Review: Wiggleworms Love You - Old Town School of Folk Music

In the mid-80s, the writer/director John Hughes produced Pretty in Pink, in which the less-than-upper-middle-class main character (played by Molly Ringwald, natch) has to decide romantically between her best friend Ducky and a boy from the "right side of the tracks." To many viewers' great chagrin -- how could you not pick Ducky! -- she picks the golden boy. A few years later, Hughes basically rewrote Pink as Some Kind of Wonderful and reversed the ending, with the main character picking his from-the-wrong-side-of-the-tracks best friend as his romantic partner. It's a much more satisfying ending.

What does this have to do with Wiggleworms Love You, the 2005 album from the Old Town School of Folk Music. OK, aside from the fact that both Hughes and the Old Town School are associated with Chicago. Well, this new album is sort of like the "golden boy" character with all the advantages compared to the poor original, Songs For Wiggleworms. The first album sounded like it was recorded in an actual Old Town classroom, with time constraints reminiscent of parent-teacher conferences. ("I'm sorry, it's 6:45, it's time for the Sweeneys.") Very few of the songs had anything more than voice and acoustic guitar.

This new album is greatly expanded sonically. It sounds much better, and the instrumentation is, on some tracks, surprisingly full. Percussion, bass, stringed instruments of all kinds (banjo, mandolin, fiddle) -- heck, there's an accordion on seven tracks. It sounds much more like a "folk music" album. (All of this may be the result of the fact that an honest-to-goodness record company, Bloodshot Records, released the CD.)

So why wouldn't you want this CD? Well, you would... if you already had Songs For Wiggleworms. The problem is that they already got most of the great tunes on the first CD. There are fewer of the great "oh, I'm gonna sing that to my young'uns" songs. There are maybe 12-15 songs that meet that criteria on the CD, or about 1/3 of the 42 songs on the album. The other songs are obscure to varying degrees, usually dependent on how familiar you are with the early Raffi oeuvre. (I can't believe I just used the phrase "Raffi oeuvre.") That's not to say that there aren't some great tracks on the album -- "If I Was a Bird," the meta-rave-up "Mama Don't Allow," and the tailfeather-shaking "Looby Loo" are three standouts. But unlike the first CD, on which the listener could sing virtually every song, many without the CD, this CD may be great to listen to but isn't necessarily as user-friendly for taking that out into the daily world with your child.

This sounds like a mixed review, but it's really not. It's just that I think the first album's ragged charm is just so perfect for its intended use that this more polished sequel slightly disappoints. If you already have Songs, I recommend Wiggleworms Love You wholeheartedly. If you don't, I think the first album is the better starting point. The CD is for children aged 0 through 6 and is available through the links above, plus the usual online suspects.

Review: Baloney Cake - Uncle Moondog

Baloney Cake (2005) is the second album from Uncle Moondog, the animated alter ego of California-based musician Mike McManus. Those of you hoping for the hard edge of another animated band, the Gorillaz, will be disappointed. Moondog is, er, a dog with a bunch of (mostly animal) friends with a vocal style that reminds me most of Wolfman Jack.

The album consists of a wide range of children's pop with a particular predilection for beach-related melodies and lyrics ("In Hawaii," "Surfin' School"). Now, I can't say I was super-enthused by the album. Some of that is because I didn't like the Moondog voice, which I realize is a personal choice -- others may think it's cool. Some of that is because I really didn't like "Baloney Cake," which is exactly about what the title says it's about and makes me a wee bit nauseous thinking about it. And one of Moondog's friends has a high-pitched electronic voice that drives me nuts.

What's good about the CD? Well, it's produced well, and when it stays away from cheesy kids' music touches (whah, whah, whah, WHAH) the songs have a certain appeal. The melodies are usually appealing. And McManus has a sly sense of humor. For example, in "Baloney Cake" he realizes that it is kind of a disgusting concept, and the song addresses that thought. (As does an aside in "Surfin' School.) And in "The Walrus Waltz," he not only rhymes "waltz" with "small-tz," he notes the silliness of doing so. (I'm also pretty sure that "Elvis" makes an appearance.) There's enough there that I'd like to see McManus give it a go without the Uncle Moondog alter ego -- I'd probably enjoy it more.

While I'm not a huge fan of the album, those who like Beach Boys-like melodies or want a coastal-themed album (and can handle people singing in a style different than a "normal" singing voice) may want to give it a shot. It's probably best for kids aged 3 through 6. It's available through his website. (Too bad there's nothing as catchy as the Gorillaz' "Feel Good Inc.")

Review: The Corner Grocery Store - Raffi

I think with kids' artists there's no such thing as a sophomore slump. There are plenty of artists whose second albums were just as good, if not better, than their kids' debuts. But something happens on album #3 -- delusions of grandeur, perhaps, or just boredom with the formulas -- it's good, but not as good as album #s 1 and 2. Victims of the slump include Ralph's World, Laurie Berkner, and, well, Raffi.

