Coming Up This Week

Sienna will be providing this week's show, featuring artists who participated in their t-shirt review thingie. Should be fun!

Two Words for "Song": Opus Ditty

Thanks to Sienna from Hilltown Family Variety Show (whose daughter and cohost Persephone is in the picture below) for sending this picture from the Opus Ditty show at Cup & Top yesterday. Sounds like it was a lot of fun!

Playlist for 9-29-07

Whoo-hoo! Opus Ditty rocked.

Archive is here.

Legal ID (8:02)
They Might Be Giants - It's Spare the Rock
They Might Be Giants - House at the Top of the Tree (No!)
Mates of State - Jellyman Kelly (For the Kids Three)
Sippy Cups - Magic Toast (Snail Song & Magic Toast)
Laura Freeman - In the Fall (Somersault Seasons)
Tom Waits - Bend Down the Branches (Orphans)
Gustafer Yellowgold - Pinecone Lovely (Have You Never Been Yellow)
--song ID/PSA (Montessori Fair)
Enzo Garcia - Hand Over Hand (Field Trip with Enzo) (Premiere!)
A Fine Frenzy - Lifesize (One Cell in the Sea)
Dan Zanes - Alabama Bound (Hello Hello EP)
-song ID
Teddybears - Cobrastyle
Music for Aardvarks - Big Boom Whacker (Taxi)
Punk Farm - Wheels on the Van
ScribbleMonster - Chocolate Milk (Chocolate Milk)
Jellydots - San Diego
Pop Rockets - Recycle & Ride (Blast Off)
Recess Monkey - The Pool (Wonderstuff)
Mr. Leebot - Bathtub Superstar
Sugar Free Allstars - Bathtub Boy (Los Ninos)
-legal ID
Of Montreal - I Want to Have Fun (For the Kids Three)
Beastie Boys - Intergalactic (Hello Nasty)
ScribbleMonster - Spare the Rock, Spoil the Child
-song ID
Opus Ditty Live in-studio
-Indoor Blues
-Jamboree
-Let's Go Fishin'
Stevie Wonder - Sir Duke (Definitive Collection)
Gabby La La - Backpack (Be Careful What You Wish For)
Gorillaz - 19-2000 (Gorillaz)
Telephone Company - Grandma (Panda Brain Album)
Gwendolyn & the Good Time Gang - Anatomy (s/t)
Brian Setzer Orchestra - Wolfgang's Big Night Out (Wolfgang's Big Night Out)
Jambo - It's a Good Day (Lucy's Parade)
-song ID
They Might Be Giants - Spare the Rock
They Might Be Giants - Why Does the Sun Shine? (Live) (Severe Tire Damage)

World Premiere Coming Right Up

Hey, we've got the new Enzo Garcia CD Field Trip with Enzo and we're not afraid to use it.

In fact, we'll be playing the world premiere of "Hand Over Hand" this Saturday.

It's a great song off of a terrific record.

Pictures from the Block Party

Hey, we had fun with Recess Rock, Dennis Caraher, and Keith Munslow on Saturday at the Valley Free Radio Block Party. There are some pictures here.

Play More (Good Educational) Music for Your Kids.

Hey, that's what Scientific American says.

Upcoming Guests & Stuff

So, some updates:

1. This week, we've got Opus Ditty coming in-studio and to Cup & Top. Should be fun.

2. Brady Rymer sent his apologies for not calling in last week. We're going to figure out a new date soon and may even get a new song.

3. On October 20, the Pop Rockets will return to the show with a new CD to plug.

4. November 3, from the far-off land of California, we'll have Gwendolyn & the Good-Time Gang in-studio. They'll also be doing an acoustic mini-set at Cup & Top and a full rock and roll extravaganza at the Children's Art Museum.

5. December 9, our friend Gustafer Yellowgold will return to town, this time playing at the Florence Civic Center. Tickets will be (I think) $7 and will be available at the door only.

