You can see a Laurie Berkner-approved video for "(I'm Gonna Eat) On Thanksgiving Day" right here (it's set to a class field trip). Or perhaps you'd like to see a bunch of kindergartners offer their rendition of Berkner's simple but elegant (if that term can be applied to a song about overeating) melody. Kids dressed as reindeer = winner.
I like this fan video, however, which only captures about 30 seconds of the song. Which, when you think about it, is probably the approach you should take tomorrow -- leave the table just a little bit hungry. (You can buy a song download here.)
I hope that all of you enjoy the Thanksgiving holiday -- probably my favorite of all the holidays -- and that you have many things to be thankful for.
Laurie Berkner - "(I'm Gonna Eat) On Thanksgiving Day" [YouTube]
Listen To This: Little Miss Ann Nodcast Podcast
I didn't get to this earlier, but Little Miss Ann's Land of Nod Nodcast Podcast is a fun little listen, featuring some of Ann's best songs from her albums Clap For Love and Music For Tots. Besides some trivia regarding Ann's hometown, Chicago, I also found out that offering cupcakes and fruit tarts as prizes in trivia contests seems to work very well. A tip for aspiring kids musicians out there...The Hoodwinked Soundtrack - Back! In! Print!
I'd be giddier about this news except for the fact that I already have the awesome soundtrack to Hoodwinked, the animated retelling of Little Red Riding Hood via Rashomon from early 2006.
But I'm giddy, nonetheless, because the soundtrack, out of print due to contractual disputes, according to director Cory Edwards, is back in print. That's right, all you quizzical commenters, you need no longer troll eBay for auctions. Instead, Amazon and iTunes (and many others) are happy to be of assistance.
The bad news, such as it is, is twofold. First, the mp3 version of the soundtrack is only available for purchase in full. Having said that, some of the songs ("Great Big World," with Anne Hathaway on vocals, or the stunning "Red is Blue," with Ben Folds) are probably worth 2 or 3 bucks apiece by themselves, so $10 for the album isn't too bad.
Second, I'm guessing that the reason the parties got their acts together and put the soundtrack back in print is that Hoodwinked Too!: Hood vs. Evil will be released in January 2010, and they probably want to cash in. I'll probably want to see that with the kids (the original, while not perfect, was pretty good), but I'm disappointed to see no mention of original soundtrack creator Todd Edwards (co-director of the movie and Cory's brother) nowhere in the credits for the new movie.
So, to sum. If you are a rockist family, don't delay. Get the album. (Because who knows when the whole thing will collapse and it goes OOP again.)Listen To This: "Holiday Hullabaloo" - Hullabaloo
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."
"Pokey" Does Not Mean Shipping Times
As many of you know, I lend my reviews to another retailer, but I've always been happy to mention The Pokey Pup as another place to get the best in music for kids and families. The Pup's owner, Bryan Townsend, has been a great supporter of kids music, participating in the Fids & Kamily Awards (you can purchase all of this year's winners), and even releasing a few albums (yay, Jellydots!). (And the number of other kids music fans who've noted these things in the past 24 hours speaks to how well he's regarded.)
Anyway, if you feel like spending your hard-earned cash on music (or the occasional DVD) for your kiddos, you could do far, far worse then heading on over there to do so (especially with, er, the free shipping).Video: "Robot Monkey Head" - John Hadfield
The only serious problem with this video, for John Hadfield's goofy, made-for-Dr.-Demento classic "Robot Monkey Head," is that it's about a month too late. Seriously, totally Halloween appropriate.
Oh, and if you're a 7-year-old boy, you'll go nuts for this video, a relatively literal translation of this song, natch.
John Hadfield - "Robot Monkey Head" [YouTube]
