As the story goes, Stephan Shepherd’s wife was asked to edit the newsletter for her parenting group. At one point, she asked her hubby to add some reviews of kids’ music. Months later, ZooGlobble emerged from the “internets” as one of the best kids’ music blogs out there.
Taking a quick jump over to ZooGlobble yields a plethora of kids bands and some great snippets of their tunes. The blog is very well set up, even breaking down each post by age-appropriateness, from 0-double digits. There’s a lot of great polls, even tour reports (SXSW has a kids band stage?), and some great industry news overall.
Word also has it that Shepherd does a bit of promoting and gets some good bands to come to his hometown of Phoenix. Grab your kid and log on to ZooGlobble now for the latest and greatest in the world of kids’ tunes.
If you’re a woman and you grew up in the eighties, chances are that at one point you probably wished Captain Lou Albano was your father. The man was a legend in the wrestling community but he also played Cyndi Lauper’s dad in her raucous “Girls Just Want to Have Fun” video. It was Lauper’s first solo single and was seen as a feminist anthem.
The video is the perfect piece to watch with your daughter. From the first notes of the piano roll, the catchy hook will have you dancing (like everyone in the video) through your house. Kids will also like the cheesy eighties effects and Lauper’s outrageous eighties wardrobe. Say what you will about Lauper’s accent, but her voice is perfect for pop songs like this. So invite over eight of your daughter’s friends to perfect the three rows of heads waving back and forth and start having fun.
On March 15th, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inducted Genesis, ABBA, Jimmy Cliff and The Stooges into the Hall of Fame. The induction ceremonies began back in 1986 with Little Richard, Elvis Presley, Fats Domino, Ray Charles, Chuck Berry, Sam Cooke, The Everly Brothers, Buddy Holly, and Jerry Lee Lewis joining the Hall of Fame. It’s a great ceremony and a true testament to rock music. Now you can enjoy this event with your own little rocker because the Rock Hall is selling their own official clothing for kids and babies. Get your little tyke rocking early or give as a great baby shower gift with our new digital download gift package!
Need a little peace and quiet? Fat chance if you’ve got little ones. But now that spring is here, it’s all the more reason to banish that cabin fever and head outdoors with the kids. When you’re looking for an alternative to the stroller, consider the Kokopax Eco-classic Carrier. What makes it environmentally-friendly is how it’s made (using special green printing methods and dyes). What you’ll love is the 100-percent cotton breathable fabric—so you don’t have to sweat the small stuff—plus the bold patterns that come in whimsical names like Bubbles Take Two and Pax (hence the peace signs). This carrier isn’t just fashionable, but functional too. There’s a padded, removable waist belt for a snug fit and extra comfort built into the shoulder straps (we know how bulky those babes can get). To keep your kid contained, a five-point harness does the trick, while the adjustable frame works for either you or your vertically challenged spouse. And when you’re ready to unload your precious cargo, just flip out the fold-up kickstand and you’re ready to roll. Whoever said extra baggage has to be a bad thing?
When I was growing up there were less distractions than there are now. We didn’t have the internet and cable television. So when something struck in pop culture it truly became a phenomenon. I remember seeing Star Wars as a kid only because it was so popular. I remember waiting by the television to see Michael Jackson’s Thriller video. Now I want to share the classics with my own 5 year old but I have two problems 1) He doesn’t seem to care for them because of all his other options and 2) what is an appropriate age to show him something that wasn’t made specifically for kids?
After listening to Thriller together in the car, I tried to show him the video but I forgot how scary the first few images were (when he turns into a werewolf). My son’s face turned white and he asked me to shut it off. I know there are a few scenes in Star Wars that he shouldn’t be watching, specifically when Luke discovers his Aunt and Uncle have been killed and when Ben Kenobi cuts a guy’s arm off with his light saber. So I’m asking you, the Rockabye readers, what is an appropriate age to show a kid the Thriller video and Star Wars?
We are excited to announce our first Rockabye Baby collection featuring our best-loved lullaby renditions of baby’s favorite rock bands – plus an exclusive bonus track! This special album is available exclusively in participating Starbucks stores in the U.S. and Canada now through 4/19/2010.
