I was a little sad to hear about Tim and the Space Cadets, because the founding members, Tim Kubart and Matt Puckett, were until recently members of the awesome Jimmies.
"Until recently?" What? Nooooooo!!!! Things must never change!!!!
But, yes, they've parted ways with Ashley's project to form this new band, which has a new EP out, The Greatest Party Ever. While you can listen to 3 of the songs from the EP at their website, I encourage you to first watch this video, which is, like, the best kids video since, er, the last Jimmies video. A pretty good song, and an awesome video. Perhaps change is good.
Tim and the Space Cadets - "Superhero" [YouTube]
Art and Commerce: Frances England and the Bisquick Blueberry Pancakes Ad
One of the most winning songs off Frances England's debut disk Fascinating Creatures was "Blueberry Pancakes," whose chorus features England singing "blueberry paa-aaaaaaaan-cakes." (If you've heard it, you'll know I've transcribed that chorus accurately.) It was an obvious television ad waiting to be made, though it wasn't written with that in mind.
Well, Bisquick's ad agency finally got a listen, and drafted the tune for use in a Bisquick television ad. So I asked Frances a few questions about how the TV ad came about, which she's answered below.
As for the unasked question -- what does the ad look like? -- well, it's a live-action video depicting a family making, well, blueberry pancakes. Pretty simple, actually. Can't show it to you, though, as England reports that there are no internet rights associated with showing the video. (Tell you what, play 15 seconds of the song while your family makes pancakes this Saturday, and light and edit well. There you go.)
Zooglobble: "Blueberry Pancakes" seemed like an obvious fit for a pancake ad from the first time I heard -- how was the initial contact made?
Frances England: They contacted me. Apparently, they had already started production on the commercial when someone heard my song and they ended up kind of synchronizing their footage to the song.Interview: Jim Cosgrove (Mr. Stinky Feet) on Crowdfunding
A couple days ago, Jim "Mr. Stinky Feet" Cosgrove sent out his latest newsletter with a most interesting proposition -- please help fund his next CD:As some of you may know, the landscape of the music industry has changed dramatically over the past five years. As the giant labels have faltered or collapsed with the rapid decline of retail album sales, independent artists have emerged as the leaders of the changing tide. Where some see a shriveled industry on life support, I see opportunity and challenge. And I love challenges. So, I'm asking you to join me as we embark on an adventure into new territory. I have a goal of raising enough money to pay for outstanding musicians, promotion, production, and a Grammy-nominated producer for my new record. Please help me make this dream a reality. You've already been a big part of my success, so please consider taking part in the production of this project. You'd buy the new CD anyway, right? So, consider this a pre-purchase plan.His specific funding levels start at $20 (get an autographed copy of the album), move up to $50 (autographed CD, t-shirt, and bonus CD), and go up from there -- my favorite title is the $150 "Now You're Just Showing Off". (Go here for the complete list and/or to make a contribution.) While this sort of "crowdfunding" has been around for awhile (I wasn't the only one for whom Kickstarter came immediately to mind), it's the first time it's been explicitly used in the kids music scene. (The closest Kickstarter project was this successful project which sought funding to make a soundtrack by a tween indie rock band to accompany a tween indie rock novel.) So when I got the newsletter I immediately shot off some questions to Jim, whose answers I think are pretty much required reading for artists (and probably family music fans in general), regardless of whether or not they want to follow Cosgrove on this particular path. Zooglobble: Aside from the general upheaval in the music industry, what specifically led you to crowdfund your next CD? Jim Cosgrove: Challenging times call for creative solutions. So, rather than putting the whole thing on credit, we looked at other models and found that many bands in other genres have been successful in getting their fans directly involved. I meet parents all the time who thank me for my music and for the fun we bring to families, and they ask me if there is anything they can do to help. Now, I'm calling in those offers. And I really think people want to help and like to help and want to be part of something that is fun and positive. Is there a particular dollar amount you have in mind?
Concert Recap: Doug Snyder (Phoenix, February 2010)
Because of the local nature of the show, I didn't bother letting you national readers know about Doug Snyder's trip to Phoenix to play some shows here in the Valley of the Sun. Wouldn't want you to get all jealous and leave in a huff, of course. But play he did, returning to the Children's Museum of Phoenix and making his first appearance at the Church of the Beatitudes Not Just for Kids concert series.
At Sunday's show at the NJFK series, Doug played a wide range of his Jellydots tunes, and I nicely spaced out my video coverage to capture 'em all... (See, I told you not to leave in a huff.) This one's from the forthcoming Jelly Jukebox disk. (Sorry, though, I didn't capture his take on the Buggles' "Video Killed the Radio Star," nor our excellent "OH-wah-OH"s pre-chorus.)
Doug Snyder (The Jellydots) - "O Bounty" (Live) [YouTube]
Three more videos after the jump, including a rare Jellydots song (at least, live)...Yo Gabba Gabba Season Three Set for March 8
Photo credit: Ben Clark/Nickelodeon
That's right, everybody's favorite Super Bowl advertising star and his pals will return on March 8 for the long-awaited new season of "I can't believe that person agreed to be on the show" and toddler life lessons on the Nickelodeon show Yo Gabba Gabba!. The Season Three premiere "Circus" will feature "Weird Al" Yankovic playing a circus ringmaster, Sarah Silverman teaching the -- I am not making this up -- "Time to Mime" Dancey Dance, and Black Kids singing "I'm Not Going to Teach Your Boyfriend How to Brush Their Teeth." (OK, kidding, sort of.)
Beyond Weird Al, Sarah, and Black Kids, this season will feature appearances from (in no particular order) Jack McBrayer, Paul Scheer, Weezer, Anthony Bourdain, Of Montreal, Mos Def, Devo, The Aquabats, Mark Mothersbaugh, Biz Markie Travis Barker, Erykah Badu, Band of Horses, Blitzen Trapper, Chairlift, Rob Dyrdek, The Faint, Flaming Lips, The Killers, Solange Knowles, Mix Master Mike, Angela Kinsey, The Sounds, Taking Back Sunday, Marissa Jaret Winokur, Charlyne Yi and John Francis Daley, Samm Levine and Martin Starr from "Freaks and Greeks."
Whew.
Here's the premiere week schedule...Kids Radio Expands By One (or Three)
Thought I'd share not one but three new radio stations for kids music, from Kids Public Radio. The streams have been in beta for some time now, but it's ready for prime time, with three channels for your (kids') listening pleasure -- Lullaby, Jabberwocky (stories), and Pipsqueaks (kids sing-alongs). The latter two feature lots of kids voices, so I think a lot of kids'll kinda dig that. (Those really are niches not yet filled by a lot of other radio shows.) There's even a super-brief bit featuring Greasy Kid Stuff (listen here). Good stuff.
