(Kids') Rock Superstars Reunite With Original Singer

Sure, the world's heart is aflutter at the idea of a Hall of Fame band who've been playing for more than 20 years reuniting with their original singer.

But it's not Van Halen and David Lee Roth.

It's The Wiggles (yes, they were inducted into an Australian Hall of Fame just last year), who announced today that original Yellow Wiggle Greg Page would be returning to the band, with replacement Yellow Wiggle Sam Moran stepping aside.

For those of you who are wondering what I'm actually talking about, a little more than 5 years ago Page stepped away from the band due to serious bouts of fainting and lethargy. He was replaced by Moran, who had been a dancer with the band and Page's understudy.

And now today, in some bizarro merging of All About Eve and Star Is Born rewritten with a happy ending, Page wants to return, and Moran has agreed to step aside. (The reason appears to be that Page has recovered medically and perhaps is not doing great financially.)

But just because all is well within Wiggle-land doesn't mean the rest of the community agrees. Within just three hours of the announcement on the band's Facebook page, over 3,000 people wrote to express their view on the matter. "Sam for Green Wiggle" seemed to be the consensus.

Five years ago, I finished off the piece by essentially wishing Page "get well soon," so I'll finish this piece by saying, "welcome back."

Share: "England Swings" - The Wiggles (with Keith Urban)

I don't typically post much about The Wiggles, but I'm not totally silent about the band. Still, even with the offer to post a free mp3, I did feel the need to give it the once-over before sharing. It's OK - you can download it. I encourage you to, even. It's the band's cover of Roger Miller's 1965 hit "England Swings," and the band's recruited fellow Australian and country music star Keith Urban to join in. It's not ground-breaking, it's not edgy, but it's kinda fun. It's also free, courtesy of Razor & Tie. I'm not really seeing how the song fits into the overall theme of their forthcoming February 1 album Let's Eat!, but, hey, they're the millionaires, not me. Stream or download the track below.

The Wiggles (feat. Keith Urban) - "England Swings" [mp3]

Concert Review: The Wiggles (Phoenix, July 2009)

I promise, this'll be the last Wiggles post for awhile, but since I went to the show and wrote a review of it for the Phoenix New Times, I thought I'd at least note it -- you can read the review -- with 10% extra snark -- here.

I'll try to update this post with a few slightly grainy photos later, but for now, here's some cheap front-row cellphone footage from a drumline Anthony and Captain Feathersword performed during the show. This was kinda cool, actually...

And if you want to see the "Waltzing Matilda"/PVC acrobat thing (mentioned in the review -- not one of Anthony and Captain Feathersword's finer moments), here you go...

Interview: Murray Cook (The Wiggles)

Note: This interview, conducted on behalf of the Phoenix New Times, can also be found here. Reprinted with permission.

Talking with The Wiggles' Murray Cook -- AKA the Red Wiggle, the group's lead guitarist -- is akin to talking to one of the Beatles, and finding out that they're really down-to-earth blokes. Before meeting Anthony Field and Greg Page while studying early childhood education Macquarie University, Cook played in various bands such as The Finger Guns. In 1991, Field, Page, and he formed the Wiggles. The rest is brightly-colored history.

It's possible that being the highest earning entertainers in Australia -- beating out Russell Crowe, Nicole Kidman, Keith Urban and Kylie Minogue -- has gone to their head, but nothing in our conversation with while he was in New York waiting to do a meet-and-greet suggested anything of the sort. In fact, it was a little bit like talking to your neighbor down the street -- if your neighbor down the street not only earned more than Kylie Minogue but also released a single ("Monkey Man") with her.

Cook and the rest of the Wiggles (sans Minogue, sadly) will appear in two shows at Phoenix's Dodge Theatre today. Read on for more info on the Red Wiggle...

Zooglobble: What music did you listen to growing up?
Murray Cook: Well, it was the '60s, so a lot of the Beatles, of course... There's a long-running TV show in Australia called Playschool -- forty years and still running -- I watched that. But, of course, the Beatles and the Stones were important. At about 11 or 12 I started playing the guitar -- became obsessed with it, really. Kept on playing it. My dad in particular suggested that there might not be a career in it. About ten years ago, my dad said he was probably wrong that, which was nice for him to say...

What process do you and the band go through in writing music?
It's all pretty collaborative with us. Anthony's brother [Paul Field] helps out with the music, though Anthony does a lot with lyrics. Paul Paddick, who's Captain Feathersword, also contributes. We all work together, all on the same page.

How about Greg [Page, the original Yellow Wiggle]?
Yeah, after Greg decided to leave the group, he got away from it completely, a totally clean break.

You're starting this new tour -- how long does it take you to prep for taking a show on tour?

It doesn't happen from scratch. A lot of the songs we've done for a long time. We obviously can't change "Hot Potato," for example. The show more evolves over time. We're touring all the time -- Australia, the US, the UK -- we're coming off a UK tour right now. We learn on the road, but at the end of the year, if there's a new show, maybe a couple weeks.

So are there differences between American audiences and Australian ones?
The kids are pretty much the same. It's more the parents. Here in the States the parents get just as involved, just as vocal, as the kids. In Australia and New Zealand especially the parents are more relaxed, laid back. The UK parents are somewhere in between.

When you're playing, are you playing just for the kids, or are you trying to reach the adults too?
If you're interacting with the kids, then you're probably doing OK with the adults. We take what we do pretty seriously, but have fun with it. A lot of the music is pop music anyway, so that helps. But if they [the parents] hate it, they won't come back with their kids. There's lots of acrobatics now, so that helps [with the parents].

How do you keep it fresh after doing this for 18 years?
The audiences help keep it fresh, there's always something different from them. The response from kids, obviously. We're always trying to improve the show, changed the show. There's no shortage of ideas -- because we do enjoy this, we're always finding something new.

Video: "Monkey Man" - The Wiggles (feat. Kylie Minogue)

You know, if I'm going to spend some time talking about the Wiggles, I may as well go full out. On the positive side, this video for the song, "Monkey Man," from their album Go Bananas!, features Kylie Minogue dancing. On the not-so-positive side, this video also features the rest of the Wiggles dancing. They look like they're having fun, but they also look like me if I were dancing in a business suit next to Kylie Minogue.

I don't believe Kylie will be making an appearance at tonight's show, much to my dismay, because I'm not sure the song will survive her absence.

The Wiggles (feat. Kylie Minogue) - "Monkey Man"