Video Premiere – “Funny Papers” performed by Randy & Dave

Veteran songwriters Randy Sharp and Dave Kinnoin return with their third delightfully silly and fun collaboration, Snorkel. Each song tells a story using lyrics that respect the children’s ability to listen closely. The stories may be about a lumberjack who gives his rather large dog a bath, a child who was just trying to be nice and let a squirrel inside, or an ode to the family cat. In with all of the silliness, Randy & Dave also cleverly weave important messages. In “Everybody’s Ignorant,” the emphasis is on the fact that we can’t all know everything while in “Why Not” the main character, rather than simply accepting that something is not possible, decides to use his inquiring mind to figure out “why not” instead. Randy & Dave don’t shy away from using difficult vocabulary on occasion, incorporating terms like hirsute, distortion and consternation into their songs. They provide all of the words and music from Snorkel here, along with a sample of each song so that they can be performed with or without the CD.

Here is the debut of the so-cute-you-can’t-help-but-smile video for the song, “Funny Papers.”

Video Premiere – “A Fish Named Dog” performed by Michael & the Rockness Monsters

Michael Napolitano, founder of Rockness music, returns with his extremely talented Rockness Monsters on their new album Monster’s Ball, which comes out today. Filled with all original songs written by Napolitano and co-produced by children’s music guru Dean Jones, this is kindie rock at its best. The songs on this album range from the joyful celebration of “S M I L E,” which praises the power of a smile when shared out in the world, to the driving bass line and rock laden instrumentation of the interactive movement song, “Growing Bigger.” Along the way, listeners will enjoy getting on the “Party Train,” learning the styles of dance from over the decades and around the world as they are listed in “People Places Dancing,” and following the instructions on how to move like a robot in “Robot Song.”

Michael & the Rockness Monsters strip things down a bit for the track, “Beautiful Day,” before telling the story of a trip that Michael’s family took in, “Les Lumières de Paris.” Michael’s family’s exploits make another appearance on the album for the tune, “A Fish Named Dog.” Based on the real life experience of his daughter wanting a dog, this song tells the tale of Michael’s daughter being told instead of a dog, she could get a fish, and his daughter in turn naming the fish…dog. To get a small taste of what’s in store when you give Monster’s Ball a listen, check out the video for “A Fish Named Dog” below. If you are looking for fun, interactive music to use with that Kindergarten and up crowd, this album is for you!

Premiere – Dan Crow’s “You’re An Engineer”

I spent this morning with a book rep looking through dozens upon dozens of new books from a wide variety of publishers. I couldn’t even begin to keep count of the number of book series that had the word STEM in them. Some of these series were really well done, and others, well, it was clear they were trying to jump on the buzzword bandwagon and stuff STEM terms into books that otherwise wouldn’t fit into that category.

That’s one of the things I appreciate about Dan Crow’s album Concoctions. It is filled with STEM songs, but it never feels like the STEM of the album is anything but meant to be there. Concoctions  is now part of a three disc package known as Kidz STEM Songz. The first CD is Dan’s album, Concoctions. The second CD is chock full of music from a wide variety of children’s performers all singing about STEM related topics. And the third disc in the collection is a DVD featuring five videos from the songs on Concoctions. And here today, is the online premiere for one of those videos – “You’re An Engineer.”

Hosted by Anny Dallshouse, this charming, animated video perfectly captures the infectious fun of the song making it interactive and easily singable. Take a look and see how many different ways you can be an engineer. Enjoy!

Premiere – Sara Lovell’s “Wild is Everywhere”

Sara Lovell’s lastest album, Wild is Everywhere, debuted in April. Filled with 14 original songs written and performed by Lovell, the album perfectly combines a variety of musical genres (pop, funk, jazz, etc.) with Lovell’s clear, beautiful voice and lyrics that range from fun and funny to engaging and heartfelt.

Today marks the debut of the music video for the title track, “Wild is Everywhere.” Images of Sara’s adorable son exploring his surroundings and discovering nature, even in his urban setting, lovingly bring the lyrics to life. Take a few moments, breath deeply and enjoy the peace and quiet charm of “Wild is Everywhere.”

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