DadTalk

Trout Fishing and Indian Spices

Can two men sound like an entire band? Sure, when they’ve been playing together for almost 30 years.

Can two men keep 100 children – and 100 parents – occupied and even dancing during kiddy witching hours of 3-5 p.m?

Sure, if they’re Keith Grimwood and Ezra Idlet, who form the Arkansas duo Trout Fishing in America. If you never heard of these guys, or listened to them, now is a good time as any. Click on this link, and then click on “Launch Trout Radio” for a sample.

Trout Fishing is one of those bands I never would have heard of if it wasn’t for a publicist – I’m not even sure which one – sending me a CD. I’m pretty awful that way: someone sends me a CD and I get around to listening to it weeks or months later.

Music Fever Forces New Plans

Two weeks ago I bought tickets for a concert at the Old Town School of Music where Seth is taking guitar lessons.

Seth seems partial to bluegrass music; who am I to argue? The plan was to see Andy Statman and the warm-up band called The Golden Prairie All Stars, which featured mandolin player Don Stiernberg.

Unfortunately, Sunday night did not go as planned. Late in the afternoon, and out of no where, Seth developed a nasty fever. Seth kept asking, “But can I go anyway?”

I told my boy we’d wait and see, perhaps the fever would pass quickly. A few minutes later, my wife Anne reported that Seth was sleeping in our bed. It was obvious he would sleep straight into the night.

What to do? I called some friends up and offered them tickets. None could change their plans on such short notice.

Music That Works for Me

For the last year and a half, I’ve had an office to myself, something I’ve never had before. One of the best things? I can listen to music in the background.

I tend to love Ambient radio stations on iTunes because they help me concentrate.  Usually, I listen to Groove Salad on SomaFM, because the music plays well in the background.

After being out sick for a WEEK, I came back to discover Gotradio – The Big Score. I’ve only been listening to the station for 20 minutes, and love it so far.

Not because the tunes remind me of movies – heck, I’ve hardly seen any in recent years – but because the music is often so rich and interesting. So far, the station is picking out songs that generally play well in the background.

The only problem? I keep checking to see what’s playing. As I’m writing this, I started thinking, “that sounds familiar.” It was a song from Lord of the Rings.

I may never get up again.

Buying a Guitar at Chicago’s Old Town School of Folk Music

Since Seth was about 3, he’s insisted on learning how to play the guitar. Not the piano or anything else – only the guitar would do.

So last night I drove Seth over to the Old Town School of Folk Music to buy him a quarter guitar for classes that begin Saturday morning.

During our drive over, we were listening to Ralph’s World’s rendition of Itsy Bitsy Spider:

Ralph: What’s that sound? Sounds tiny!

Everybody go “shhhh” for the baby!

Children: “Shhhh”

Ralph: Well, peering out from under a leaf in the backyard

So small you could barely see her

Wearing a size XXXXXXXXXX-small Old Town School of Folk Music T-shirt

Doh! He worked there for years. (By the way, this blogger deserves thanks for putting us onto Ralph.)

Seth Sings His Heart Out

One of my favorite times in grade school and junior high was choir. I never wanted to be a soloist or anything, but singing at the top of my lungs riding the wave of the music roller coaster was one of the great pleasures of going to school every day.

So when I discovered a choir elective in high school, I happily signed up. The school had a new director who entertained himself as the rising star of the high school music scene.

A couple of times during the year, he had hinted dissatisfaction with my abilities. The director suggested that I practice solo in these what-I-now-know-to-be-expensive-glass-enclosed music rooms.

I had absolutely no idea what the music director was talking about. I had zero formal music training and simply did not understand what it took to be a good singer. In fact, I had zero ambition when it came to music. I sang because it was fun.

At the end of the school year I signed up again for choir. Then came a shock to my system: the music director had the authority to reject my entrée into sophomore choir.

I wasn’t heart-broken. It’s not as if my life dreams were dashed. But I’d be lying if I didn’t admit to being bummed.

