All the Sounds Performed by Lucy Kalantari & the Jazz Cats
My introduction to Lucy Kalantari’s special brand of family jazz music was her fall 2017 holiday EP It’s the Holidays! and I’m so glad that she’s back with this full length album. This jazz age inspired collection of ten original songs is a real delight. Each song has its own unique identity filled with complex melodies and engaging lyrics, yet they all fit together to make a beautiful whole.
Once again Kalantari is backed by the highly talented Jazz Cats who really get to shine on numbers like “Ain’t No Dog Like Mister,” a tribute to Billie Holiday’s dog Mister which allows for some great clarinet solos as well as the tango accented “Howl to the Moon” which opens with a gorgeous cello solo that leads to vocals backed by a swaying bass beat as it tells the story of a werewolf who longs for the evening when he can dance with his friends.
Songwriting really takes the spotlight when Kalantari skillfully weaves other musical genres into her tunes. The quick paced “Are You Afraid of the Dark?” features an original rap by Secret Agent 23 Skidoo wrapped in a jazz number that emphasizes the importance of understanding your fears and asking listeners “Can you turn that bad into something good?” Another fun blend of musical genres occurs in “Bunny Hop” where the main character in the song gets to know Mr. Opera Man (real life opera singer Adelmo Guidarelli), the next door neighbor, who operatically proclaims, “I love bunnies!” Listeners will quickly find themselves hopping and thumping along to this tune.
While all of these songs are great for family listening, there are also several that would be nice additions to a storytime, program, or classroom lesson. “I Know a Little Fellow” could work to introduce children to musical terms as Kalantari’s talented 5 1/2-year-old son demonstrates on the cello the terms she sings about such as pluck, bow, pizzicato, pianissimo, and fortissimo. “La Cosecha” is a fun bilingual song that would fit nicely into a storytime about gardening or community that introduces listeners to a wide variety of vegetables in both English and Spanish. Finally, “The Peace Song” is a lovely call and response song with a special message.
All the Sounds is a joy from beginning to end. Families will find themselves listening to it again and again.
It’s hard to believe that with the July 27th debut of Dog on the Floor, Raffi released his 25th album, but at 70 years young, that is exactly what he did. Listening to a Raffi album makes you feel like you are wrapped up in a blanket warm from the dryer on a cold, rainy day and this album is no exception. From beginning to end it is filled with love. Love for nature, love for each other and love for oneself.
The first album is Moving to the ABCs from Kansas-based Jammin’ Randy. Clocking in at almost 75 minutes, this album features 26 songs – one for each letter of the alphabet – with titles ranging from “Awesome Alphabet Rap” to “Zany Zebra.” Jammin’ Randy performs this collection of all original songs with just his solo voice set against simple melodies that children will find easy to follow along with. Many of the songs encourage participation either through movement or echo/repeat in the lyrics. Clear instructions to perform various actions like stomp, clap, hop, jump and count to four are given on songs such as “Clap Your Hands,” “Penguin Hop,” “Wiggle Wiggle Waggle,” and the “Egg Shaker Dance.” Additional movements include move to the front, the back, the left, and the right. All movements are developmentally appropriate for the target age group and are set at a pace that most preschoolers will be able to follow with little difficulty. Jammin’ Randy, or Randy Sauer as he is known in his every day life, let’s his experience as a K-6 music teacher shine in the lesson plans that he provides for this album. For each song, he provides suggested art, music and physical education activities making the songs easy to incorporate into the storytime planning process. For more information, or to check out the 
The second album is from Chicagoland-based Jeanie B! Jeanie B! & the Jelly Beans released the album I Love Music this year, but it is Jeanie B!’s solo album, Come Together that I would like to highlight. This album is split into two parts. The first part is “Come Together Songs” and the second, “Classroom Transitional Songs.” Thirteen of the fourteen songs in the first part are Jeanie B! originals. It is clear that she knows her audience because the songs all range in length from 1 to 2.5 minutes, making them perfect for storytimes. Several of the tracks are beautiful songs about nature that are just lovely to listen to, including “How Do You Build a Nest” and “I’m a Little Butterfly.” The rest of the tracks in this section of the album are very interactive including “If I Was An Ant” which gets kids snapping, clapping, and stomping, “Marching On My Feet” which highlights various body parts and “5 Little Pieces of Bubble Gum” which gets kids counting down from five to none. Additional songs include “Mary Had a Little Farm” during which children are encouraged to make the sounds of a variety of animals and “Zim Zamma Zoom” a fun call and response tune. The second part of the album would work best in a preschool environment with song breaks averaging around 30 seconds and covering topics from “Time To Wash Hands” to “Snack Time” and “Right Hand On The Rail.” Jeanie B!’s live shows are always a lot of fun and a real hit with the preschool set. If you find her performing in your area, make sure to check it out. For more information about Jeanie B! and all of her music, visit 
Secret Agent 23 Skidoo is back! This Amazon Original album, 23 Skidoo’s first full length venture since the GRAMMY winning Infinity Plus One, is set during a show on WREM Dreamtime Radio where all-original hip hop, R&B, funk and soul tunes are played. Each song on this album has its own unique style and flair yet they all work together united by the same theme of exploring your dreams and imagination. Things kick off with the totally funkadelic title track which urges listeners, “Life can be what you want it to be, you gotta dream it first then wake it up.” This tune is quickly followed by the haunting “Where Did the Magic Go,” which is a song about a dragon and a unicorn discussing the loss of magic because of so much screen time but is set to a gorgeous, haunting 1960s melody that would fit right in playing in the background at Pop’s ChockLit Shoppe (yes, that’s a Riverdale reference!). Several additional songs including “Dreaming Again” and “Broken Dreams” would also be right at home spinning on the jukebox.
Camp Andyland is a true joy from beginning to end. And speaking of end, I love that Andy Z carried the theme of the album all the way through to the details on the back of the CD packaging, including not just a song list, but a Camp Andyland Roster , a schedule of the day’s events while at camp and even emergency numbers for the Vet (555-PAWZ) and the Dino Doctor (555-RAWR).
Jessie Baylin – “It’s the Summertime”
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