Monday Morning Smile: The Ultimate "Sing" Post (feat. Laura Doherty)

My kids have been singing "Sing," the classic Joe Raposo song written for the first season of Sesame Street in 1970, for a few weeks now. It's because they've had Laura Doherty's fine album Shining Like a Star (CD Baby | iTunes) on rotation in the minivan. Which made me think that I should totally do a "Monday Morning Smile" on the song. Because while it's ostensibly (and originally) a "kids' song," it clearly has entered the American songbook as a song appropriate for all ages. ShiningLikeAStar.jpgAnd then it occurred to me, maybe I can get Laura's version in this post -- a version I really like and which I would've put into my "Top 25 Songs" list if I didn't think it wasn't a little unfair to put such a classic song in there. Luckily, she agreed to let me feature it here. So let's kick off this post with an exclusive, limited-time-only stream of "Sing" from Laura's Shining Like a Star album. [Ed.: I told you, limited-time-only.]

Video: "Tomboy in a Princess Dress" - Suzi Shelton

suzi tomboy cover.jpgSuzi Shelton's new EP Tomboy in a Princess Dress has been out for a couple weeks now, but it officially gets a big kickoff this afternoon as Shelton releases her video for the title track. Even a couple boys in the video, so it's not totally for the pre-tween girls. Suzi Shelton - "Tomboy in a Princess Dress" [Vimeo] By the way you can listen to the whole EP here. The EP was produced by Baze and his Silly Friends' Marc Bazerman and also features Little Miss Ann on "Pony Boy." Tomboy In A Princess Dress by SuziShelton

Christmas CD Reviews (2011 Edition, Part 1)

So many Christmas albums have crossed my desk (real or virtual) this year that I'm splitting my reviews up into 2 parts -- one for kids music artists or albums targeted at kids (this one) and one for the rest of the musical world. That distinction is a little fuzzy, because Christmas music, generally, is pretty family-friendly as it is. In any case, there are one or two albums here that could have been in the next installment, and there are a handful of artists in that next installment whose names are familiar to the kids music world. Because what people are looking for in Christmas music differs dramatically, these reviews are ordered in rough order of most to least "goofy." "Goofy" is merely a descriptive term, not a pejorative term -- it just helps those different people who want different things from their holiday music figure out where on the spectrum they should be reading. MamaSaidNogYouOut.JPGIt is not terribly surprising that I would lead off this list -- the "most goofy" -- with an album from The Jimmies. Ashley Albert and crew have expanded their holiday EP from last year into a full-length Mama Said Nog You Out. (The title alone should clue you in on their attitude.) It's not that they're disrespectful to the season, just that they're more interested in its absurdities. The chant-y original "Nogturne in C Minor," turning "Sleigh Ride" into lite-funk, and making the-already-not-too-reverential "All I Want for Christmas is My Two Front Teeth" into a Marcia Ball-style blues strut -- these are not the songs of someone who's going to somberly celebrate. (And with several songs celebrating non-Christmas holidays, it's appropriate for wiseacre families of every creed.) Available exclusively at Barnes and Noble, or get a free download if you order their latest album Practically Ridiculous from the Jimmies at their website. DearSantaClaus.jpgBilly Kelly is next up with Dear Santa Claus, a 5-song EP featuring the typical Billy Kelly-ian stew of wordplay and earnestness mixed with a little bit of Bart Simpson. The classic song here is "Glebells Jing!," which Kelly first featured a couple years ago and has somehow managed to rope an entire chorus to sing its mind-bending alteration of "Jingle Bells." (I think the cheer at the end of the song is one of relief.) The other tracks do a better job of celebrating the (secular) season, but none will stick in your head like "Glebells Jing!" Purchase the album at Amazon or iTunes. All proceeds will benefit Camp Victory, a Pennsylvania camp designed for kids with chronic health illness or disabilities.