6. And February 2 (of, yes, 2008), Uncle Rock will be playing the Florence Civic Center too.

7. In the non-live-show category, my new column is up at Little Rock Parent - follow the link over there on the right to read it. It's about funny kids' musicians.

Playlist for 9-22-07

I think we're all still recovering from Austin, honestly.

But we must struggle on!

Archive is here.

Legal ID (8:00)
They Might Be Giants - It's Spare the Rock
They Might Be Giants - Robot Parade (No!)
Jellydots - Sad Robot (pre-release)
Hypnotic Clambake - 500 Robots (Live)
Recess Rock - Kitty in Central Park
Dennis Caraher - You Can Call Me ABC (Live at VFR)
Keith Munslow - I Can't Get Up This Morning (Accidentally [On Purpose])
-song ID (VFR Block Party Announcement)
A Fine Frenzy - Come On, Come Out
Josephine Cameron - Unclouded Day (American Songs Vol. 2)
Renee & Jeremy - It's a Big World (It's a Big World)
Ginger Hendrix - How the Days Go By (Macaroni Boy...)
Asylum Street Spankers - Sidekick (Mommy Says No!)
-song ID
Recess Monkey - My Pet Rock (Wonderstuff)
Hipwaders - Educated Kid (Educated Kid)
Spoon - You Got Yr. Cherry Bomb (Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga)
Chris Kenner - I Like It Like That (New Orleans Playground)
Earth Wind & Fire - Shining Star
Sippy Cups - Jungle Boogie (Kids Rock for Peas!)
Gwendolyn & the Good Time Gang - Red Means Stop (Get Up and Dance!)
Mates of State - Starman (All Day EP)
-legal ID (9:02)
ScribbleMonster - Spare the Rock, Spoil the Child
-song ID
Opus Ditty - Folsom Preschool Blues (Joyride Jet Engine Bus)
Johnny Cash - I Got a Boy and His Name is John (w/ June Carter Cash) (Johnny Cash Children's Album)
Sweet Honey in the Rock - 4 U 2 Know as U Grow (Experience...101)
Mocean Worker - Right Now
Ah-Choo - Why? (Ah-Choo)
Andre 3000 - Banana Zoo (Class of 3000)
-song ID (block party/Montessori PSA too)
Gustafer Yellowgold - I'm From the Sun (Live at Spare the Rock, Spoil the Child)
Uncle Rock - Too Many Presents! (Uncle Rock U)
Mr. David - Crocodiles are Hungry! (Jump in the Jumpy House)
Little mo' McCoury - Monkey and the Engineer (s/t)
Little Nashville - I've been Workin' on the Railroad (Country Music for Kids)
Bummkinns - Everybody Sing (Starry Skies and Lullabies)
-song ID
Great Lake Swimmers - See You on the Moon
-song ID
They Might Be Giants - Spare the Rock
They Might Be Giants - Man, It's So Loud in Here (Mink Car)

Streamdle Deedle Dees!

Have you missed all of your chances to see the Deedle Deedle Dees live? And were you among the many who cursed my software's failure when they were live on our show?

Stop your weeping. They'll be on WUKY out of Lexington, Kentucky, live tonight at 8:00 eastern. Stream it here.

Corrected: Austin Kiddie Limits/Family Music Meltdown Roundup - PLUS a Concert Announcement

So there's our full gallery of pictures, and our report too.

Then there's Stefan: Day 0, Day 1, Day 2, and Day 3. No Meltdown report yet, but I imagine it's coming.

Then there's Gooney Bird Kids (where you should follow the links to "Photos and Recap" - there's much more there): Day 1, Day 2, the Meltdown, and Day 3, plus yesterday's update has a picture of me with a genuine Gooney Bird Kid.

Updated: And! In completely unrelated news, Gustafer Yellowgold will be making a triumphant return to Northampton on December 39, appearing at 4:30 at the Florence Civic Center in beautiful downtown Florence. Details to come. Note: It's not the 3rd! It's Sunday the 9th! I'm a dork!

