My Baby, She Wrote Me a Newsletter

OK, not really. I wrote the newsletter.

OK, not really. I haven't written it quite yet.

But I will.

And I'd like to think Alex Chilton would approve.

So, anyway, some of you may have noticed that section on the right-hand side of the main page asking for a name and e-mail and promising sweet sweet newsletter-y goodness in return. Well, it's time for me to get crackin' on that promise.

Here's the deal: sign up below to get an occasional newsletter highlighting posts you might have along with, I don't know, maybe some other crazy stuff that hasn't made it to the website. I promise I won't send it out too much because I hate overly eager e-mailers just as much as you do. (Also: I like privacy as much as you do -- I'll never sell, barter, trade, give, or do anything else with your e-mail addresses except send you these newsletters.)

I should also note that I'm not above bribery. I have five fabulous CDs that I will randomly give away to people who sign up for the list by July 15. (OK, I guess I'll have to use your e-mail addresses if I pick your name.)

Anyway, I hope you'll take a few seconds to fill out the form -- Arizona folks also get the opportunity to join my long-running Arizona events newsletter -- and hopefully I'll make it worth your while. Thanks!

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Best Kids Music 2010: An Introduction

What's that? It's almost December? Then it must be time to start putting together lists of the year's best. In past years, I've put together lists of best albums and best songs, but this year I'm adding a couple more categories. 2010 was another great year for family music, and for me personally, I can't think of a clearer indication of that than the fact that some of the music I'll be discussing here in the next few days I didn't even get around to reviewing properly on the site. I reviewed roughly 50 albums (plus DVDs and concerts and more) this year -- the equivalent to one a week -- and I still didn't get to all that I thought merited a mention. It's a sign of a healthy genre -- it's not just the superstars.

As always, my year meets the definition of the Fids and Kamily year -- November 1, 2009 through October 31, 2010. I'll be updating this post with links to the relevant subject posts as they go up.

Top 20 Albums
Top 10 Debuts
Top 20 Songs
Top 10 Album Packages
Big Ideas

Starting next week I'm planning on things being a little quieter around here through the start of the new year. I've got some projects -- some kids music-related, some not -- that need some extra attention and I'm gonna have to scale back a bit here while I focus on those. But the site won't be completely dark -- expect some interviews and other holiday-related stuff.

Thanks as always for reading -- hope 2011 is a super year for you and yours.

Privacy Policy

I'm prepping something (low-key, don't get too excited) and it occurs to me that while I've written blogging product disclosure guidelines, I haven't written out my privacy policy. So here it is in fairly simple, non-technical terms, because I'm a fairly simple, non-technical guy:

What Information We Collect From You
1. When you comment on this site, the publishing system software captures your IP address, time of comment, and requires you to submit an e-mail address.
2. I have site counters on this site which operate via cookies.
3. Any link-referral systems (e.g., for iTunes or Amazon) collect information required to operate via cookies. I am currently a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. (Amazon told me to write that sentence in that way, which is why it sounds clunky.) I also have an affiliate link to iTunes. At the time of this writing, I use such links comparatively rarely.

How We Use That Information
1. The software filters out some comments as spam, presumably based in part upon IP and e-mail addresses. I don't use your IP address at all; I don't use your e-mail address except if I am notifying you that you are a contest winner.
2. I review site usage data on an aggregate basis.
3. Regarding the link-referral systems of iTunes and Amazon, I don't get to see any of that individually-attributable information -- I receive it on an aggregated basis.

So that's it. If there's something you think I've left unclear, let me know in the comments and I'll try to address it accordingly.

Zooglobble Radio - Kids Music Worth Airing

Well, now that I've got such a spiffy new logo, I think it's time to have something else shiny to go with it.

How about a new radio station?

That's right, I'm happy to announce a new kids music radio station, Zooglobble Radio, the motto for which is "Kids Music Worth Airing!" (Get it? Get it? "Kids music worth airing"? Yeah, OK, I was amused.)

