Remember Professor Presley and his History Rocks album? Well, his alter ego Bill Reynolds, humble Encinitas, CA, Social Studies teacher, recently posted a video single from his grownup band's album Screaming Beneath the Waves. Judging from the images in the video and from the title of the song itself, it's obvious at whose feet these guys worship, but the song ups the ante: Ladies and Gentlemen, "Westerberg" by Lo-Fi Nipple!
Two disclaimers: Crank it up **LOUD** and watch out for the cussin'!
***Funky Kidz***
Normally, I steer clear of any children's CD that uses "z"s at the ends of words ... more often than not it's an artist's overcompensation for not being as hip as they want to be. But this album totally blows that theory out of the water: Funky Kidz funks the crap out of three old-school Disney songs, a couple Wizard of Oz tunes, a Beatles song, some public domain oldies, and an obscure David Mallet composition. Guar-an-teeeed to get the Preschool party started!New Orleans mom Lauren Busch Singer decided to liven up the world of children's music by assembling a bunch of NOLA bands and performers and having them put their personal touches on some kids' classics ... y'know, give those ol' familiar tunes a kick in the pants. So c'mon, ride the ridiculously stanky groove of "Zip A Dee Doo Dah" with Ivan Neville's Dumpstaphunk, git took to church with Meters' bassist George Porter Jr.'s version of "He's Got the Whole World In His Hands", and feel the swamp creep up yer ankles with The Radiators' "Froggy Went A Courtin'".
Bonerama turn in a great version of Randy Newman's Toy Story classic "You've Got a Friend In Me", and Johnny Sketch and the Dirty Notes' rendition of Dumbo's "When I See an Elephant Fly" outstrips the original while staying pretty faithful to the animated tune. Amanda Shaw & the Cute Guys' cover of "Garden Song" is more country Cajun spice than Crescent City soul, while the most low-key performances happen to be from The Wizard of Oz, as ex-Cowboy Mouth Paul Sanchez teams up with trumpet and guitar for a coffeehouse version of "If I Only Had a Brain" and Theresa Andersson croons "Somewhere Over the Rainbow".
This is a tight group of musicians, not only musically but on a friendship level, as well. You can tell by browsing their websites and myspace pages that most of them know each other, often performing on the same bill, and their camaraderie and their New Orleans pride shine through on every track. Buy several copies for your family, friends, and local libraries!
Friday Free-for-All # 3
More music for the tiny masses:
Great pop songs, actually, sung in Bari's Rickie Lee Jones-like voice. My only suggestion would be to trim each song by at least half. Standouts include "Nothing I Wouldn't Do", "A Day at the Beach", and "Jump", all sonically inspired by Natalie Merchant, Jewel, and Sheryl Crow.
Johnette Downing, Dixieland Jazz for Children
An innocuous introduction to Dixieland music. Johnette keeps the lyrics as simple as possible, and gets musical help from veteran Jimmy LaRocca. Make sure to follow up Ms. Downing's album with CDs like this.
Various Artists, Funky Kidz
I generally steer clear of any children's CD that uses "z"s at the ends of words, but trust me, this one's a winner. A bunch of NOLA bands got together and funked the crap out of three old-school Disney songs, two tunes from The Wizard of Oz, a Beatles song, and a couple of public domain songs. A must-have!
Great pop songs, actually, sung in Bari's Rickie Lee Jones-like voice. My only suggestion would be to trim each song by at least half. Standouts include "Nothing I Wouldn't Do", "A Day at the Beach", and "Jump", all sonically inspired by Natalie Merchant, Jewel, and Sheryl Crow.
Johnette Downing, Dixieland Jazz for ChildrenAn innocuous introduction to Dixieland music. Johnette keeps the lyrics as simple as possible, and gets musical help from veteran Jimmy LaRocca. Make sure to follow up Ms. Downing's album with CDs like this.
Various Artists, Funky KidzI generally steer clear of any children's CD that uses "z"s at the ends of words, but trust me, this one's a winner. A bunch of NOLA bands got together and funked the crap out of three old-school Disney songs, two tunes from The Wizard of Oz, a Beatles song, and a couple of public domain songs. A must-have!
