool beatboxing mixed with go-go in his video.
You can also watch Jenkins perform with Cathy Fink & Marcy Marxer (and, I think Bacon) perform live in concert on Saturday starting at 5:30 East Coast time. Watch the webcast here.
Peter Himmelman and Milkshake Team Up, Sort Of.
You know, I had this cover for Great Day, the upcoming album from Baltimore-based band Milkshake, but didn't yet have the tracklisting. On the other hand, I've had My Trampoline, the next album from Peter Himmelman, for awhile now (for a few more details from six months ago, go here). Neither item by itself was probably sufficient for a post. (I do have standards, you know, hard as that may be to believe sometimes.) But I've found the link, folks.
Both albums are coming out on August 25. See? That justifies this, right?
Oh, anyway, the tracklisting for My Trampoline and some other intriguing Himmelman-related news after the jump.New Music: "Singin' in the Rain" - Elizabeth Mitchell
Yeah, it's just about as awesome as you'd expect. I especially dig the "doo de do do doo de do de do do" part sung by Storey at the beginning and the end. It's not the torrential downpour of the movie, more like a refreshing spring sprinkle. Listen to Elizabeth Mitchell's rendition here for a limited time.
Video: "Hip-Hop Humpty Dumpty" - Cathy Fink & Marcy Marcer with Christylez Bacon
I already mentioned in my review of Banjo to Beatbox, the recently-released EP from Cathy Fink & Marcy Marxer that features hip-hop artist Christylez Bacon, that one of my favorite tracks was "Hip-Hop Humpty Dumpty." So why not watch a live version on YouTube?
Cathy Fink & Marcy Marxer with Christylez Bacon - "Hip-Hop Humpty Dumpty"
The Next Best Thing to Jack's Big Music Show Season 3?
Well, Jack's Big Music Show is no more, but at least the fans that make up Laurie Nation will get to see Laurie Berkner return to Noggin. On Sunday, July 12 from 7 'til 8 PM East Coast time, Noggin will premiere the Laurie Berkner Band starring in Let’s Hear It For The Laurie Berkner Band!. The special features 17 music videos from the band, including three brand-new videos -- “My Family,” which was created exclusively for NOGGIN and is not available anywhere, plus “Five Days Old” and “Fast and Slow (The Rabbit and the Turtle)” from Rocketship Run!.
I don't have a TiVo, but I'm thinkin' that a lot of TiVo-in' households are going to save this one.
Review: Field Trip - Recess Monkey
It's hard to write a review about Field Trip, the recently-released fifth album from Seattle's Recess Monkey. Not because it's bad, mind you, just the opposite -- it's just that the band's run of great albums and songs has been going on for so long now that it's getting more difficult to find new and interesting ways of saying "these guys are really good -- your family should listen to 'em."
From the two-minute simple Beatles-esque "Fort" to the fanciful power-pop of "Marshmallow Farm" to the sweet "Sack Lunch" the album starts off with great pop tunes and doesn't really ever stop. "Sack Lunch" manages the odd trick of not only writing a song from the perspective of a kid's sack lunch but also making it stand as some sort of metaphor for a really powerful love. (It also does so with the Northwest Boychoir singing the phrase "sack lunch" chorally, which makes me smile every time.) On the album goes, through '80s dance of "Haven't Got a Pet Yet" and the funk of "Hot Chocolate."
Recess Monkey has always been willing to approach the "novelty song" line much more than a lot of bands, and I can't say it always pays off -- the spaghetti western of "Ice Pack" is just OK and did the world need a song (no matter how catchy) about lice ("L.I.C.E.")? (The answer is no.) But that song is sandwiched between a tender love song ("Tiny Telephone") and the best kids song Elvis Costello never wrote -- "The Teens," which is ostensibly about difficulties in counting past ten but will get parents nodding about their kids' forthcoming teenaged years. The most exciting thing to the long-term listener of the band is that expansion of world view -- figuring out how to encompass more experiences of older listeners without sacrificing their core audience of young school-aged kids.
The album is still primarily targeted at kids aged 4 through 9. You can listen to samples from the 41-minutes album here.
So, yeah, Field Trip is another excellent string of songs from Recess Monkey. If you're a fan, you'll love it. If you're not a fan, though you'll probably be a bit mystified by the John Vanderslice bit at the very end, this is as good a place to start as any, as it's their best album yet. In the end, all I can say is that these guys are really good -- your family should listen to 'em. Highly recommended.
