Songs For Dads (Slightly Updated)
Thursday, June 18, 2009 at 10:33AM Father's Day is coming up and while fathers don't seem to inspire quite as much kids music as mothers do, there are still a few entries if you're looking to put together a kid-friendly list.
You can read last year's list, but there's always new stuff to add. (Along with stuff I've forgotten, overlooked, or cruelly dismissed. Let me know what falls in those categories in the comments.) I'd note, though, that I'm trying hard to limit myself to songs about dads, specifically. Those are tough to find...
The list, after the jump:
-- "Daddy-O," off Frances England's Fascinating Creatures
-- "My Dad!," off Alex and the Kaleidoscope Band's Kaleidoscope Songs, Vol 1
-- "Cat's in the Cradle," Harry Chapin (just kidding!)
-- "I'm So Glad To Be A Dad," off Dennis Caraher's Bow Wow Baby
-- "My Daddy Is Scratchy," off Jamie Broza's My Daddy Is Scratchy
-- "My Daddy (Flies a Ship in the Sky)," off the Daddy-O! Daddy Woody Guthrie tribute
-- "Courtship of Eddie's Father"
-- "Dad" by Father Goose
-- "The Coffee Song," by Ralph's World, off At The Bottom of the Sea. (Yeah, I used it for the mom's list, but it mentions D...A...D.D.Y.)
-- "Father and Daughter," by Paul Simon (off a number of CDs, but including The Wild Thornberrys soundtrack)
-- "Don't Wipe Your Face On Your Shirt," by the Cornell Hurd Band, off the fabulous The Bottle Let Me Down comp.
-- "Me and My Dad," by David Weinstone, from his Music for Aardvarks and Other Mammals #7.
-- "Stay-At-Home Dad," by Justin Roberts (off Pop Fly).
-- "My Father Was An Accountant," by Peter Himmelman (from My Green Kite)
-- "Things," by Barenaked Ladies (from Snacktime) -- I suppose this is gender-free, but considering it's being sung by an all-guy band, I took it as a Dad-centric song
-- "Have You Looked?" and "Swingin' in Daddyland," from Lewis Franco off his Swingin' in Daddyland CD)
-- "Dad Threw the TV Out the Window," from Bill Harley (on Play It Again, among other places) -- more about TV, but still...
-- "In Belgian Rain" by Hot Peas N Butter
-- "My Dad," by Rick Charette, off of a cd titled Kids Tunes
-- "My Dad Caught Stars" by Justin Roberts (off Not Naptime)
-- "The Lawnmower Song" by John Upchurch and Mark Greenberg (off John and Mark's Children's Record -- yes, it's about mowing the lawn, but about Dad mowing the lawn. Which I do. Constantly.)
A reader also recommended Daddies Sing GoodNight: A Fathers' Collection of Sleepytime Songs, which isn't really a collection of songs about dads, but close enough...
And, a few for the adults (from commenters and e-mailers)...
-- "My Dad (My Pa)" by Nancy Sinatra
-- "Bein' a Dad" by Loudon Wainwright III
-- "The Kids Are Alright" by The Who
-- "Slow Turnin," "Your Dad Did," and "Stolen Moments" - John Hiatt
-- "Still Fighting It," Ben Folds ("You're so much like me / I'm sorry.")
-- "My Old Man" by the Smothers Brothers. ("It's a touch blue, but it was recorded in 1963 so it's pretty harmless - funny if you're "in the know". My favorite Dad song!")
-- "Hold Me My Daddy" by XTC ("A great take on the sometimes complicated father/son bond.")
A couple entries with tongues planted firmly in cheek from readers:
-- "Oh, Daddy" by Adrian Belew (though I think that's probably safe for a playlist
-- "Big Daddy" by Dewey Cox (um, way not safe for the playlist)
Reader Comments (3)
Happy Daddy's Day!