Question for SFers with small kids

[Billy's Little Trip]

By far my favourite children's books to read out loud
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UoLie9xz ... re=related

That narrator is a riot!

[Caravan Ray]

I really have no idea. I guess whatever age listens to the Wiggles and the like: 5 and under? Do kids older than 5 like music that is marketed to kids?

I think there is a big difference between the pre-school market (<5) and the school age market (5-~8ish).

I'm only familiar with the <5 stuff at the moment, and that doesn't really include the "funny words" and stuff that BLT mentioned (at least, while wordplay may be in the songs, I don't think it is part of the appeal to very young kids). The Wiggles don't really use any wordplay or anything like that. It is more simple lyrics and movement.

I guess what you need to aim for is simple songs with melody and movement, that also contain some jokes for older kids. From my own childhood, I remember that Rolf Harris was a great example of that.

[erik]

Yeah, the stuff I've found is alot of stuff that seems geared to under 5: it seems to be very straightforward, not alot of words, lots of repetition, very sing-songy, clear and emotionless vocals, and a sense of extreme earnestness. Who are the people that slightly older kids listen to?

[jack]

like roy said, dan zanes is very popular with the tween kid crowd. maybe not miley cyrus popular but he still sells out his shows wherever he goes. and he's got cred (formerly with the del fuegos, a pretty good band in their time).

you should check some of his stuff out.

also, this is an awesome kids CD.

[roymond]

We went to see the Tiny Masters of Today a few months ago and the boys loved being at a "real rock concert" with a 10 and 12 year old fronting the trio, and some teen aged drummer.

[frankie big face]

Does anyone know if or how well that Disney-fied Devo album went over with kids?

[jimtyrrell]

No idea. My kids like Devo well enough as is, so we just listen to that.

I made a CD for the boys over the weekend and this is what I remember from it:

Steve Martin - King Tut
Thomas Dolby - Hyperactive!
Weird Al - Yoda
Soul Coughing - Casiotone Nation

[roymond]

Steve Martin - King Tut

Yes! That's brilliant. The video is on YouTube. The boys crack up and start dancing...

[No Horse Town]

I kinda feel a little bad about it, for "but-what-will-she-have-in-common-with-the-other-kids??" reasons, but I try to steer Sophie (my kid, age 4) away from kids' music. It's all so saccharine and preachy and.. I dunno.. kinda insulting to her intelligence. I don't see why kids need their own special little genre. As long as it's not filled with foul language / explicit adult themes, ain't nuthin' wrong with the real thing. Her favorite band is either Deerhoof or Talking Heads, depending on her mood. She also digs the Breeders quite a bit, and the bits and pieces of Ween that we let her listen to. My mom finds all this quite disheartening. She's always trying to push this crappy kids' XM radio station on her, but... heheh... which music do you think actually sticks in her head? That's right, mom. You've lost your edge, ya ol' nag. I mean, I love you.

[Rabid Garfunkel]

...Soul Coughing - Casiotone Nation

Thanks Jim. That's going to be stuck in my head all day.

five... ten... fifteen... twenty...

[Niveous]

1. What music does your kid listen to?
2. Do they listen to it because a parent introduced the kid to the music, or was the music introduced to the kid by someone else other than the parent?
3. What is your opinion of the kids music that your kid likes?

*If you don't have small kids, or if your small kids listen to things like Devo or Slayer, your answers will not be helpful to me. Sorry.

How does Devo not count? There is a little kid Devo- Dev 2.0

1. Children's music has changed a lot over the years. My kids have often been entertained by the music found on Jack's Big Music Show on Noggin. That show has included a lot of good children's music including The Dirty Sock Funtime Band, Milkshake, The Trachtenberg Family Slideshow Players, Steve Burns and Steven Drozd. But my kids who are 8 & 6 have mostly jumped onto the stuff my wife and I listen to. Though M will happily tell you how much he loves The Dollyrots' "Because I'm Awesome".

2. Parental influence is big. The amount of Japanese music on my kids' mp3 players wouldn't have happened if they hadn't heard me play it. They wouldn't listen to Cyndi Lauper or Weezer if it wasn't for my wife's influence.

3. I love the music they listen to.

[glennny]

The best kids music I've ever heard is Minty Handy's non-SongFight stuff. I'm surprised he hasn't piped in on this thread. We have a nebulous plan to record his songs someday, i can't wait.

