Dandelion performed by Greg Lato
On the surface, Greg Lato‘s latest album, Dandelion: Songs Inspired by Military Kids and Families is a concept album. Created following conversations Lato (himself a Navy veteran) had with military families, each song is written with the experiences of military kids in mind. However, once you start listening, you realize that calling Dandelion a concept album doesn’t even begin to do it justice. Dandelion is in fact a love letter. A love letter to the families, and especially the kids, who give up everything in support of their loved ones and our country.
With the 13 tracks on Dandelion, Lato balances songs that speak directly to the military experience with those that will have universal appeal. Throughout the collection, he partners with those who can relate to these experiences. Lato is joined on the title track by the kids choir from CAMMO (Center for American Military Music Opportunities) to sing about what it’s like to be a “dandelion,” a term I didn’t know stood for a military kid. As listeners learn from the song, children of service members are called dandelions because just like the flower, they are strong and resilient and grow wherever they are planted. To learn more about the experience from a former military kid’s perspective, read the blog post “Dandelion Children” by Spc. Gabriella Sullivan.
Additional songs that speak to the military life of kids include “Home” that emphasizes that home is family and “it’s not a place, it’s a feeling,” “Brats” which highlights the fact that being a military brat is actually a good thing (and on which Lato is joined by the Portsmouth Rhode Island School Military Kids), and “Helping Out,” where Lato gets an assist from fellow children’s music artist and Iraq War veteran Mr. Pete’s Playhouse, in describing all the ways that military kids have to step up and help out when a parent is deployed.
Songs with more universal appeal include the opening track, “Hi! I’m New Here,” a duet with 14-year-old military kid Kaleyana Ludwig about being the new kid in school and “Dippin’ Chicken” and “Gotta Eat a Pizza” which take listeners on a walk on the silly side of life. Lato also incorporates a beautiful song just for parents called, “Before I Had Kids,” and closes out the album with a song every child and adult should listen to, “To Be a Veteran,” which provides the rarely illustrated point of view of a new veteran, just returning to civilian life.
Dandelion will touch your heart, make you smile and laugh, and leave you with a better understanding of the lives of the thousands of military children around the world. Thank you for your service Greg and thank you for giving us this music!
Here’s a look at a song from Dandelion that many of us can relate to, “Old School, New School.”
The first time I listen to a new album (I generally listen to each album at least 3 times), I like to go in “blind.” I don’t read the liner notes or any of the accompanying PR. I just listen. This was true of the first time that I listened to Backyards & Home Fronts. With barely a glance at the packaging, I popped the CD in, pressed play and bopped along while I sorted the mail and straightened the kitchen. At the end, I thought, that was nice. Kids will like the song about using your imagination while drawing on the car window with your finger. They’ll be able to relate to the song about playing with a refrigerator box. Many of them will understand the song about the child who is growing older along with a pet.