TMBG in Minneapolis

Just listened to the live stream of They Might Be Giants being interviewed on The Current, Minnesota Public Radio's eclectic station. They chat some about kids' music, the challenges of performing for kids, and the difficulty of convincing their "rowdy friends who have settled down" that they shouldn't bring their toddlers to 11:30 PM shows. The interview will eventually be archived here.

A More Complete Report

So we only ended up at one day of the festival. We were really, really tired on Friday and were asleep by 8:30 at night. And then Sunday we had to leave town by 12:30 or so to catch a plane. So it was Saturday alone. That may have been enough, just based on how freakin' hot it was.

All pictures are here.

First up: The Bummkins.



Lots of fun. Their newer stuff is a bit more rocking than the first record, with a good country nougat center still. I'm looking forward to the new CD.

Early in the day we met up with Gwyneth of Gooney Bird Kids, and Ella and her Camille were dancing:

.

Between the Bummkins and Jambo (below), we saw the Ike Reilly Assassination. As mentioned previously, he kicked my rear. (That's a good thing.)

Up next was Jambo:



I didn't know anything from Jambo before, but enjoyed the set a lot - fun straight-up poppy stuff.

(Incidentally, yes, the same guy is playing keyboard for both Jambo and the Bummkins, and he's in neither band. It's Tor Hyams, who produced AKL and Kidzapalooza, as well as Jambo's new album.)

Then the craziness that is the Sippy Cups began:



And we chatted with them too:



The Sippy Cups put on a pretty phenomenal high-energy show. Actually two shows - two thirty-minute sets. Very funny, very tight musically, and I think pretty entertaining even for the folks who were there expecting to see Ben Kweller as the day's special guest. (His throat had an owie, though, so he cancelled.)

Farmer Jason was next:



We didn't see all of his set, since we were also doing some of the activities (see below). But he was also very funny and, more than perhaps anyone else, genuinely engaging. He had a ton of audience participation, and the crowd was eager to help him out.

About those activities:





Just with that much stuff, that'd be a pretty good day. Honestly, it'd be a good full weekend. But we were just getting started, as we had the Family Music Meltdown yet to come!

We started off (after enjoying some highly refreshing adult beverages) (not the kids) with Laura Freeman:



Laura is roughly what you would get if you combined Laurie Berkner with Fred Schnieder. That's a very good thing. Funny, charming, enthralling.

Sippy Rudy played two great songs:



Check out the kid doing the secret-devil-horn sign. Sweet.

I note for the record that "Springtime Fantastic" is one of the best songs of the last couple of years, kids' or grownups'.

Second on the bill was the Telephone Company. They got the most bemused smiles from the parents, but everyone - including (especially) the kids - dug 'em. Awesome stuff:



Joe McDermott (with full band) played a solid, fun, effective and infectious set:



(Edit: I realize that "solid" and "effective" sound in retrospect like something less than enthusiasm. Far from it! The set was great.)

And the Deedle Deedle Dees finished the night with their high-energy show. With an almost entirely new-to-them crowd, they still blew everyone away:



Sunday we ate breakfast with friends at the Galaxy Cafe on West Lynn (yum!), packed up, got some traveling snacks at the essential Central Market, and flew home. We got home at 1:30 this morning, and we're all tired and cranky, but it was a great trip.

Thanks to Tor, Stefan, Gwyneth (+ family), Deb (+ family), Dale & Andrea & Nate & Amelia (for hosting us), Wendy & Russ at Ruta Maya, Laura, Rudy, Telephone Company, Joe (+ band), the Dees, Nancy (+ family), Bill T. (+ family), Megan, the sound guy, the full Sippy Cups, the Bummkins, Jambo, Farmer Jason, and I'm sure a ton of other people I'm forgetting and will feel bad about. You all rock.

Do you feel like you need to hear me ramble even more? You're in luck.