My daughter turned 3 yesterday her favorite music is:

1- The Sound of Music- all of the songs therein.
2- The Flaming Lips especially the last few albums
3- Pinback- For some reason Pinback soothes her, she'll go from a crying fit to a calmed state in about 15 seconds of Pinback. I think it's a bass thing.

My son is almost one (August)

He responds to Whitney Houston, or Madonna, basically 80's female pop.

[erik]

How does Devo not count?

I didn't say Devo doesn't count, I just didn't want a bunch of answers from parents who do not listen to what is marketed as kids music. I am interested in researching modern kids music to see what it sounds like. Knowing that some kids like Devo does absolutely nothing to help me learn about music that is marketed towards children.

[Niveous]

Devo is marketed to kids:



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LlYLuttV4aM
http://disneymusic.disney.go.com/albums/devo20.html

[erik]

Yeah, I posted about that to songfight when they came out. Listening to old Devo songs sung by tweens is not going to be helpful to me in figuring out what successful modern kids music sounds like.

[Billy's Little Trip]

Hey Erik, I had an ideas about this the other day. I suggest that you stand back, or you might get some on you. *artificial laugh*

I've been on a job site most of this week with a lot of Hispanic workers. They all seem to enjoy the same radio station and seem to get excited about the same popular songs when they come on. I know this because they make sounds like, yeee haa, EEEEE, ahhh haaa and I think I heard one actually say, I'cha Momma!

Now, hear is where I got to thinking. Every single song sounded like a hit song on American radio stations, but from five or more years ago. As if everything that was in the charts, was now redone in Spanish with the standard Hispanic instruments added in, like, accordion, etc.

Maybe you should search for children's songs from other cultures and remake them. I believe kids are kids no matter what part of the world they are from and kids seem to like the same basic things. There are many nursery rhymes that have become standards in our culture that come from others. Like, Frarajaca(sp), London Bridge is Falling down, etc, because most nursery rhymes reflect events in history.
Why not do the same?

[erik]

Because I like to write songs.

[Rabid Garfunkel]

I've been on a job site most of this week with a lot of Hispanic workers. They all seem to enjoy the same radio station and seem to get excited about the same popular songs when they come on. I know this because they make sounds like, yeee haa, EEEEE, ahhh haaa and I think I heard one actually say, I'cha Momma!

Ciento cinco punto cinco eff emme! Goddamn, I loved that station.

[Billy's Little Trip]

I've been on a job site most of this week with a lot of Hispanic workers. They all seem to enjoy the same radio station and seem to get excited about the same popular songs when they come on. I know this because they make sounds like, yeee haa, EEEEE, ahhh haaa and I think I heard one actually say, I'cha Momma!

Ciento cinco punto cinco eff emme! Goddamn, I loved that station.

HA! That's the one! I hear that station identification about every 3 songs. I don't like American pop stations, but I have to admit, I like Spanish pop, lol. Pop is SO much better with accordion and rolling RRRs.

[Caravan Ray]

Frarajaca(sp)

Is that supposed to be Frere Jacques (accents missing)?

[Billy's Little Trip]

Frarajaca(sp)

Is that supposed to be Frere Jacques (accents missing)?

Probably. I did try to google it because I knew I was way off. But unfortunately it didn't correct me and every link spelled it wrong like me, lol. So I did the (sp) so people wouldn't think that I didn't try.

I remember reading where the inspiration for famous nursery rhymes came from. It was really interesting that so many of them came from tragic events in history. Ring around the rosie (ring o ring of roses) was in reference to the deaths of the black plague. The interpretation was something along the lines of, first you get a rose colored rash with a ring around it, then sneezing, then you collapse and die. Wow, what a wonderful children's song, lol. Of course it has slight variation all over the world.

[Niveous]

Yeah, I posted about that to songfight when they came out. Listening to old Devo songs sung by tweens is not going to be helpful to me in figuring out what successful modern kids music sounds like.

Okay. Then I suggest checking out the Jack's Big Music Show stuff. It really is becoming the mecca for kids music.
http://www.noggin.com/games/jacks/clubh ... ideoplayer

It may be predominantly Laurie Berkner but past that, there are a lot of really good children's music bands on there. I suggest Milkshake. I had that "Bottle of Sunshine" song stuck in my head for months.