Great coffee for you, sleepy-time songs for baby. What could be better?
Every parent knows Nickelodeon, either from their kids, or from growing up themselves and tuning in each morning. Did you know that originally Nick was named after a show it carried? On December 1st, 1977 a channel called Pinwheel launched and ran only six hours a day, showing classics like Video Comic Book, Pop Clips, America Goes Bananaz, Nickel Flicks, By the Way, and its namesake Pinwheel. Two years later, the channel re-launched as Nickelodeon, but it still favored Pinwheel as a central show. This show was widely popular with kids then and it’s just begging for an introduction to your kids now!
I know some of you are either flipping out at my mention of Pinwheel, or you’re completely clueless as to what I’m talking about.
So here are some facts:
Pinwheel ran from 1977 to 1990.
There are over 260 one-hour episodes of the show.
Usually the show was broadcast 3-5 hour blocks of the show, much like Sesame Street is now.
It’s the fourth longest running show on the network.
It incorporated puppets, live action, cartoons, and stop motion.
There was always a ton of music in each episode and much of it is still ingrained in the heads of those of us who watched it
I haven’t even gotten into the content besides the puppets and such. The list of mini shows and shorts included in each episode is crazy.
How many of these do you remember?
Alfie Atkins
Bagpuss
Bod
Bolek and Lolek
Bunny in the Suitcase (A Kockásfülű nyúl)
Chapi Chapo
Charlie
Curious George
Emily
Flower Stories
Hattytown Tales
King Rollo
Lilliputput
Magic Coco
Mole
Magic Roundabout, The
Mixometric
Musti
Paddington Bear (airs on Nick Jr. Classics in UK)
Picture Pages
The Pilis
Professor Balthazar
Simon in the Land of Chalk Drawings
Tip and Tap
But that’s just the facts, you need to watch some to really get the gist. Here’s the opening:
Pretty sweet, right? I know some of you remember that song! I myself have been spending hours now searching for Pinwheel content online, as it’s hard to find a lot of the material. However, I did find that Hulu is hosting an entire episode:
Here are a bunch more clips:
Paddington Bear:
Coco (the live action mime on the show):
Simon in the Land of Chalk Drawings (I love this intro song):
Hattytown Tales:
Check around online and you should be able to find some episodes streaming, or try and grab some DVDs of the seasons.
Get your kids started making a racket early on and get their creative fires burning with homemade instruments that are as fun to make as they are to play. Enchantedlearning.com has a huge list of homemade instruments, as does Kinderart.com. Here’s a list of some of the great ones from both sites.
Box Guitar
What you need:
-empty shoe box
-rubber bands
-ruler or stick
Remove the cover from the box. Stretch the rubber bands around the box. Attach the ruler or stick to the back of the box on one end to act as the neck of the guitar. To play, strum or pluck the rubber bands.
Drum
What you need:
-empty oatmeal box with cover
-yarn
-pen
-2 pencils
-2 spools
-construction paper
-crayons
Before beginning, you can decorate the oatmeal box with construction paper and/or crayons for a colorful effect. Place the cover on the box. Use a pen to make a hole in the center of the cover and in the center of the bottom of the box. Through these holes, pull a piece of yarn long enough to hang around child’s neck and down to their waist. For the drumsticks, place the spools at the ends of the pencils, secure with glue if necessary. Beat to play.
Water-Bottle Baby Rattle
What you need:
-1 Empty Water Bottle
-1/4 cup of uncooked rice, lentils or beans
-Assorted colored ribbons.
-Optional beads, sequins or felt shapes
-Hot glue or non-toxic craft glue
This craft project shows you how to make a baby toy out of a recycled water bottle. This baby toy craft is a great sensory toy for little minds to help them play and develop. Start by taking your water bottle and allowing it to dry. Once it is dry add your “rattle” items. This bottle is filled with rice, sequins, felt cutouts and a few assorted bright beads. Place some glue around the rim of the lid and then pop it on and allow it to set. This is just an extra precautionary in case the top should become loose. Keep in mind this toy is for small infants Birth-6 months so secure the lid with glue to be safe.
