So you want to expose your kid to live music but you don’t want to have to sit through cheesy kid’s music concerts with songs about balloons and happy places. You can’t take them to most rock shows because, let’s face it, the sound is way too loud, the crowd too rowdy, and the second-hand smoke just may give them a second-hand high as well. What to do? Check out Kidrockers, which puts on all-ages indie rock shows that are kid friendly as well as cool. From their site: “These all ages shows are designed to bring families together to experience some of the most engaging and vital artists in indie music and comedy.” But be warned, childless music lovers: all adults must be accompanied by a kid (and vice versa)!
Past shows have included performances by Silversun Pickups (doing an acoustic set with kids storming the stage), Neon Indian and Nada Surf. There are upcoming shows in Chicago on March 13, Los Angeles on March 14 and New York on March 21. It’s a chance to introduce your kid to some great indie music about to go mainstream. You’ll enjoy it just as much as your children.
St. Patrick’s day may not seem to be a holiday aimed at children, what with the whiskey spilling and the jigging and what not. But I’ve roamed through the St. Patrick’s day parade in New York City on more than one occasion and found countless kids perched on their parents’ shoulders swathed in green, sometimes even drinking an ominous green liquid from their bottle. While there’s no shortage of gifts to have your kid don for this joyous celebration, here are some great ones that will at least make you laugh.
Irish Fancy Pants Embroidered Diaper Cover
Because nothing says Happy St Patrick’s Day like a personalized diaper with the baby’s name on it. Made of cotton/poly blend with embroidered eyelet trim at leg opening. Includes soft elastic waist. Machine washable. Available in 3 sizes.
Irish Trouble – Bib
Another personalized piece, this bib pretty much sums up every parents’ thoughts on their child at one time or another, and thankfully it’s machine washable.
My First St. Patrick’s Day Sigg Water Bottle
While there may be a good chance you might need water more than your child by the end of the night, here’s a bottle that proudly displays the occasion.
First St. Patrick’s Day Infant Bodysuit
Ever notice that corned beef and cabbage has the same consistency as baby food? Well your kid won’t notice the difference either way, but think about it when you delve in this year. This bodysuit has a 3 snap bottom for those easy diaper changes.
With the Oscars around the corner we decided to take a look back at some Academy Award-winning “Best Songs” that would be great for kids. To mix things up, we gave ourselves the challenge of not including any Disney or Pixar songs.
Let’s start with last year’s winner, “Jai Ho” from Slumdog Millionaire. I don’t know what the song means but if you’ve seen the last scene of Slumdog Millionaire you know this tune can get you up and dancing.
Take it back now to when you were a kid and have your own children listen to the 1987 winner “(I’ve Had) The Time of My Life” by Jennifer Warnes and Bill Medley from Dirty Dancing. Remember how this song was everywhere back then? The song always worked so well because of the contrast from verse to chorus and it still holds up today.
Finally, for some real 80’s dancing put on “Flashdance…What a Feeling.” You might as well break out the leg warmers for this track and get your kids running in place. I wouldn’t let them watch the movie because of the adult subject matter but the song is an inspiring piece that will have them dancing.
Classic rock radio staples Pink Floyd have driven more than one young man to a life of collecting black light posters or playing “Wish You Were Here” for spare change, but few were probably aware that the soulful guitar impresario, David Gilmour, did a bit of busking himself before joining the band. Students of The Wall might also be surprised to know that Gilmour was an excellent student.
Pink Floyd’s David Gilmour started out going to school up the street from his future band mates, Roger Waters and Sid Barrett, at a place called the Perse School in Cambridge. Waters and Barrett attended a rival school, the Cambridgeshire High School for Boys. Gilmour spent most of his time studying modern languages to A-Level (which is British for nerd), and like the man he’d eventually replace, Barrett, he also spent his lunchtime learning to play the guitar. Wish I went to a school that had allowed us to take our recess with a guitar.
