Beth Blenz-Clucas blogs about music for kids that grownups will love too
One of the most exciting new releases for kids this year so far is from Farmer Jason. Jason Ringerberg is an internationally touring artist who built a huge fan base in the 1980s as frontman for the cow punk band Jason and the Scorchers, for which he won a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Americana Music Association. These days, Jason spends most of his time as the kid-friendly host of an Emmy Award winning Nashville Public TV series and touring as Farmer Jason. He just released Nature Jams with the brand new Universal Music label myKaZoo Music. Jason’s new songs point to the fun and excitement of being in nature, enjoying active pursuits like hiking and canoeing, and appreciating animals. Jason corralled an amazing lineup of guest artists to record these energetic songs, including Mike Mills of REM, Iris Dement, Brandi Carlile, Hank Williams III and Todd Snider, just to name a few. The excitement continues with Farmer Jason’s music videos, which rotate regularly on the new music video channel for kids, myKaZootv. Read more...
Beth Blenz-Clucas blogs about music for kids that grownups will love too
It’s almost Valentine’s Day, or what we call in our house, the square middle of the candy season (Christmas is the beginning, Easter is the end). I’ve always loved the song, “My Funny Valentine,” which has been recorded thousands of times by more than 600 artists since Rogers and Hart wrote it for a 1930s musical. It’s the perfect statement of true love, full of acceptance.
“Don’t change a hair for me
Not if you care for me
Stay little Valentine, stay
Each day is Valentine’s Day.”
What a great statement for kids to hear from us, especially when they enter the awkward first stages of self-awareness.Read more...
Beth Blenz-Clucas blogs about music for kids that grownups will love too
One of the best family adventures we ever had was a trip to Brazil in the summer of 2001. We hung out with relatives of my sister-in-law in Rio, explored some of the hill towns around the city, and enjoyed days filled with amazing sights, sounds and glorious food. A side trip up to the capital of Bahia, Salvador, was like experiencing a little bit of Africa, South American style. One evening there, our whole family joined an impromptu street parade, banging percussion instruments and samba dancing up a cobblestoned colonial road with a growing crowd of people of all ages. It was unbelievable, and we could’ve danced along all night, if not for a tank full of government troops rolling through to break things up (the police were on strike, and the government was suspicious of any unsupervised group activity). Needless to say, it was an experience. Read more...
While Beth is off today, we figured we’d find you and your kids something very MLK Day. Stevie Wonder wrote “Happy Birthday” in 1981 as part of a campaign to get Martin Luther King Jr’s birthday declared a national holiday. Something must have worked because President Ronald Reagan signed off of the holiday in 1983. And really, can you ever listen to too much Stevie Wonder? We didn’t think so.
Beth Blenz-Clucas blogs about music for kids that grownups will love tooRead more...
This has been an incredibly good year for kids’ music. I’ve heard so many wonderful songs for kids this year, my head is spinning.
Guaranteed, your kids will be spinning around the room, too, when they hear some of these fantastic songs from the past year. I’ve chosen the songs for their peppy musicality, high production values and lyrics that simply sing to kids.
Who doesn’t love songs about animals, friends, tuning out and avoiding
fights, especially this time of year? Each of these stellar artists is offering Bunchfamily readers a FREE SONG DOWNLOAD.
Alastair Moock: “These Are My Friends” – from These Are My Friends.
The Jimmies: “Every Day’s a Holiday” – from their CD “Practically Ridiculous.”
Debbie and Friends: “Walk Away” – from the Grammy-nominated CD All About Bullies Big and Small compilation.
Beth Blenz-Clucas blogs about music for kids that grownups will love too
I’ve been thinking a lot lately about artists connect with fans. Of course, it all comes down to how much passion and honesty artists put into their music and their performances and how skillfully they convey that to their audience.
I’ve found myself buried under so many things lately and I’m sure many of you understand how I feel. I sometimes wonder what I did with my time before I had children! When life gets busy, it can be difficult to set aside the must-dos and make some time for the things we really enjoy. Yet it’s such an important part of keeping life inspired and fun, things I definitely want to make sure my kids get to experience. Heck, I don’t want them to think life is entirely about chores and homework and eating their spinach.
So when Beth asked if I’d like to share a couple of songs for 2 Tunes 2 Ways this week, of course I responded with a resounding “yes” and then thought wow, I have so many things to do. How will I get this done?Read more...