Children . . . beyond compare
by Diane Masiello
In Kindermusik "Our Time" over the past few weeks, the eighteen-month to three-year-olds have been doing the "Tommy Thumbs" finger-play exercise, where the kids play with their thumbs, pointer fingers and pinkies on their heads, shoulders, and knees. And as I have watched the kids play an old nemesis has re-visited me: comparing my child's development to others'. Christa, at twenty-months old, is still having difficulty holding up her thumbs, pointer fingers and pinkies. But many of the other kids in the class can do it.
And so I hear my brain reciting the questions that, with my first daughter, became the bane of my existence: Should my child be doing that? Why isn't my child doing that? Is everyone else's kid doing that? Should I be worried?
I quickly stem these insane and inane questions by asking the parent of the other child how old they are. When I hear, "two" or "a few months past two" or even "twenty-three months" I sigh with relief. Nothing to worry about there, then, because between the ages of zero and three, a month or two makes a BIG difference.
Last month my child was barely saying a few words. Now her vocabulary grows by three to five words a day, maybe a week. Last month she didn't know where her shoulders or knees were. "Tommy Thumbs" has taken care of that. I know, in my mind and heart, that she is developing just fine for her age. Heck, she's already starting to jump, and my other daughter didn't do that . . .
Oops. There I go again. Comparing--this time measuring my youngest kid against the timeline of my oldest kid. Why do I persist with this? Why can't I stop?
I guess it's a natural impulse to compare things, and maybe also people, to one another. And to a certain extent it's a good thing to do, right? I mean, if we didn't compare our kids to other kids, we may not know enough to ask our pediatrician if there is a real problem. Putting our children in context, learning what a one-year-old should be able to do, then what an eighteen-month-old should be able to do, then what a two-year-old should be able to do, can help us diagnose a developmental delay early. So comparing our kids to one another can have a positive aspect.
Until it starts to make us competitive. I cannot tell you how many moms I know who refuse to go to play classes around town because they can't stand the way other moms (and dads) try to out-do each other by bragging about whose kid can recite the alphabet/sing "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star"/count to twenty/insert some other toddler achievement here. Granted, one thing I find most refreshing about Kindermusik classes is that I haven't met many competitive parents there. Most of the conversation about child-development is a genuine discussion of a child's abilities. Maybe it's because Aimee talks a lot about different stages of childhood development; maybe it's because the Kindermusik curriculum really focuses on teaching parents about those stages; maybe it's because like attracts like, and Aimee just draws in collegial, friendly, easy-going people who prefer talking to bragging.
All I know is that comparing children to one another, while it has some positive aspects, can get insidious and mean-spirited if done in excess. Every child is a special, beautiful and unique person and I have to focus less on comparing them and more on praising them for their individual talents and accomplishments. They will each achieve their milestones and their goals in their time.
So, every time I find my brain straying to that place where it seeks to compare my children to others' kids, or even to each other--or, worse of all, to myself or my husband at their age--I try to remember these wise words from "On Children" by Khalil Gibran, poet and writer of The Prophet:
"Your children are not your children.
They are the sons and daughters of Life's longing for itself.
They come through you but not from you,
And though they are with you yet they belong not to you.
You may give them your love but not your thoughts
For they have their own thoughts. . . .
You may strive to be like them,
but seek not to make them like you.
For life goes not backward nor tarries with yesterday.
You are the bows from which your children
as living arrows are sent forth."
And so I resolve to send my children forth to become who they will become--amazing human beings who are truly beyond compare.
In Kindermusik "Our Time" over the past few weeks, the eighteen-month to three-year-olds have been doing the "Tommy Thumbs" finger-play exercise, where the kids play with their thumbs, pointer fingers and pinkies on their heads, shoulders, and knees. And as I have watched the kids play an old nemesis has re-visited me: comparing my child's development to others'. Christa, at twenty-months old, is still having difficulty holding up her thumbs, pointer fingers and pinkies. But many of the other kids in the class can do it.
And so I hear my brain reciting the questions that, with my first daughter, became the bane of my existence: Should my child be doing that? Why isn't my child doing that? Is everyone else's kid doing that? Should I be worried?
