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If you are an artist with a cd you'd like me to
review, mail your submissions to:
Tina Smith, P.O. Box 3069, Pinedale, CA 93650
Or
email me with any questions.
Please note: I only review cds I like and would
recommend.
Steve Weeks--Alphabet Songs, Vol. 1
I recently received this one in the mail, sent to me by
Steve to review. (I get a lot of children's music cds
free this way, but very few of them make it to my review
list...I'm really picky, lol!) OH MY GOSH!!! This cd is
FANTASTIC!! Steve is SOOOO creative with his
songs...most of which are story-songs with a fantastic
repeating chorus that encourages kiddos to join in. He
uses alliteration in each song, helping to enforce the
letter of the song. My husband even loves some of the
songs on this cd, and he usually hates kid music, lol!
Another thing I like about this cd is that each song
is so very very different! There is so much variety in
this cd and the songs are so catchy, I find myself
singing the choruses even when they are not on...caught
my husband singing "Fred the Fish" chorus to my daughter
the other day...a big thing if you knew my husband! :)
An additional benefit to these songs it that I think
when my daughter is a little older, this might also help
her learn the sounds of the letters! Anyway, I can't
wait to hear the rest of this series! Hope he publishes
more soon!
Visit Steve's website and hear clips of his songs!
Steve Weeks--Alphabet Songs, Vol. 2
Another GREAT CD by Steve Weeks! Just as great as the
first!! We listen to both all the time!! Can't wait for
the next one to complete our alphabet songs collection!
Steve Weeks--Alphabet Songs, Vol 3
I'm excited to say that
volume 3 of Steve Weeks' alphabet songs collection
is just as great as the other 2!! This cd really
rounds off the collection nicely, and provides the
rest of the alphabet...so now you can get all 3 cds
and have fun songs to learn the entire alphabet
with! I really cannot say enough about Steve's
music...the stories and music are just beyond
awesome!!!
Jennifer Gasoi--Songs
for You
Oh my, I can't believe I didn't review this
awesome cd yet! I'm SO sorry Jennifer! This is just
a wonderful wonderful cd!! I received it for review
from Jennifer and I just LOVE listening to it!
Jennifer has a lovely voice and such fun songs! I
especially love the song "L-L-Lemons" which even my
1yr old enjoys trying to sing! It only has the names
of fruits in it but is such a catchy tune and easy to
pick up that we all really enjoy singing along to it
in the car! Well, of course, we sing along to all
the songs...that one is just our favorite! :)
This cd doesn't have a bad song on it! The entire
thing keeps me and my kiddos be-bopping and singing
along! Very well written, very well performed...YA GOTTA GET A COPY OF THIS! :)
Visit Jennifer's website for more info on her.
Silly
Sammy Sings...Wee Rock!
This is another cd I was sent for review...This
one is really fun! Very well done, I think! My
favorite is the "Bubbles" song...My daughter adores
"Harry the Tickle Monster" and has asked for it over
and over again. I am always pleasantly surprised
when I really like a new cd like this because I get
sooo many sent to me and only a few do I really
like. But mark this one up there as a keeper! It's
really cute! Everyone should check it out! :)
Visit their website for more info on Wee Rock!
Amy
Lauren--Close
Your Eyes
This is a piano lullaby
cd that is just sooooooooo lovely! This was given to
me for review and within the first 5 seconds I fell
in love with its beauty. Its just very simply a cd
full of lovely, soft piano music. No vocals, just
piano. With over an hour of wonderfully quiet,
soothing music, this is the perfect cd for putting
your little ones to sleep! HIGHLY recommended for
rest time music! :)
Visit Amy's website.
John
Lithgow--The
Sunny Side of the Street
I recently received this cd for review from
John's marketing coordinator and I have to say WOW!!
I was a fan of John's before, so I already expected
this to be good...but was just really impressed with
how different this cd is compared to the other one I
have, "Singing
in the Bathtub." (He has another cd as well,
Farkle & Friends, that I haven't yet heard, but
I expect to be just as excellent as the other two.)
I love the other cd, but it's always refreshing to
find an artist that has 2 very different sounding
cds that are every bit as good as the other!
Most of
the songs on this cd sound like they are right out
of an old black & white movie. Something in the era
of Fred Astaire/Ginger Rogers. And it seems that was
his point. I really like my children to be exposed
to a variety of kinds of musical genres and eras so
this cd really very much pleased me in that sense!
