I know that Renee and Jeremy aren't the first family musicians to do the "music lessons via YouTube" thing (hi, Cathy Fink & Marcy Marxer!), but their instruction on the oh-so-sweet "Night Mantra" is short and to the point. (Need lyrics or to hear the tune? Go here.)
Wonder if that translates to the ukulele?
Renee & Jeremy - "Night Mantra (How To)" [YouTube]
Listen To This: "Zora" (Live) - The Deedle Deedle Dees
I mentioned Lloyd Miller's thoughts on the "business" of kids music yesterday, but didn't want to leave it there, especially when there's new Deedle Deedle Dees music out there to listen to.
One of the interesting things the Dees did this spring was put on a monthly variety show at Brooklyn's famed Knitting Factory. It wrapped up a couple weeks ago with a show inspired by famed afrobeat musician Fela Kuti. (They performed Kuti's "Zombie" with preschoolers and also did an afrobeat original called "No Animal," which you can watch after the jump.) They also performed a new song called "Zora," inspired, you will not be surprised to hear, by author Zora Neale Hurston. Short and insistent, you'll be hearing this song later this summer, I can almost guarantee it...
The Deedle Deedle Dees - "Zora" [YouTube]
Two more new songs (including that afrobeat one) after the jump...
Lloyd Miller, Small Businessman
A few months back, I asked "Is kids music recession-proof?" (The answer: no, not entirely.)
Well, someone else has asked that question, and they have a video camera and an editor, too. More importantly, the folks at Film@11.tv asked Lloyd Miller from the Deedle Deedle Dees to talk about his business. It's odd -- I tend not to think about musicians as businessmen and women, even though we just talked about it at Kindiefest. But they are, of course, and Miller has a good grasp on what's stayed steady (the big gigs) and what hasn't (the birthday parties).
And, near the very end, he also provides an origin story for the band's name. Still can't tell if he's joking.
There's One More Austin Kiddie Limits 2010 Artist...

88 Lines For 44 Kids Musicians
My last Kindiefest post, I promise.
I'd written the lines below as a spoof of the New Wave hit by the The Nails, "88 Lines for 44 Women," and had intended the spoof to be for the website. But for some reason I thought it might be appropriate for Kindiefest and the many multitudes of kids musicians gathered. The poobahs in charge agreed, and so that's how I came to be standing up on stage on Saturday night in between sets, iPod in hand, reading off 88 lines while Tor Hyams jammed on keys in the background.
Hyams didn't know the original song (see a live version here) well enough to play it, so instead we turned it into a beat poetry/spoken word/jazz thing. I'm a poor judge of how it turned out, but a couple other notes:
1) I like speaking in public, and I have no problem playing on stage in a quartet or an orchestra. But trying to be a lead singer and command an audience's attention is a hard, hard task. The whole experience for me was useful just to have that concept reinforced.
2) I was completely -- I mean totally -- oblivious to Anand Nayak from Rani Arbo and daisy mayhem joining in with some guitar jamming as they prepped for their showcase set, so focused was I on my lyrics. I was surprised later when people told me they joined in.
So clearly rock superstar is not in my immediate future. For visual proof, see below (thanks, Jeff!). But thanks to Tor, Bill, and Stephanie for letting me join in the fun.
And here are all the full lyrics
Austin Kiddie Limits 2010 Lineup Announced (Along With, Er, the Rest of Austin City Limits Fest)
