My Favorite Kids Music Videos of 2009

As much as 2009 was a great year for kids music, I think it might have been even more the year of the kids music video. In past years, coming up with 16 good kids music videos, let alone 20, was hard work. This year, it was hard, but not because there wasn't enough good stuff. There was too much good stuff.

I'm still not sure why that is -- while you have your fair share of material developed for DVDs or TV pilots, there are still plenty of videos on this list that seem created solely for the purpose of promoting a song or album (and perhaps amusing their creators). But it doesn't really matter, does it? Here, then, are my 20 favorite kids music videos from 2009 (2009 defined roughly as March 1, 2009 - February 28, 2010), starting off with the #1 video of the year... (or you can watch the whole list at my YouTube playlist of these 20 great kids music videos).

1. They Might Be Giants - "Meet the Elements" [YouTube]
Videos are flavor enhancers -- they don't do much for a bland song, no matter how technically proficient or cool the visuals are. But a good video can go a long ways toward implanting a song into the brain. And combine a great song with a great video, and you can put this result at the entryway to They Might Be Giants' wing in the Kids Music Video Hall of Fame.

2. Robbert Bobbert and the Bubble Machine - "We R Super Heroes" [YouTube]
The hyperactive animation fits Robbert Bobbert's style perfectly. Another brilliant match of song and visuals.

3. Billy Kelly - "People Really Like Milk" [YouTube]
It's hard to animate a song that's all about funny wordplay that doesn't just re-hash the funny wordplay. Not only does this video enhance the wordplay, it is all -- song and animation -- the work of Billy Kelly. He's a triple threat! (OK, a double threat, unless you count his ability to upload to YouTube.)

4. Recess Monkey - "Marshmallow Farm" [YouTube]
Proof that you can make a good video for relatively little money (and without animation), Recess Monkey created a whole series of videos that showed tons of imagination making up for the lack of tons of cash. And though I wanted to include "Sack Lunch", I think this is the best of the bunch.

5. Tim and the Space Cadets - "Superhero" [YouTube]
I know, this video from Tim and the Space Cadets is a wee bit sentimental, and the song is merely good, not great, but when you see videos with production values like this, it resets the bar for everyone else in a good way.

6. Secret Agent 23 Skidoo - "Family Tree" [YouTube]
Robots, school buses, and Ferris wheels -- Secret Agent 23 Skidoo (with an assist from Saki) knows what makes families groove.

7. Caspar Babypants - "Itsy Bitsy Spider" [YouTube]
If Recess Monkey videos have mini-budgets, Chris Ballew's Caspar Babypants videos have micro-budgets. But they're so well-considered and edited smartly, that the minimalist approach pays off big time.

8. Rocknoceros - "Pink" [YouTube]
Bright and shiny and juuuuust this side of hyperactive is a phrase that I would never use for the fabulous trio Rocknoceros, but it's one that fits well (and appropriately) with the video and song. In a good way.

9. Debbie and Friends: Willy Won't Smile for the Camera [YouTube]
Debbie Cavalier has spent a lot of time crafting a unified image on her album art, website, and videos, to her (and her music's benefit). The videos have a distinctive look and feel, and this is the best of the bunch.

10. Randy Kaplan - "The Ladybug Without Spots" [YouTube]
Another cool song, another animated video (that's six of the top 10, if you're counting). Why is that? Well, I think part of it is that the obvious tropes of standard music videos (wind machines, rapid-fire editing, and stories told obliquely interspersed with band/musician shots) just don't work for 5-year-olds. But smiling ladybugs and Randy Kaplan's storytelling? Kidvid gold.

11. Readeez - "Counting for Pleasure" [YouTube]
Wait - I can only pick one Readeez video for this list? Who made up that stupid rule? Oh, I did. Sigh. If I did this tomorrow, I'd probably come up with another Readeez entirely. They're all pretty darn good.

12. Brian Vogan - "That's How A Pumpkin Grows" [YouTube]
Gorgeously animated, Brian Vogan's video is perfect for your kindergartner's pre- (or post-) Halloween viewing pleasure.

13. Eric Herman - "Ants in Your Pants #99" [YouTube]
It's no "Elephant Song", but what is? Still, the animation in Eric Herman's latest video has come a long way from those early days.

14. Johnny Bregar - "Shoo Fly Pie" [YouTube]
There is nothing complicated about this video from Johnny Bregar -- it's just a simple idea, well-done, and paired with a nifty little song. Works for me.

15. Clementown - "Ed" [YouTube]
Perhaps it's not fair that Clementown based its songs on poetry from illustrator Calef Brown, because it meant that they had the inside track on, you know, animation. But, hey, maybe other artists should do more of the same...