My interview with Jumping Monkeys is now available. Thanks to Megan and Leo for the invitation and for being such pleasant hosts.

ACL & Family Music Meltdown

More complete reports to come, but for now, you can check out the picture gallery.

Sunburned and Tired

What a great couple of days! Pictures will come after we get back to Massachusetts, but the short form:

- Great fun seeing our friends we're staying with.

- Terrific dinner at Chuy's Friday night. Green chile festival, yum!

- More yummy Mexican food for breakfast at Maudie's with another law school/practice friend.

- ACL was excellent. We saw the Bummkins, Jambo, the Sippy Cups, and Farmer Jason at the kids' stage, and the Ike Reilly Assassination elsewhere. Ike Reilly: Oh so not kid-friendly, but oh so good. As I sent a message to ScribbleJim: "Ike Reilly: 1. My [bottom]: 0." Interviews with Bummkins, Sippy Cups, and Farmer Jason to come on future shows.

- The Family Music Meltdown was amazing! Laura Freeman was hypnotizingly wonderful, Telephone Company was hilarious and weird and great, Joe McDermott (with full band!) rocked the house, and the Deedle Deedle Dees were, as always, fabulous. Plus, Sippy Cup Rudy played a couple of in-between-set songs, including my favorite "Springtime Fantastic" and a song about a ladybug that I think is new.

More to come. We're off to breakfast and then to catch a plane home.

I'm Less Excited. Well, Still Excited, but Delayed.

TMBG's Here Come the 123s has been delayed until February. Alas.

Also, Austin: Hot. And leaving home at 3:30 AM: Early. But we'll be off to see bands and have fun tomorrow. We have scheduled chats with Farmer Jason, Kelly Willis, and others. Should be fun!

2007-09-15 Playlist PLUS a chance to win a new Hipwaders CD

Figured I'd get this up now while I'm thinking of it. It's Hipwader Tito's guest DJ set, and oh how good it is.

Incidentally, I have a couple of extra copies of the Hipwaders fantastic new CD "Educated Kid." Want to win one? Tell me (via an e-mail to show AT sparetherock DOT com) who did the song that Tito partially covers at the start of the show.

Archive is here. (Update: Ha! That was funny, wasn't it? I linked to it before I uploaded it. It's uploading now, honest.) (Updated again: It's there now.)

1. Legal ID
2. Spare the Rock - TMBG
3. Istanbul - TMBG
4. Tito introduction
5. Mr. Slater’s Parrot - Bonzo Dog Band
6. Chicken Strut - The Meters
7. Pussy Cat - Twink
8. Tiger Rag - Mills Bros.
9. How to Build a Dog - The Sippy Cups
10. Critters Have Feelings - Hoodwinked Sndtrk
11. Song ID #1
12. Jet Fighter - The Three O’Clock
13. We’re Off on A Lengthy Trip, We Are - Copp & Brown
14. I’ve Got No Strings - The Hipwaders
15. Happy Boy - The Beat Farmers
16. I Was Kaiser Bill’s Batman - Whistling Jack Smith
17. I Am the Human Fly - Dragibus
18. Song ID #2
19. Bad Boy - The Beatles
20. Harry Braff - The Bee Gees
21. Ca Plane Pour Moi - Plastic Bertrand
22. Don’t Look Down - The Sugarplastic
23. Go - Apples in Stereo
24. Eenie Meenie Song - The Candy Band
25. Song ID #3
26. Aidan takes over
27. Chipmunk Fun - The Chipmunks
28. I Love My Lips - Veggietales
29. Song ID #4

total time: 58:41

Set list for hour 2:

1. Legal ID (Turn Up the Radio - The Hipwaders)
2. Spare the Rock - Scribble Monster
3. Next Stop Brattleboro - NRBQ
4. Where Do They Go? - Frances England
5. Song ID #1
6. Cyclops - DEVO 2.0
7. Geometry - The Hipwaders
8. Tools - Esther Nelson & Bruce Haack
9. A Rake, A Broom... - Terrible Twos
10. Licking Stick - Desmond Dekker
11. Don’t You Just Know It - Huey Smith
12. You’ve Gotta Eat Your Spinach, Baby - Shirley Temple
13. Song ID #2
14. Monkey Rings - Playsoundz
15. Garbage Can Ballet - Nilsson
16. Ten Tiny Toes - Sol Hoopi
17. Big Yellow Clock - Happy Hatters
18. The Dancing Flowers - The Wiggles
19. A Collection of Stamps - I’m from Barcelona
20. Song ID #3
21. Fish Is In the Bag - Telephone Company
22. Buzz, Buzz, Buzz - Jonathan Richman
23. Jollity Farm - The Bonzo Dog Band
24. Cat in a Bathysphere - The Hipwaders
25. Ocean Man - Ween
26. Scurvy - Captain Bogg & Salty
27. Song ID #4
28. Spare the Rock - TMBG
29. Why Does the Sun Shine? - TMBG

Monkeys Jump!

A few weeks ago I noted a link from Jumping Monkeys, the terrific podcast from Megan Morrone (formerly of TechTV and various other things). Well, I did an interview with the show last week that will go up on this week's podcast, so check it out. I think it'll be up on Saturday.

...and thanks to Megan for posting about the Family Music Meltdown, too!

Remember: This week is an amazing guest show from Hipwader Tito.

Playlist for 9-8-07

It's starting to feel like fall...(until it got to be 90 later in the day)

Archive is here.

Legal ID (8:00)
They Might Be Giants - It's Spare the Rock
They Might Be Giants - Shoehorn with Teeth
Safety Patrol - Shoe Tie Rules
Eric Ode - I Love My Shoes (I Love My Shoes)
Uncle Rock - Shoe Bandit (Plays Well With Others)
Brian Eno - I'll Come Running (Another Green World)
--song ID
Constant Wonder Interview
Dominique Dimey - Clic Clac (French Playground)
--song ID
Dressy Bessy - Electrified (Electrified)
ScribbleMonster - The Fur Trade? (A Curious Glimpse of Michigan)
Sippy Cups - Springtime Fantastic (Electric Storyland!)
CandyBand - Get Up Already (Lollipunk)
Rocknoceros - Apollo (Dark Side of the Moon Bounce)
Weezer - My Name is Jonas (Blue Album)
Yosi - Hole in the Ground (Under a Big Bright Yellow Umbrella)
Duplex - DNA (Ablum)
-legal ID (9:02)
ScribbleMonster - Spare the Rock, Spoil the Child
-song ID
REM - Stand (Green)
Paul Westerberg - Love You in the Fall (Open Season Soundtrack)
Soccer Team - I'll Never Fear Ghosts Again (Play)
Justin Roberts - Meltdown (Meltdown!)
Posies - Flavor of the Month (Frosting on the Beater)
-song ID
Ellen & Matt - Side by Side (Live at Spare the Rock, Spoil the Child)
Steve Weeks - I Can't Play the Violin (Alphabet Songs Vol. III)
Roger Day - I Like Yaks (Dream Big!)
Laura Freeman - Purple (Color Wheel Cartwheel)
-Good News Promo
Deedle Deedle Dees - Underground Railroad (Freedom in a Box)
Telephone Company - Grandma (Panda Brain Album)
Joe McDermott - Roller Coaster (Everybody Plays Air Guitar)
-song ID
Frances England - Charlie Parker (Fascinating Creatures)
Charlie Parker - Now's the Time (Bird)
The Daktaris - Eltsuhg Ibal Lasiti (Soul Explosion)
Baby Loves Jazz Band - ABC (Baby Loves Jazz)
-song ID
They Might Be Giants - Spare the Rock
They Might Be Giants - Go for G

Hey, Look. A Free CD.

We dig Teacher & The Rockbots a lot; I haven't been as blown away by the Blankies. But you can get a sampler CD featuring both of them if you go fill out their survey. Cool.