Not only that, but I hadn't realized that I myself
enjoyed this kind of music until now! After
listening to this cd, I've decided to go in search
of more music from this era, especially those famous
crooners Bing Crosby and Frank Sinatra (I was
already a fan of theirs, I had simply forgotten,
entrenched in kid music as I have been
lately)...including getting some old black and white
musicals.
The
title song makes me dance in my seat (we usually
listen in the car) and feel like life is a-ok...Same
with "Pick Yourself Up." My daughter can't listen to
"The Laughing Policeman" enough times (it makes us
laugh!) and "Getting to Know You" makes me
have fond memories of watching "The King and I" as a
child...and make a mental note to check it out from
the library soon to show my daughter! (We'll fast
forward some parts that wouldn't be appropriate for
a 5year old...)
There
are some other songs on this cd that sound more like
the kids music on Singing in the Bathtub (and just
as good!), but most of the songs are big band style
music made to appeal to modern children...altering
some of the lyrics to be appropriate to
children...very very neat!
I HIGHLY
recommend this cd! There's a feel to it that I have
yet to find in any other kids cd...check it out! And
while you're at it......get this one too:
John
Lithgow--Singing
in the Bathtub
I totally thought that I
had reviewed this cd before, but I see I
haven't...weird.
I've
been a huge fan of John Lithgow's since I stumbled
upon this cd at the library a couple years ago...I
had no idea he did kids music. Yes, that's the goofy
guy from the TV show "Third Rock From the Sun", and
further back--the preacher father on
"Footloose"....and so much more I can't name them
all.
With the
exception of one song ("Triplets", which I find a
little disturbing...) I adore every song on this cd!
I am particularly fond of
"No
One Loves You Any Better Than Your M-O-Double-M-Y"
(which I just call "The Mommy Dance")...this song is
so sweet and fun it sometimes makes me tear up when
I sing/dance to it with my children...I used to use
it as a closing circle song awhile back when I did a
Mommy & Me class
in my home...I had the mommies dance to it with
their babies...so fun!
The
Hippopotamous Song and Ya Gotta Have Skin make me
just laugh out loud...and the Gnu Song (Ga-noo)...I
really can't pick a favorite...they're all so
fun...and fun to share with children! The cd is well
worth buying!
Terri
Hendrix--Celebrate
the Difference
I recently got Terri's cd from her and WOW! We
now love to "get our goat on" here in this house!!
Even the baby be-bops to Terri's music! I really
love the fun beat that her songs have! I now have to
go find the rest of Terri's music because I love her
kids' cd so much!!! I listen to her music even if
the kids aren't around, I love this album that much!
:) Awesome stuff!
Darrell House--Makes
Me Feel Like Singing
Darrell sent me both his cds to review and there
is just something about his voice that I really
like! There's a warm, loving feel to it. He reminds
me of Burl Ives...that warm friendly feeling, ya
know? Its a deep, gravely, fun voice...and he sings
his songs in a way that I can tell he's smiling
while he's singing. I really enjoy listening to his
music! On this cd I really like the songs "Pic-a-Nic",
"Skootelyottelydoodeleywoo" best.
Check
out Darrell's website
here.
Darrell House--Underneath
the Cushions on the Couch
Another great cd by
Darrell! My 5yr old really loves the title song to
this album, and also "Hugn'Snuggle" since she has a
stuffed monkey that is her favorite. :) I
really like the folksy feel of Darrell's songs...As
I listen to "Let's Get Back to Nature", I can
picture him on stage with the rest of the Folk
singers on a recent folk music special I saw on pbs.
:) Good song! Other favorites of mine are
"When I Close my Eyes" and of course "Ice Cream for
Lunch." This is another great album by a fun
children's musician! I recommend checking it out!
Monty Harper--The Great Green Squishy Mean Concert
CD
This is another cd sent to me to review and we loved
it! Its a lot of fun, very silly, and lots of catchy
songs! Great for listening to in the car! We
especially like "Pop up, Sit Down", "Silly Song",
and "Love this Baby"...too fun! All the songs are
originals, and you are sure to find some new
favorites that both you and your children will love!
Really a wonderful find! I am glad Monty asked me to
review it! Its one of those cds that I can handle
over and over again because I like the music too!
