The Five Best Halloween Kids Music Videos... Ever?

Well, of course not. I mean, I'm sure a Halloween kids music video will come out next year that will knock number 5 below out of the list. [Ed.: Heck, I forgot one already, added as #6, that should've been in the top 5.] But they're five videos six worth your family's 15 minutes or so.

5. John Hadfield - "Robot Monkey Head" [YouTube]

OK, technically speaking this isn't a Halloween video. But it darn well should be.

The list continues...
4. Justin Roberts - "Trick or Treat" [YouTube]

This is a live video recorded with a low-res Flip camera. It is also indisputably one of the greatest Halloween songs ever written. Average the two is #4 on this list.

3. The Sippy Cups - "The Day After Halloween" [YouTube]

This is the best day after Halloween video ever. This is probably the only day after Halloween video ever, but that's quibbling.

2. Princess Katie and Racer Steve - "Halloween" [YouTube]

This year's addition to the list, featuring nifty animation, a 53-piece orchestra, and a decent song to boot.

1. Brian Vogan - "That's How a Pumpkin Grows" [YouTube]

Great song and awesome video. Worthy of the Great Pumpkin.

****

Bonus: Uncle Rock - "Picnic in the Graveyard" [YouTube]

Totally forgot about this video from Uncle Rock.

Share: "Wear My Pajamas to School" - Rudy Trubitt

Rudy Trubitt has been writing songs for awhile, both for The Sippy Cups as well as solo stuff. While the Sippy Cups take a hiatus (a "nap," Trubitt calls it), he's got some new music out, notably "Wear My Pajamas to School." He says he wrote it "inspired by a tradition at our Oakland Public Elementary School: Pajama Day! You know the drill--leave your P.J.s on, grab a stuffy and out the door." (Evidently, transitional objects are a theme this week.)

Anyway, for the price of an e-mail to Trubitt's e-mail list you can download the song below. Or just stream it, if you'd like. If you like the Sippy Cups, you'll like this.

Christmas 2010 Family Music, Part 3

The only thing more amazing to me than the fact that it wasn't enough to have part 1 and part 2 of Christmas music is that I'm already prepping Part 4. Folks, Christmas is less 100 hours away! Anyway, to the music...

First off, free music from The Jimmies. There is never a bad time for free music from the Jimmies, but a holiday-themed EP during the, er, holidays? OK, perhaps the cover of "Chanuka, oh Hanukkah..." is a little late, but the rest is A-OK. The cover of "All I Want for Christmas is My Two Front Teeth" is best described as country-lounge-punk, but I most dig their cover of "Sleigh Ride." Anyway, download, wait for it, Mama Said NOG You Out here.

Rudy Trubitt, one of the Bay Area's Sippy Cups, has a holiday tune for your listening/downloading pleasure. It's his take on "The First Noel," and "boatload of holiday horns, as he describes it, is right. Very nice. Download or stream it here or below:

Rudy Trubitt - The First Noel by rudytrubitt

My first comment when I heard that the The Not-Its recorded their version of WHAM's "Last Christmas" without the "romantic" element, was to wonder whether they left out the element where it stunk, too. (Sorry, that song holds about 2 plays worth of interest for me each year, and I think I hit that before we ever reached December.) But, hey, the Not-Its' version is short, tuneful, and funny. Plus, you can download/listen for free here or below.

Last Christmas by The Not-Its!

Peter Apel is offering a very high energy take on "Jingle Bells," streamed for free or downloaded for the price of an e-mail. He's also got a free Jingle Bells ringtone, which I'm guessing would sound odd in July, but, hey, it takes all kinds. More info here.

Video: "Who Needs the Junk?" - The Sippy Cups

OK, yes, this is pretty much just a two-minute ad for One Small Step and their Boycott the Baggie (ad) campaign. I get that. But it is also a catchy new song from the Bay Area band The Sippy Cups, a band that hasn't put out new music in some time now, so that's why it's worth listening to. And it does fit into their pro-environment worldview. So with all that caveating, press play and enjoy some power-pop accompanied by crazy janitor-based visuals.

The Sippy Cups - "Who Needs the Junk?" [YouTube]

Life Is Good (Festival) Is Very, Very Good

Excellent, even. That's a festival lineup for you: Laurie Berkner Band, Dan Zanes and Friends, and They Might Be Giants. Not to mention The Sippy Cups. (Unless, of course, the "Dane Zanes & Friends" text isn't a joke and it's just a Dan Zanes tribute band.)

What lineup? It's for the Life Is Good Festival 2010, a charitable event to be held Sept. 11 and 12, 2010 in suburban Boston. Here's the kids lineup. Man, if that's the kids lineup, I shudder to think what the adult stages would be. (U2, Bruce Springsteen, and Beyonce?) No details yet on ticket prices, schedule, etc.