KidVid Tournament 2007 Quarterfinals: "Willy Was A Whale" (1) vs. "Toenail Moon" (3)

The third quarterfinal matchups sees "Willy Was A Whale" from Justin Roberts, the #1 seed in the Woody Guthrie Region against "Toenail Moon" - Wee Hairy Beasties, the #3 seed.

Vote in the comments below. Rules: Video with most votes wins. One vote per e-mail address, please. Votes due by Tuesday 11 PM-ish East Coast time.

"Willy Was A Whale" - Justin Roberts

"Toenail Moon" - Wee Hairy Beasties

KidVid Tournament 2007: "Willy Was A Whale" (1) vs. "Polar Bear" (4)

Final day of first-round competition and final matchup pits "Willy Was A Whale" from Justin Roberts, the #1 seed in the Woody Guthrie Region against "Polar Bear" from The Quiet Two, the #4 seed.

Vote in the comments below. Rules: Video with most votes wins. One vote per e-mail address, please. Votes due by Wednesday 9 PM-ish East Coast time.

"Willy Was A Whale" - Justin Roberts

Watch the video on YouTube here.

"Polar Bear" - The Quiet Two

To view this video, head to Jack's Big Music Show player and click on the right arrow. Roll over the picture of a kid in a polar bear costume.

Review: Not Naptime - Justin Roberts

Not Naptime, the title of the 2003 album from Chicago-based Justin Roberts is somewhat misleading. This album, Roberts' third for kids, is probably his most down-tempo, the one most I'd most likely play, well, not at naptime, but at least at quiet time.

To be honest, I've always thought Roberts' rave-ups and alt-pop were his best tunes -- think "Yellow Bus," "Our Imaginary Rhino," or "Day Camp." And so I think the best tracks here are similar -- the furiously played "D-O-G," or "Billy the Bully," an alt-poppy story-song about taking on bullies with a tension-filled bridge, released with a chorus of "one-by-one-by-one-by-one." The gentler songs, sometimes they work (the now slightly anachronistic "Nine Planets") and some are just OK ("Nightlight"). I should note, however, that Roberts is one of the best at writing the album-closing slow song that just about every kids' album seems to have. Here, he's so good that he's written two fine closers, "Dad Caught Stars" and "Last Night the Moon was Full."

With a couple of songs about school on the disk, the target audience here is probably ages 4 through 8. You can hear some samples here (or a full version of "Billy the Bully") at Roberts' website's radio player.

Roberts' oeuvre is broad enough that each of his five CDs is probably the favorite of several families. Not Naptime is certainly a good album, and recommended. Whether this most mellow of Roberts' CDs is your family's favorite depends on how you and your family like your Justin Roberts -- faster or slower.

The Top 50 Kids Songs of All Time: Songs 46-50

So here's the first installment of my quixotic attempt to produce a list of the Top 50 Kids Songs of All Time.

In general this list is supposed to produce a list of songs familiar to a wide range of kids, at least in English-speaking North America. (OK, I realize that's not quite so wide.) As we approach #1, the songs are more likely to be "classics," recorded multiple times, and familiar enough to people for them to join in singing spontaneously. Which is not to say that more recent and more recording-focused tunes won't make the list, just that they're probably more the exception than the rule.

And remember, if you haven't entered the contest to pick the top five, go do so now.

Without any further ado, then, here we go...

50. "Bicycle" - The Jellydots: Did I say this song wouldn't make this list? OK, I changed my mind. Of course, a lot of the Jellydots' tunes were written to help teacher guitar to kids, so maybe 20 years from now some 10-year-old kid will jam out on her own guitar to this. (Listen at the Jellydots' Myspace page.)

49. "Tricycle" - Lunch Money: "This tricycle / Was my brother's tricycle / And that's why it has / This dent in the fender." Lunch Money's debut Silly Reflection is a small gem of a CD and I could've picked any one of a half-dozen excellent songs here, but this one is the most accessible and relatable to kids and their parents. (Listen at Lunch Money's lyrics page for "Tricycle".)

48. "Car Car" - Woody Guthrie: Hard to believe this song is, what, 50 years old? Covered by Elizabeth Mitchell on You Are My Sunshine (with a "beep beep" that still makes us swivel our heads every time we listen to it in the car), it's still timely today. (Listen to a sample of Woody's version here.)

47. "Yellow Bus" - Justin Roberts: Roberts is one of the top 2 or 3 crafters of kids pop tunes working today. This track is a fine example of his folk-pop talent merged with his ample sense of humor -- kids and parents might not necessarily sing his music on their own all the time, but they'll definitely sing along. (Listen to a sample here.)

46. "Trot Ol' Joe" - traditional: An excellent example -- the first of many -- of songs that have been shaped through the years to fit slightly different melodies and lyrics. Also an excellent example of songs to combine with physical movements with toddlers. Love the "whoooooaaa, Joe" part.

Final note: Note the common thread here? Yes, all these songs deal with modes of transportation. No, the rest of the list will not be organized quite so neatly.

In Case Justin Roberts Is Looking For Album Ideas...

Eric Herman's blog has been both consistent and consistently entertaining since its inception. All that's missing is mp3 sound clips.

Oh, wait, now he's taken care of that, too.

Eric's recent post on where ideas for some of his songs came from was a particularly fun read. The music geek in me likes to read about the process of songwriting and being a musician, and the post has that in spades (plus lots of sound clips).

If that weren't enough, the post has, without a doubt, the best Photoshop creation I'm likely to see on a kids' music-related website this year. Go there just to see the picture (and read the whole thing to figure out what it's supposed to be).

If 2005-2006 was the year of the "Wolf" bands, 2007 should be the year of the Sock album. Go for it, Eric.