I've been wanting to get a little more of the great kids music that crosses my desk (or inbox) out into the world, and this is my solution. While terrrestrial radio and podcasts were both potential options for me, I've decided to start an internet radio station. I've been broadcasting for a week or two now, and I'm getting the hang of it, negotiating the playlist rules of operating an internet radio station and the limits of storage. I'm also trying to get the hang of listening to CDs with an ear towards songs just as much as albums as well as getting used to converting CDs into a digital format (which I've not had to do). All of which goes to explain why I've got a lot of different songs available right now, but not nearly as many as I hope to have over time.

Anyway, I don't claim to have the background of Amy from Hip Young Parent or Gwyneth and her Gooney Bird Kids station. And maybe one day I'll start doing live shows like live radio standbys Kathy from Kids Corner, Belinda and Hova from Greasy Kid Stuff, or Bill from Spare the Rock, Spoil the Child -- not to mention a bunch of other radio stations. (The barriers to entry of satellite radio are significant, so I think Sirius-XM's Kids Place Live is safe from further satellite radio competition. And Lisa, I just don't have the time to write all those permission letters...)

Right now, I've got 3 playlists going at the moment:
-- My Favorite Kids Albums of 2009
-- New Music February 2010
-- Lullabies March 2010

You can see when they're airing here. I do plan on updating them semi-regularly, so it's not like you'll have to listen to the same songs for months on end. Finally, if you have questions or comments or suggestions, do let me know. I'm looking forward to doing this -- hope you're looking forward to listening to this.

Check Out That New Logo!

Hopefully you're seeing a fancy new logo up there at the top of the page and down a bit along the right-hand side of the link bar. Isn't it pretty? I think so (though I probably need to increase the resolution a bit).

When I first started thinking about getting a professionally done logo to replace my own poorly-crafted one, for a variety of reasons the first name that came to mind was that of Brandon Reese. I knew there was a lot of talent in the kids music field -- Billy Kelly, for example, or Kevin Kameraad, not to mention musicians with a nice eye for design, such as Frances England. But Brandon was definitely my first choice.

You're probably familiar with Reese's work -- he's designed album covers for Lunch Money and The Jellydots, not to mention a bunch of games and other stuff for eeBoo. (And I interviewed him a little more than a year ago.)

He has a sense of whimsy and play along with a strong design sense, two things I wanted to convey with this new logo, and I think he nailed it. That logo on the right is what I like to think of as the main logo, the one that if I were to sell all sorts of stuff would be plastered all over it. (Anybody need a men's organic t-shirt?) But it's got a very portrait orientation and sometimes I'm all landscape-y, so Reese designed a second logo that incorporated part of that first logo...

Anyway, I'm very happy with the logo. Thanks to Brandon for taking some pretty vague design concepts and turning them into something with a virtually no fuss. If you want to learn a little bit more about the design process for this logo and Reese's next projects, read on...
Zooglobble: What particular design challenges did you face with designing this logo?
Brandon Reese: I think my main challenge was to make sure the logo read well in small and larger formats. I also wanted to keep the colors to a minimum to keep costs down when printing business cards, letterheads, t-shirts, etc.

There were a few things that you said you wanted the logo to convey. You wanted to show some sort of action and stay away from kids idly just listening to music. You also wanted me to think about Zooglobble's motto "kids music worth sharing".

It's funny. When I was just about to send off my first round of sketches to you, the jumprope image came to me. I quickly doodled it and added it to the email. That was the sketch that ultimately became the logo.

Is there anything in the logo you're particularly pleased with?
I really dig that the headphones and jumprope create a semicircle. I'm big on symmetry. It keeps my OCD brain happy.

What other projects are you currently working on?
Currently, I'm working on a robot-themed colored pencil set and sketchbook cover for eeBoo. Oh, and just last week I met with Molly Ledford from Lunch Money to discuss the visual direction for their next album. It's going to be sweet!... mmmmm... donuts...

Here is a donut- O
Here is a donut hole- •
I ate some of this donut- C
Sorry, only crumbs left- ...