Rainstick
What you need:
-A paper towel tube or other long cardboard tube
-Aluminum foil
-Small dried beans (like lentils), unpopped popcorn, dry rice, or tiny pasta
-Brown paper (from a grocery bag) or construction paper
-Glue
-Scissors
-Crayons or markers
Trace around the end of your tube onto a piece of brown paper (or construction paper). Draw a bigger circle around that circle and then draw a lot of spokes between the two circles. Cut along the spokes. Put glue on the spokes and glue the cap onto one end of your tube. Cut a piece of aluminum foil that is about one and half times the length of your tube and about 6 inches wide. Crunch the aluminum foil into two long, thin, snake-like shapes. Then twist each one into a spring shape. Put the aluminum foil springs into your tube. Pour some dry beans, dry rice, or unpopped popcorn into your tube. The tube should only be about 1/10 full. You can experiment to see how different amounts and different types of seeds and beans change the sound. Make another cap from brown paper (the same as the first three steps) and cap your tube. Optional: Decorate the tube by covering it with brown paper or construction paper, and then making designs with crayons or markers (or cut-out paper or stickers).
Horn
What you need:
-paper towel roll
-waxed paper
-rubber band
-pen
Cover one end of the paper towel roll with waxed paper, secure it with a rubber band. Punch a row of holes along one side of the roll with the tip of a pen. To play, sing a tune into the open end of the horn.
Have you ever wanted to hear Beatles songs like “Eleanor Rigby” performed by kids with so much energy you’re sure they’re going to break through your computer screen and give you a big hug? Well The Castillo Kids must just be that group.
The Castillo Kids consist of Julie (10), Jessie (12), and Joey (14). They play lots of Beatles songs and some originals quite well, and with such energy that you’re sure to want to take them home. The girls play bass, violin, guitar, and probably more. Joey seems to mostly play guitar, but also the sax and he takes lead vocals more often than not. The girls provide great backup and have tons of energy that we all wish we still had, not to mention some groovy choreography.
I read that they auditioned on America’s Got Talent, but haven’t found the results as of yet. A simple search on YouTube will yield a plethora of results, however. These kids have been doing this for years, one would guess with the guidance of their parents (who else is holding the camera?). Some of the older videos show a lot of promise; hell, I wish I could have played guitar so well at age nine! Not to mention the complexity of the harmonies on some of these songs. The Beatles didn’t really phone it in too often.
Check out their website with tons of video links, pics and more. And keep an eye out for these kids to make some moves in the future!
P. S. They’re playing the Largest Beatles festival in the world Abbey Road on the River from May 27-31 in Louisville, KY. Check them out if you can!
No need to limit your baby-gushing vocabulary to “goo goo gaga.” If there’s a toddler or preschooler in residence at your house, names like Foofa, Brobee, Muno, Plex and Toodee are almost as popular as “Mama.” Otherwise known as Yo Gabba Gabba, this undeniably awesome menagerie of rainbow-hued singing, dancing and all-around-rockin’ characters is tops with little kids of all ages. The Gabba coolness factor is catching on with grown-up music makers, too. From The Shins to The Roots, the number of eclectic bands rocking out with this fun group continues to mushroom. Frankly, all this musical attention has us wondering exactly just what the allure is. Is it Foofa’s giggly nature, Plex’s dead-on robot moves (well, he is a robot after all)? Let’s not forget the ultimate band leader of them all, DJ Lance Rock (love those groovy glasses!). We can’t quite narrow it down, but if the recent line-up of special guests—from Weezer, to The Ting Tings, to Devo and Tim Armstrong of Rancid—is any testament to the Gabba’s staying power, then we know we’re on to something.
As the story goes, Stephan Shepherd’s wife was asked to edit the newsletter for her parenting group. At one point, she asked her hubby to add some reviews of kids’ music. Months later, ZooGlobble emerged from the “internets” as one of the best kids’ music blogs out there.