Best Kids Music 2011: Top 25 Songs

Next up in my list of the best kids music of 2011 are my favorite songs. Now, seeing as I listen to literally thousands of kids songs every year, picking out 25 (less than 1%, probably) is very difficult, and if you asked me to make this list up next week I'm sure at least a couple of songs here would be replaced by others. Growing this list to 25 (last year's was 20) didn't make things any easier -- it just shifted the bubble. But these 25 (listed alphabetically by song title) are definitely among the year's best recordings. -- Bad Blue Jay - Caspar Babypants (Sing Along!) -- Bonfire - The Jimmies (Practically Ridiculous) Bonfire -- Cooperate - Sugar Free Allstars & Secret Agent 23 Skidoo -- The Crocodile Synchronised Swimming Team - Too Many Cookes (Down At The Zoo) -- Dandelion - Steve Weeks (Dandelion) -- Didn't Know What I Was Missing - Alastair Moock/Lori McKenna (Planting Seeds, These Are My Friends) -- listen here -- Freeze Tag - The Not-Its (Tag, You're It!) -- Garbage Man - Mr. Richard & The Pound Hounds (Backyard Astronauts) -- download free here -- Henry (Hudson), How Ya Gonna Find a Way? - The Deedle Deedle Dees (Strange Dees, Indeed) -- Hey, Josie - The Hipwaders (Golden State) Hey, Josie! -- Hey Pepito! - Key Wilde & Mr Clarke (Hey Pepito!) -- listen here -- I Think I’m A Bunny - Todd McHatton (Galactic Champions of Joy) -- John Kanakanaka - Dan Zanes and Friends (Little Nut Tree) (this is a solo performance below) -- Let's Dance - Lucky Diaz And The Family Jam Band (Oh Lucky Day!) -- Metaphor - The Alphabeticians (Rock) -- Mushy Berry Pie - The Thinkers (Oh Zoooty!) -- listen here -- A Piano Is Stuck In The Door - Beethoven's Wig Featuring Richard Perlmutter (Beethoven's Wig: Sing Along Piano Classics) -- Place in My Heart - Frances England (Mind of My Own) -- listen here -- Quarter Moon Shining - Chip Taylor & the Grandkids (Golden Kids Rules) -- Please Don't Move (to Another Time Zone) - Lunch Money (Original Friend) -- Skywriter - Baron Von Rumblebuss (Agreeably Loud!!) -- Soft Things - Brady Rymer/Laurie Berkner (Love Me for Who I Am) -- listen here -- Waters of March - Jamie Broza (I Want a Dog!) -- Wisconsin Poncho - Gustafer Yellowgold (Gustafer Yellowgold's Infinity Sock) -- Your Favorite Book - Recess Monkey (FLYING!)