Don't get me wrong, The Corner Grocery Store, Raffi's 1979 album, is pretty good. It has some nice renditions of some traditional songs, including "Frere Jacques" and a very simple but pretty "Swing Low Sweet Chariot." For the most part, the instrumentation consists of the fairly simple arrangements of piano, guitar, and occasional backing band found on his first two CDs.

But there's something missing overall. Perhaps it's the lack of a really good Raffi original, like "Peanut Butter Sandwich" or "Oh Me Oh My." Perhaps it's "Anansi," which jettisons all the simple arrangements for something approaching cheesy instrumentation. I don't know. It's hard for me to put a finger on, but the whole thing just isn't quite as appealing to me. Still, for those you thinking that covering Leadbelly or Huddie Ledbetter or Woody Guthrie on children's music albums is a newfound trend, Raffi did them all (Ledbetter twice) on this CD. (He does add lyrics to some of them, so perhaps it's not quite so adventurous.)

The album is best for children ages 2 through 6. I recommend the CD, though not as highly as Singable Songs For The Very Young or More Singable Songs. You can find the three CDs packaged together (slightly cheaper) as The Singable Songs Collection. Available at the usual suspects.

Review: Rocket Ship Beach - Dan Zanes and Friends

Rocket Ship Beach was the first Dan Zanes album I ever heard. This was maybe 4 years ago or so. I liked it, but it didn't quite grab me at the time the way his 3 subsequent albums did. In going back to the album for the purposes of this review, I tried to figure out why.

Let's start out with the stuff I liked then, and still do. You wouldn't think that "Bushel and a Peck" from the Broadway musical "Guys and Dolls" would be a great fit for a chorus of elementary school children (whom I generally dislike hearing on record), but they sound great in the song. It's 180 degrees different from the Olive Oyl-stylings of Faith Prince in the Broadway revival from a few years ago, but lots of fun. My other favorite track on the record is Suzanne Vega's take on the "Erie Canal," which is... well, I don't want to say "eerie" (that would be too easy), but Vega's voice and Zanes' lap steel guitar blend together in a wonderful duet.

The rest of the album is... maybe it's just too folk- and bluegrass-based for an entire album for my tastes. Yes, Father Goose and the Sandy Girls make their appearances, as does Barbara Brousal, but the overall feel of the album is definitely more "folk festival" than the other Zanes and Friends CDs. Maybe part of that is that there's only one Zanes original ("Hello," on which Brousal duets). In any case, the album is less diverse musically (if no less technically and musically accomplished).

Don't get me wrong, I like the CD and I'm glad to have it in my collection, but I guess unless you're a big folk music fan, I would recommend one of Zanes' other CDs (probably "House Party") as an introduction to his stuff. The CD is best for kids ages 3 through 7 or 8, though like all of Zanes' work, it's definitely appropriate for people of all ages. Zanes' music is available in most stores with a children's music section. Recommended.

Review: Bottle of Sunshine - Milkshake

Children's artists can walk a fine line between sweet and sappy. Childhood is full of wonder, and trying to convey that can lead musicians into mushy-headedness.

For the most part, Milkshake avoids the Head of Mushy on their second album, Bottle of Sunshine. Milkshake, a duo from Baltimore, has two strong assets -- the sweet vocals of Lisa Mathews and the melodic and occasionally crunchy guitars of Mikel Gehl. Backed by a full band, Bottle contains a broad variety of children's pop, uptempo and down-, that does a good job of showcasing those assets.

The best songs on the album are the ones that stay away from mushiness. "Woo-woo" is a fun pop song leavened with humor about playing underwater ("If you find lost treasure on the ocean floor / please bring it back up to me.") "Boom Boom" is a country-tinged tune about dancing. And while "Book of Dreams" is a sweet pop song, elegantly produced, "Sleepytown" is a simple album-closer. (Is there some sort of union rule requiring closing a kids' music album with a slow, sleep-related song? Just wondering out loud here.)

As someone whose tolerance for mushy is perhaps lower than many, some tunes don't work as well for me. While I liked "Book of Dreams," "One Wish" reached too hard for the sense of wonder for my tastes and was fairly bland. And while I'm not against namechecking one's own band in song, which Milkshake does twice here, it has to be really catchy (paging Morningwood to the review, paging Morningwood to the review), which isn't quite the case here. (Still, I could see those two songs being fun for preschoolers in concert.)

The album is best for kids age 3 through 7. It's available at the usual online suspects. While I recommend the album, if you like me have a low tolerance for mushy, you may want to listen to some samples online before committing to the CD.