by kellie abrahamson kabrahamson1@aol.com
At 26, I consider myself a young mom. I still enjoy, or at the very least try to enjoy, the things of my youth. While attending concerts has become tricky for me to maneuver since having my two terrific kids (trying to get a babysitter every time a good band comes to town is harder than you might think), I’ve discovered some really great tunes that I can blast in the car, or in the nursery, without fear of my little guys picking up on the “sex” and “drugs” parts of rock and roll.
Baby Rock Records takes rock out of the stadium and places it in the nursery with their hypnotic instrumental covers of some of the biggest names in music. Geared toward hipster parents looking for a way to give their infants a taste of some of their favorite bands, the company has put out nineteen albums since August of 2006. Each features baby-friendly versions of songs by groups like Metallica, Radiohead, Pink Floyd, U2 and Nine Inch Nails. Called Rockabye Baby! these clever lullabies are incredibly soothing for the baby and fairly entertaining for their parents, who are the true target audience. This week Baby Rock Records added three more albums to their growing product line: Lullaby Renditions of Björk, Lullaby Renditions of Bob Marley and Lullaby Renditions of The Beatles. They plan to add The Pixies to the party this June. All of the Rockabye Baby! CDs can be purchased online at BabyRockRecords.com, where you can also hear a 30-second clip of most of the tunes.
Rock royalty They Might Be Giants gave parents something to cheer about in 2002 when they released their successful family-friendly album No!. In 2005, the group came up with the heavily-promoted, extremely lovable record Here Come the ABCs. As you may have guessed, each song on the album (with the exception of a couple of bonus tracks) highlights the letters in the alphabet; each filled with fun lyrics and set to some really great music that you can’t help but move to. Many of the songs, like “Flying V” and “D is for Drums” incorporate music lessons in with their alphabet teachings. The band is currently working on a follow-up album, Here Come the 1-2-3s, which is scheduled for release sometime this year.
Jack Johnson’s soundtrack album for 2006 film Curious George made an immediate and lasting impression on my little ones. The album features original songs written for the film, kid-friendly covers and updated versions of children’s songs from back in the day. Sing-A-Longs and Lullabies topped the Billboard 200 when it was released and has sold over 2 million copies worldwide. The entire family loves “We’re Going to be Friends,” written by the White Stripes, and “The 3 R’s,” which was adapted from “Three is the Magic Number,” of Schoolhouse Rock! fame. Personally, I wish the kids were more into track 8, “The Sharing Song.” Once they embrace the chorus “It’s always more fun to share with everyone” I suspect my household will be a lot more peaceful!
It came out in 2002 but I still can’t get enough of it. This compilation album features sixteen updated Sesame Street tunes by artists like Dan Zanes, Sarah McLachlan and Tom Waits. My personal favorite is Cake’s version of the infective “Mahna Mahna,” a song that will repeat itself over and over in your head for literally days. While the meanings of these songs are specifically geared toward children (I think most of us are past lessons on hygiene-- I hope), the music isn’t watered down at all, allowing grown up ears to enjoy them as well. Best of all, a portion of the proceeds go to VH1’s Save the Music Foundation, a terrific charity whose goal is to get music education back in public schools.
Thankfully, many artists have realized that parents today would rather enjoy silence over the incessant sappiness of Raffi, The Wiggles and the Dreaded Purple One, Barney. Much of that may be due to the fact that a lot of our favorite musicians now have kids of their own. Next time you’re in a record store, take a stroll down the Children’s Music aisle. You may discover some familiar names have crossed over to the toddler side.
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