The real damage, though came from my growing self-consciousness about singing in public – or private. I came to realize that I essentially sucked at singing. It is easy to fall into that trap when all your relatives are essentially monotone in the worst way, and virtually every girlfriend since college has asked me to NOT hum or sing.

The next time I did any real singing was after Seth was born. As those of you who read this site know, we had severe sleep issues with Seth, who would wake up screaming every hour on the hour most nights of his first two years.

My wife, who would repeatedly nurse Seth back to sleep, took the brunt of it. But I did find a way to get Seth to sleep – via singing. In the beginning, I just needed to hum a fast repetitive tune. “Dunt, dunt, du-du-du dunt,” worked best.

Despite my initial successes at 3 a.m., I was somewhat self-conscious about singing in front of my wife, Anne. When she criticized me for singing too fast to Seth, I was particularly defensive.

But humming slow to Seth had ZERO effect – he wouldn’t fall asleep without a loud, fast-moving beat.

Eventually, Anne let me sing to my heart’s content because it meant sleep relief for her. Eventually, she even joined in on the “dunt, dunt, du-du-du dunts,” during long drives where nothing but singing would placate our boy.

As Seth aged, he insisted on real songs over mindless vowels. The ABCs Song, Head, Soulders, Knees and Toes and the Itsy Bitsy Spider were favorites during the day.

At night, Five Little Monkey’s Jumping on the Bed, Five Little Ducks and Old McDonald Had a Farm were popular.

But the two songs Seth loves most are my renditions of “Go to Sleep, Big Seth” and “Seth Will Be Coming Around the Mountain.” I still sing those songs today before he goes to bed.

So when I attended Seth’s first Hanukkah music recital in one of the most beautiful Jewish Temples I’ve ever seen – which isn’t many – all these memories and deep pride washed over me at the same time.

The evening started with us walking in light rain to the Temple, where we were fed gooey pizza, latkes and sufganiot (Hebrew for jelly donuts.)

The kids in Seth’s preschool were sequestered in some back room as parents found seats in the huge sanctuary. Then Rabbi Joe Black ascended the stage and began.

My wife was one of the designated photographers, but Lael was fussing. I wound up shooting the first half of the show, which put me front and center.

When Seth came out with his group of kids, I was right there with my camera. When the camera police-lady told me to stop taking pictures, I ignored her. After all, I am a proud dad, and I was supposed to be taking pictures for the preschool! She finally backed off after she finally chilled enough for me to explain what I was doing.

From vantage, I could see Seth belting out his songs with hearty vigor (when he wasn’t making shadow puppets in the oh-so-cool studio lights.). I wonder if I looked like that when I used to sing?

During the second half of the concert, Lael danced in the aisle while Anne played photographer. I can’t begin to describe my pride watching and listening to Seth sing with such gusto and joy.

By the end of the show, my boy was exhausted, but I noticed how happy he was to have me there. Always looking for approval, that boy. I can’t imagine what a letdown it would have been if I hadn’t been there to endorse his performance.

More importantly, I realized that I will be vigilant in making sure that if Seth wants to continue to sing all his life, I will take any high school music teacher aside and explain to him ever so politely, “Back off, jerk.”

Music Reviews Laurie Berkner, Reggae Will Appeal to Children

Reggae Playground
Sometimes it takes me a while to decide if I like a song or album. That is the case with three CDs and one DVD that I received in late 2005.

Of the CDs, I warmed up quickest to Reggae Playground, which offers snippets of Caribbean sounds from a variety of artists. The music is light and fun, making it easy for your child to follow along.

Kids will probably enjoy Alain Schneider’s “Le Vieil Éléphant” the most. While the majority of the song is in French, the beat is universal.

Toots and the Maytals rendition of “Take Me Home Country Roads” will probably strike a bigger cord with parents than kids. That’s because of the cute play on words:

Take me home,
country road,
to the place,
I belong
West Jamaica …

I smile every time I hear “West Jamaica.”