I quickly stem these insane and inane questions by asking the parent of the other child how old they are. When I hear, "two" or "a few months past two" or even "twenty-three months" I sigh with relief. Nothing to worry about there, then, because between the ages of zero and three, a month or two makes a BIG difference.
Last month my child was barely saying a few words. Now her vocabulary grows by three to five words a day, maybe a week. Last month she didn't know where her shoulders or knees were. "Tommy Thumbs" has taken care of that. I know, in my mind and heart, that she is developing just fine for her age. Heck, she's already starting to jump, and my other daughter didn't do that . . .
Oops. There I go again. Comparing--this time measuring my youngest kid against the timeline of my oldest kid. Why do I persist with this? Why can't I stop?
I guess it's a natural impulse to compare things, and maybe also people, to one another. And to a certain extent it's a good thing to do, right? I mean, if we didn't compare our kids to other kids, we may not know enough to ask our pediatrician if there is a real problem. Putting our children in context, learning what a one-year-old should be able to do, then what an eighteen-month-old should be able to do, then what a two-year-old should be able to do, can help us diagnose a developmental delay early. So comparing our kids to one another can have a positive aspect.
Until it starts to make us competitive. I cannot tell you how many moms I know who refuse to go to play classes around town because they can't stand the way other moms (and dads) try to out-do each other by bragging about whose kid can recite the alphabet/sing "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star"/count to twenty/insert some other toddler achievement here. Granted, one thing I find most refreshing about Kindermusik classes is that I haven't met many competitive parents there. Most of the conversation about child-development is a genuine discussion of a child's abilities. Maybe it's because Aimee talks a lot about different stages of childhood development; maybe it's because the Kindermusik curriculum really focuses on teaching parents about those stages; maybe it's because like attracts like, and Aimee just draws in collegial, friendly, easy-going people who prefer talking to bragging.
All I know is that comparing children to one another, while it has some positive aspects, can get insidious and mean-spirited if done in excess. Every child is a special, beautiful and unique person and I have to focus less on comparing them and more on praising them for their individual talents and accomplishments. They will each achieve their milestones and their goals in their time.
So, every time I find my brain straying to that place where it seeks to compare my children to others' kids, or even to each other--or, worse of all, to myself or my husband at their age--I try to remember these wise words from "On Children" by Khalil Gibran, poet and writer of The Prophet:
"Your children are not your children.
They are the sons and daughters of Life's longing for itself.
They come through you but not from you,
And though they are with you yet they belong not to you.
You may give them your love but not your thoughts
For they have their own thoughts. . . .
You may strive to be like them,
but seek not to make them like you.
For life goes not backward nor tarries with yesterday.
You are the bows from which your children
as living arrows are sent forth."
And so I resolve to send my children forth to become who they will become--amazing human beings who are truly beyond compare.
a greener diaper
I saw this diaper on a student the other day and realized it was a cloth diaper. Not the clothe diaper of my childhood. It was something much cooler, called Bum Genius. It was a clothe diaper that can grow with your baby and has a water repellent outer layer. I was blinded by visions of all those dollars wasted on throw away diapers. Geez! I am amazed at the advances that have come along even in the 6-8 years since mine were babies!
DIY PR
Gotta hand it to Andy Mason, his CD totally got noticed amongst the huge pile of mail on my desk! When yer album is called Everybody Likes Pizza!, you just gotta send it out in a personal pan pizza box, right?More on Andy's CD soon ...
Good Morning!
Well, my children came home all a-buzz. It seems that this week is National Breakfast Week. Therefore, the school is offering the option of breakfast foods for lunch. Thursday's sausage and pancakes got me thinking I should join them! So what's your favorite breakfast?
Playin' in a Rock and Roll Band
A couple photos of the Daddy A Go Go Band, straight from the Daddy himself. What I wouldn't give to play rock and roll with my kid ... does anyone know of a drumset suitable for an 18-month-old?
{Max Boydston, 13; Jonathan Paz, 16; John Boydston "age redacted"; Jake Boydston, 16}
In action at
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