And of course I always sing along! :) Sounds like
concerts with Monty are a hoot!
Mike Whitla--Early-Morning Knee-Slappin Tunes
This cd was given to me for review by the artist
recently and I immediately fell in love with it from the
beginning of the first song! There are some original
songs and some redone songs on there, so there is new
mixed in with the old. And some really great renditions
of some old familiar tunes! Also, some fantastic songs
for getting the little ones moving their bodies! Our
favorite is definitely the first song, "Hands Together,
Hands Apart", so simple and yet so cute and fun!! I also
just really like the sound of Mike's music...I can
listen to this even if my daughter isn't in the car! Fun
to sing along to and even to just listen!
For more info on Mike’s cds, and to hear clips of his
songs, visit:
This Webpage
Googol Power presents Multiplication Vacation
This was another cd sent to me for review...and this one
took me a little while to decide if I liked it or not.
My daughter, on the other hand, fell immediately in love
with it. This cd is very well produced...Even my husband
agreed, and he works for a video/audio production
company and knows what a good music cd sounds like! The
songs are very catchy in their tune even if they don't
have repeating choruses. My not-quite-4yr-old likes to
dance to the songs. She has no need or ability yet to
start learning the times tables, but I am curious to see
how she picks them up with the use of this cd later on.
The story that is interwoven between the songs is
captivating and cute. A little corny, but kids like
corny, so it works. :) This is definitely a cd made with
kids' tastes in mind. Now the thing I had mixed feelings
about is that the songs are just creative ways to drill
the times tables into the kiddos' heads. But then I
realized that's the way you learn them! I am against
rote learning, but for multiplication tables, I just
don't know of any other way...so I'm thinking this cd
might be a really neat way to learn what otherwise might
be boring. Anyway this cd really grew on me and now I
can honestly recommend it...Catchy songs, fun
story...Check it out! And I'm looking forward to hearing
from people with older kids to see if it really helps
with learning the times tables!
Check out the Googol Kids website for their whole
line of products and other fun stuff! You can hear clips
of their music there as well!
And
here's another site by the same people.
Sharon, Lois & Bram--Elephant Show
This one is from the old Nickelodeon show "The Elephant
Show"...I don't think its on anymore? I don't know, I
never actually saw it and I don't have cable...anyway,
Sharon, Lois and Bram are really great kids musicians
and have been around awhile...I saw them in concert when
I was a teenager and went to help the lady I babysat
with her 3 kids. Fun concert! Fun music! This album has
my favorite version on "Ten in the Bed"...you gotta hear
it to understand. Its so fun! This music is a little
fancy to be totally singable for little ones, but fun
for car trips and to dance to. Some of them have
movements too, which is fun. I really like their
versions of some of the popular songs they sing.
Putumayo--World Playground
LOVE this cd!!! Music from around the world for
children! Sung in all different languages. We've
listened to this one in the car so many times I'm
surprised it hasn't worn out! This is a great way to
expose your children to other languags and ethnicities
of music. Very catchy songs...great for tapping your
toes and clapping your hands, even if you can't sing
along because you can't wrap your tongue around swahili.
LOL.
Veggie Tunes 2
I actually have not yet heard Veggie Tunes 1, sorry! :)
But this one is very good! This was my first exposure to
Veggie Tales...which are Christian computer generated
vegetable characters. Starring Bob the Tomato and Larry
the Cucumber, these guys are just hysterical!! Even
non-Christians can enjoy these guys! Many of these songs
are religious based...but not too preachy. Most anything
Veggie Tales is pretty good about not being too
preachy...every once in awhile they get a little too
much (their newer stuff seems to be getting more in that
direction, so I like the older stuff better,
personally), but for the most part its very tolerable
and enforces basic family values that we all want for
our kids--honesty, loyalty, kindness, trustworthiness,
selflessness, etc. They do quote scriptures and they do
refer to Bible stories, just to warn those who would
want to be warned of this. But all in all, from this
non-Christian's perspective, they are pretty cool
vegetables! And the songs are just too fun to pass up!
Especially the "Silly Songs with Larry", which are
always not at all religious. Songs like "I Love My Lips"
and "The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything" will have you
rolling! The writers are just brilliant!
Check out the
Veggie
Tales website!
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