This album shines because both parent and child can enjoy the music together. The melodies are more complex than most music directed at children, which parents will find more satisfying than say the Wiggles. But the distinct reggae beat holds children’s attention better than heavy, complex Western music.

We Are the Laurie Berkner Band
I took a while to warm up to Laurie Berkner. Well, let me step back. I took a while to warm up to her band.

When Seth and I first watched Laurie’s upcoming DVD, all of the songs – and the various tie-ins from TV shows and books – were new to us. That’s one of the pitfalls of watching zero commercial TV.

Seth seemed to like the music first time through, but I think he was at first unsure of the video. The colorful outfits worn by Berkner and her two band mates are bright like the Wiggles, but they’re constantly changing, which seemed to overwhelm his senses.

And to be honest, I was a bit distracted by the, um, bounciness of the ladies’ tops. Someone needs to talk to the wardrobe folk about that.

After the second viewing, though, Seth wanted to watch or listen to the DVD over and over again. In fact, he connects with Laurie’s music far deeper than Reggae Playground.

I suspect that’s because he’s still a toddler, and because Laurie’s music is, well, bouncy like her tops. For those who already own Laurie’s albums, take note that only one of the songs on the DVD is new: “Walk Along the River.”

There was one song I did not warm up to: “O Susannah,” which I guess is sung off-key by Brian Mueller on purpose. There is probably some inside joke that goes along with this song, but it sounds so butchered to me, I cringe every time it loops around.

The DVD comes with a short CD that includes “The Happiest Song I know,” which is also on Tom Chapin’s Some Assembly Required album. I reviewed that album in November. Maybe it’s Chapin’s more polished recording skills, but “Happiest Song” reveals just how silky Laurie’s voice can be. It’s one of my wife’s favorite songs off the Chapin album.

One World, One Kid
It’s hard to not like a 6-year-old kid who creates an album to cheer up a friend fighting cancer. The brainchild of Skyler Pia, 100 percent of the profit from One World One Kid benefits the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

While I’m not in love with the boy’s high-pitched voiceovers before each song, Skyler’s eclectic taste in music is excellent. In fact, most of these culturally-rich songs from around the world are mostly over Seth’s head and will be best enjoyed by parents and older kids.

The album is short, but only costs about $6.

Music Review Chapin Puts Parts Together in ‘Some Assembly Required’

Keeping kids amused during long drives, can be quite the challenge. We’ve been fairly fortunate with Seth, who usually remains happy as long as his favorite tunes blare out of our minivan’s speakers.

Imagine our luck when about two weeks before we left for Pismo Beach a publicist sent Tom Chapin’s newest CD, Some Assembly Required, for me to review. Three-year-old Seth fell instantly in love with Chapin’s catchy folk-music style.

Even though Chapin’s music is pitched for children over 4, Seth had no trouble following the playful music and lyrics. By the time we began our drive, he was parroting some of the lines.

Seth especially warmed up to “Puppy at the Pound” and “Only One Shoe.” The first is about mom and dad agreeing to get a puppy from the pound. Here’s a verse:

What do you want Mom? “I don’t care.
As long as it doesn’t shed it’s hair,
Won’t bark at night, or dig up the ground.
Let’s go pick out a puppy at the pound.”

I’m not a music expert – forgive me for inadequate descriptions – but the bright, lively beats of “Puppy at the Pound” are indicative of the album. Tom Chapin, whose brother is the late Harry Chapin of “Cat’s in the Cradle fame,” seems to be enjoying himself to such an extent that I have a mental image of him smiling while singing.

In “Only One Shoe,” Vanessa Williams joins in a duet in which she portrays the mom of a hapless boy who lost some footgear. Chapin portrays the boy, who sings:

Mommy, oh mommy, what can I do?
I want to go out and I can’t find my shoe!

Vanessa, whose silky voice takes on the modulation of a mom experienced with such problems, rejoins:

Did you look in the closet? (I didn’t.) Well do!
You’re not going out with only one shoe!