16. Dan Zanes and Friends featuring La Bruja - "Pollito Chicken" [YouTube]
As you'd expect, a Dan Zanes video is a high-quality production, and this one is no exception. I wouldn't have expected so many ties, but there's no accounting for tastes.

17. The Not-Its - "Come Play at Our House" [YouTube]
What is it with Seattle houses and kids music videos? First Johnny Bregar, and now the Not-Its.

18. Ben Rudnick & Friends - "A Frog Named Sam" [YouTube]
The live-action stuff of Ben Rudnick and the band is pretty run-of-the-mill, but the animation interludes are excellent. (And, yeah, it's a cool song.)

19. The Hipwaders - "Field Trip" [YouTube]
The Hipwaders have always been interested in videos, doing a whole bunch for their Kindie Christmas disk. This one, from their Goodie Bag EP, is a little clunky, but has a distinctive visual style.

20. John Hadfield - "Robot Monkey Head" [YouTube]
A video from John Hadfield, for the older siblings of the ones watching the Brian Vogan video.

Video: "And Mom and Kid" - They Might Be Giants

I'd been waiting for the right hook (i.e., something visual or tangible) to talk about the Rosie O'Donnell-produced documentary A Family is a Family is a Family. After all, it featured music from They Might Be Giants, Elizabeth Mitchell, Ziggy Marley, and Brady Rymer, to mention a few folks who travel in the kids music world. (And, hey, my own family's non-traditional in its own way, so, yeah, always good to see those sorts of families get some screen time.)

And now it's here -- They Might Be Giants' theme song for the program "And Mom and Kid" has been posted to you tube. I like the song -- font nuts will, well, go nuts.

They Might Be Giants - "And Mom and Kid" (Theme Song from "A Family is a Family is a Family" [YouTube]

Book Review: "Kids Go!" - They Might Be Giants

Books are so 20th century, right? Then why do people insist on continuing to write them? Who knows, but in the case of They Might Be Giants, their proficiency in the non-book world has led them to Kids Go!, their second book. It's a song they wrote for PBS converted to book format featuring the illustrations of Pascal Campion, who's animated a number of their videos for their "Here Comes...." series.

As a book, it's fine, really. While song lyrics written on the page can look odd, especially given the verse-chorus-verse nature of most songs, Campion's energetic line drawings with muted colorings help move the plot of the book, such as it is, along. And, hey, it comes with a DVD video that mimics, though doesn't copy, the book illustrations. But I think a lot of parents, excited to get another TMBG item to go along with, say, Here Comes Science, will be disappointed. For the same price as the book (if not cheaper), you can get an entire DVD and CD of TMBG music. Even compared to TMBG's previous book foray (Bed Bed Bed, which featured a 4-song CD), the package is a little lacking. (And isn't it a little weird to read a book about putting books down and jumping around?)

The book will be of most interest to kids ages 4 through 7. You can buy the book just about anywhere -- here the whole song here or watch a minute's worth of the DVD video here. It's a fun and might make a neat gift for the They Might Be Giants superfan in your family's life, but most folks can probably hold off. Until they figure out how to package the Kindle text and iTunes video download for $5.

They Might Be Giants Unleash John & John's Quiz Game. It's, Uh, the Coolest Quiz Ever

Seriously, folks. The videos from They Might Be Giants' excellent CD/DVD combo Here Comes Science, combined with a quiz and a chance to win a free mp3 (if you answer 12 of 18 questions (one pegged to each of the videos from the album).

Play below. Seriously. Now.

A Flood of They Might Be Giants Stuff

You can never have too much They Might Be Giants. OK, you probably can, but we haven't reached that part of the supply curve yet.

1) Did you know that we're coming up on the 20th anniversary of the band's classic album Flood? Did you know the band gave new liner notes of sorts to the album in this interview with Rolling Stone? Did you know that if you're a fan of the album at all, you need to click that link immediately and read? (Sorry. No more questions. I promise.)

2) Speaking of Flood, while it doesn't have possibly the greatest moment in television history, props to the band for picking one of the lesser-known tracks for airing on this Web-exclusive from Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. Should they be smiling so much singing a song about being dead? (Oops. Sorry. Last question.)

They Might Be Giants - "Dead" (Late Night with Jimmy Fallon)

(Thanks on both of those to This Might Be a Wiki.)

3) Finally, moving back into the present-day, props to Bill for helping to snag a New Year's Eve kids show with the band. If you're in the Northampton area the afternoon of the 31st, you need to go.