They got all the responses they needed. No CD for you!

A Plea...For the Children

Won't somone do a kid-friendly truly rocking version of Radar Love by Golden Earring?

Good lord, Liam and I just totally rocked out to that on The Current.

ScribbleJim? CandyBand? SippyRudy? Hipwader Tito? Ulysses S. Dee? Someone?

(And let us just meditate briefly on the fact that an entire site exists dedicated to that one song. Follow the link above. You will sit, slack-jawed, in astonishment.)

Mysteries, mysteries...

Not like you needed more reasons to come to the Family Music Meltdown, but just to pile on: We're going to have some very special mystery surprise guests at the show. The manufacturers won't let us mention their names...no, wait, that doesn't make sense. Well, we can't tell you who will be there for various reasons. But it'll be great.

Playlist for September 1, 2007

Off camping.

Archive is here. ROCK!

Legal ID (7:59)
They Might Be Giants - It's Spare the Rock
They Might Be Giants - Employee of the Month (Cast Your Pod to the Wind)
Dan Zanes - I Don't Want Your Millions Mister (Catch That Train!)
Matt Surowiec & the Tricentennial Band - Ain't No Hole in the Washtub (Emmet Otter's Jug-Band Christmas)
Kira Willey - The Sound I Found (Dance for the Sun)
Barney Saltzberg - Song for Pete (Crazy Hair Day) (with Richard Thompson)
ScribbleMonster - Beautiful Day (Chocolate Milk)
Opus Ditty & the Joyride Jet Engine Bus - The Funcky A-B-Cs (& the Joyride Jet Engine Bus)
--song ID
Deedle Deedle Dees - Teddy Days (Freedom in a Box)
Ralph's World - Just Like the Monkeys (Amazing Adventures...)
Mr. Leebot - Ants in the Pants
Lee Dorsey - Ya Ya (New Orleans Playground)
Milkshake - School (Bottle of Sunshine)
--song ID
Madness - One Step Beyond (One Step Beyond)
Specials - Rudi, A Message to You (Singles)
Skankin' Pickle - I Missed the Bus (Skankin' Pickle Fever)
SteveSongs - Elephant Hide and Seek (Marvelous Day!)
The Clash - Lost in the Supermarket (London Calling)
AudraRox - I Can Do It By Myself! (I Can Do It By Myself!)
Salteens - Crash the Market (Short-Term Memories)
Miz B - I'm in Love (Raise the Brain)
-legal ID (9:00)
Farmer Jason - Punk Rock Skunk (Rockin' in the Forest with Farmer Jason)
PSA (Bike Safety)
Ellen and Matt - Juice Box Rock (Best Friends)
Time Outs - High Five (Time Outs)
Decemberists - Sons and Daughters (The Crane Wife)
-song ID
ScribbleMonster - Spare the Rock, Spoil the Child
-song ID
Run DMC - from Reading Rainbow
Ah-Choo - Konnichiwa (Ah-Choo)
Happy Monster - Do Your Ears Hang Low? (Rhythm with Rhymes)
Hipwaders - Little Baby Brother (Educated Kid)
Uncle Rock - Polar Bear Over There (Uncle Rock U)
Quiet Ones - Polar Bear (Make Some Noise)
Trouble Hubble - I See Molecules
-song ID
D. Jay - Tell You a Secret (Buggy Baloo)
Monty Harper - Can You Guess (Get a Clue)
Mr. "S" - Itchy Little Toe (Songs for Family, Friends & Frogs)
Little Mo' McCoury - My Friend, My Guitar (s/t)
Jimmies - Do the Elephant (Make Your Own Someday)
Asylum Street Spankers - Boogers (Mommy Says No!)
-song ID
They Might Be Giants - Spare the Rock
They Might Be Giants - The Alphabet of Nations (Here Come the ABCs)
They Might Be Giants - 32 Footsteps (They Might Be Giants)