Please Release Me: December 2011 Edition

I may be right in the middle of looking back at the best kids music of 2011, but that doesn't mean I'm also not looking forward at the releases headed our way for the rest of the month and through 2012. It's time again for an updated list of new and upcoming releases. (Last month's list is here.) Additions to the list are noted with a "++"; changes to previously-mentioned items are indicated with italics. As always, if I've listed you on here and gotten something wrong (or something not ready for primetime), let me know and I'll edit or delete it. And if you're not on here and think you should be, drop me a line, too, and I'll get you added for the next iteration. Suzi Shelton: Tomboy in a Princess Dress (Dec. 11) ++ Doctor Noize: The Return Of Phineas McBoof album and book (Dec. 19) Princess Katie and Racer Steve: Love, Cake & Monsters (December) Central Services Board of Education: Binary [tentative] (December) The Good Ms. Padgett: ... Tells The Little Red Hen and Other Stories (2012?) RhymeZwell: Robots on the Dance Floor (2012?) Big Don: Big Don's Brand New Beat (2012?) Riff Rockit: Riff Rockit (CD, DVD, Jan. 24, 2012) ++ Katherine Dines: Hunk-Ta-Bunk-Ta HITS (Jan. 31, 2012) Ellis Paul: The Hero in You (Jan. 2012) ++ The Fresh Beat Band: Soundtrack (Jan. 2012) The Bari Koral Family Rock Band: Anna And The Cupcakes (Feb. 14) ++ Putumayo Kids: Instrumental Dreamland (Feb. 28, 2012) Tim and the Space Cadets: Anthems for Adventure (Feb. 2012) ++ Bill Harley: High Dives and Other Things That Could Have Happened (Feb. 2012) Randy Kaplan: Mr. Diddie Wah Diddie (2012) Mo Phillips: Title TBA (March 12, 2012) Recess Music: La Bella Stella (March 27, 2012) Gustafer Yellowgold: Gustafer Yellowgold’s Year in The Day (April 3, 2012) Caspar Babypants: HOT DOG! (April 17, 2012) Orange Sherbet: Delicious (May 1, 2012) ++ Okee Dokee Brothers: Mississippi River CD/DVD (May 2012) Hope Harris: Picasso, That's Who (spring 2012) ++ The Funky Mamas and Friends: Pickin’ In The Garden (spring 2012) ++ Elena Moon Park: Rabbit Days and Dumplings (spring 2012) The Dirty Sock Funtime Band: Dirty Socks Come Clean (June 2012) Charity and the JAMband: Family Values (July 3, 2012) Andy Z: The Grand Scream of Things (Halloween 2012) [produced by Tor Hyams] Other expected 2012 albums: Ah-Choo, Peter Apel, Ratboy, Jr., Sugar Free Allstars, Renee & Jeremy, Farmer Jason duets album, The Bramble Jam, Secret Agent 23 Skidoo (Make Believers), Bobby Susser (Wo), Eric Herman (2 albums: one music, one comedy skits), Rockabye Baby for the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Keith Munslow (2 albums: one solo, one with Bill Harley ++), Wayne Potash ++, Alex and the Kaleidoscope Band ++, Lori Henriques ++, Shine and the Moonbeams ++

Best Kids Music 2011: Top 10 Album Packages

It was a little harder this year picking out 10 favorite album packages in my review of the best kids music of 2011. Not because design is getting worse, but because I am slowly entering the 21st century when it comes to reviewing music. Which means accepting electronic versions of albums in lieu of the physical CD. Now this isn't a case of asking you kids to get off my damn lawn. Really, I'm fine with it -- while I prefer the physical product (if only because I tend to listen to music sooner that way), I understand why mp3s are easier, especially for the artist. And while receiving the slim jackets that just consist of the front and back cover and the CD mean I don't get all of the lovely album art or have lyrics handy when listening, when you have something like 1,000 or CDs in boxes, there is a certain allure in having those slim packages. And it should be noted that the primary focus, of course, is the music encoded in the mp3s or tucked away in those slim packages. Caspar Babypants CDs (which do feature cute cover art from Kate Endle) come in slim packages -- they could come wrapped in newspapers and I'd be overjoyed to get them to listen to the music inside. But an attractive package can sometimes help break down the barriers to listening to kids music for people new to the genre who think that it's still cheap and chintzy. This list is also a little bit like Wheel of Fortune. (Hunh?) Remember how on the final bonus round puzzle the finalist used to get to choose a few letters which (if present) would be turned by Vanna? Yeah, well everybody ended up picking "E" and "T" and "S" and other common letters. So now they automatically show those letters (along with "R," "N," and "L") and the finalist picks other letters. I sort of feel like Smithsonian Folkways and Putumayo and Dan Zanes are sort of like the "E" and "T" and "S" of album packaging -- you're always going to get quality work for them. I'd probably be better off just eliminating them from consideration and picking, say, a Top 5. Maybe next year. Anyway, with the caveat that it feels weird not putting Dan Zanes or Putumayo on this list (I'm sure they were lovely as always, but we received "slim" packages this time around not that I'm in any way complaining, I swear), here are my 10 favorite kids music album packages of 2011, listed in alphabetical order. OutsideMyDoor.jpgLori Henriques Outside My Door It's probably unfair that Henriques' brother is Joel Henriques, proprietor of the most excellent Made By Joel website, which shares arts and crafts projects for children. But, it's important to take advantage of the talents you have in your midst, and the packaging features cute line drawings, the lyrics (important for Henriques' wordy songs), and recycled paper. That looks lovely... just as the rest of these disks do...