What’s cute about this song is Chapin and his co-author John Forster capture the spirit of a mundane, but recurrent family crisis.

Many of the songs on “Some Assembly Required” are parodies of other famous songs. “Bill Bailey, Get Yourself Back Home” is a play off of “Bill Bailey, Won’t You Please Come Home,” which was written by Hughie Cannon. In this version, Chapin portrays a dad asking his son to come home after playing all afternoon.

My personal favorite, though, is “Planet Bruno,” which in part parodies David Bowie’s “Ground Control to Major Tom.” Instead of a forlorn space traveler, Baby Gail is off to rescue Bruno, who lost contact with Ground Control:

“Ground Control to Baby Gail.
Ground Control to Baby Gail.
This is Ground Control to Baby Gail.
We’re going to have to change your mission.
Bruno’s in a bad position.
His fragile craft’s begun to fail.”

The adventure, which includes asteroids and a black hole, continue from there.

The most original song – at least in my limited music database – is the cover, “Some Assembly Required.” This is required listening for any dad who has battled a 40-page instruction manual while his son or daughter tries to help. Here’s a sample:

Some assembly required. Some assembly required.
My birthday is fleeting and I’m getting tired.
But Dad’s got his tools and he’s feeling inspired.
We’ll put it together together!

What makes Tom Chapin’s work a revelation for the adults in the car – me, my mom and my wife – is that we enjoyed the music as much Seth. Chapin captures our childhood memories rather than singing a bunch of “cutsie” songs for youngsters in the Raffi mold. And “Some Assembly Required” is the perfect vacation music when you consider all the foreboding, angry music that is popular today.

The album isn’t perfect. My wife wasn’t all that fond of the harsh sounds from “Don’t Make Me Dance,” and I was bothered somewhat by the annoying honks and gulps in “How I became a Clown. ” That song is funny only the first 20 times.

Regardless of how the adults felt, Seth was happy during our long drive as long as the music kept playing. Every now and then he graciously let us switch to something else to break up the monotony. It’s just too bad 3-month-old Lael wasn’t a little older to appreciate Chapin. She screamed the last hour half of our drive back from Pismo Beach despite all attempts to placate her. But that’s not Chapin’s fault.

Review Casey at the Bat Hits Home Run With Seth

Recently, a publicist asked DadTalk to review a children’s CD. Although my wife primarily reviews children’s books on Bookbuds, I figured what the heck and received Casey at the Bat a few weeks later.

Because I do not regularly follow sports, I didn’t get all that excited when I stuck it into Seth’s little jam box. While most of my cousins wanted to watch Cubs games, as a kid I usually preferred to read a good science fiction novel.

As the CD ran through the well-known story of Casey, I was impressed by the background music performed by the London Philharmonic Orchestra, but still didn’t warm up to it. Then Seth said, “play it again, daddy, play it again!”

And again. And again. And again. It slowly dawned on me that Seth, who isn’t even 3 yet – the series is meant for kids over 5 – was mesmerized by Yadu’s narrative even more than the music. Sure, Seth has never seen a baseball game in his life, but the words seemed to paint a visual picture in his mind that he was playing over and over. He seemed particularly fascinated by the fact that Casey strikes out.

The entrancing aspect of this CD is no accident as it is a direct attempt to revive the traditions of musical storytelling ala Peter and the Wolf. These new versions evolved from the Stories in Music program that began at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., in 1976. To learn more about the series, Fatherville has an interview with Stephen Simon, who was the music director of the Washington Chamber Symphony for 25 years.

Magic Maestro Music, run by Stephen Simon and his wife, Bonnie, was formed to bring Stories in Music to a broader audience via CDs. Magic Maestro first produced Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel.

While there are other tracks on the CD, Seth seems most interested in the Casey at the Bat poem, which was first written by Harvard graduate Ernest Lawrence Thayer and published in the San Francisco Examiner in 1888, which you can read here. But I’m sure older kids will find the other musical tracks, as well as Bonnie’s explanation of the poem, equally compelling.