Gilmour eventually started playing in the band Joker’s Wild in 1962 until 1966 when he decided to busk around Spain and France with some friends, though he found little success. In a July 1992 interview, Gilmour stated that he actually ended up being treated for malnutrition in a hospital because of how badly remunerated his music was then. After bumming around a bit more, in 1967 Gilmour returned to England driving a van with fuel that had been stolen from a building site in France. This adventure kind of sounds like the British version of Road Trip, or something from an episode of Benny Hill, at least.
It wasn’t until December of 1967 that Nick Mason, Pink Floyd’s drummer, approached Gilmour about joining the band to make it a five piece. This was of course before Barrett would go mad and be replaced by Gilmour. But we all saw that one coming after hearing his song “Bike” for the first time. Want to hear more baby Floyd? Check out Lullaby Renditions of Pink Floyd!
Kids love listening to the Beatles, whether it’s the simple catchy beat of “I Want To Hold Your Hand” or the trippy, psychedelic lyrics of “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds.” My son loves the fact that there is a whole song about an octopus! The Beatles were arguably the greatest rock band ever so we thought it would be fun to take a look at the band’s own kids. Could the success of the Fab Four ever continue on with their kids? Do talented parents crank out talented offspring?
Paul has four kids with his late wife Linda. His son James (named after his father James Paul McCartney) is trying his hand at music but aside from popping up on dad’s albums he hasn’t set the charts on fire. The real success in the McCartney children is daughter Stella who is a world-famous fashion designer and has a joint venture with Gucci. While it might not be music, you know growing up in a house with Paul and Linda would lead you into some sort of artistic endeavor.
George and his second wife Olivia begat Dhani, who also followed in his father’s footsteps. He ended up finishing his father’s album Brainwashed (imagine subbing for a Beatle, even if it is your father) after George passed and formed a band called thenewno2. Check out Dhani playing “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” at George’s induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
John and his first wife Cynthia had a son Julian, who was a popular musician in the eighties with hits like “Too Late for Goodbyes” and has put out 5 albums. John’s other son, Sean, who he had with Yoko Ono, became a noted indie rocker who has several solo albums, co-wrote a Lenny Kravitz hit and plays with Cibo Matto and The Plastic Ono Band. Two boys, both following in their late father’s footsteps.
Perhaps one of the most successful musicians of all the Beatles’ children was Ringo’s son, Zak Starkey who became what else? A drummer like his dad. Zak has been known to back The Who and you probably saw him perform at this year’s Superbowl halftime show.
It’s never easy to have a famous rocker as a father, especially when that dad was in a band like the Beatles. But it seems that music has flowed from fathers to sons in their case with most of them becoming quite successful at it.
Parents love watching their kids play dress up, and the only thing they love more than that is actually dressing the kids themselves. Sometimes it’s a cute outfit to show the grandparents, sometimes it’s a big fluffy fleece onesie, but the ultimate is to dress your kid like a rocker.
That said, I offer you the top three most challenging musicians to play dress up with your little tykes.
3) Lady Gaga
Her album The Fame was released in 2008 but it was 2009 that was truly Gaga’s year. Her music had a new pop sound but Gaga was more than music. Her art is the visual mixed with the aural and her fashion has included everything from dressing in plastic bubbles to being drenched in blood at the 2009 Video Music Awards. Bonus points if you can dress your kid in her pointy silver Grammy 2010 outfit.
2) KISS
This one is a no brainer and there are already plenty of parents who worship KISS and dress their kids up in the make-up for Halloween. To be authentic, you can’t phone it in and must cover your kid’s full face in make-up. Even better if you have four kids and dress each one as a member of KISS: The Demon, Starchild, Spaceman and Catman.
1) Freddie Mercury
There are very few performers who could match Freddie’s stage presence. This choice might not be as obvious as KISS, but it is much easier to pull off than covering your squirming kid’s face with elaborate stage make-up. Though it may be easier to dress as Freddie, it’s also more courageous. Placing a child in tight rocker pants, or a Pierrot unitard screams 80s rock.
An MP3 player for babies? Okay, let’s just admit it. ALL baby gifts are really for the parents, right?
We love this cute bear-shaped player because it has built in speakers (no, you do not put headphones on a baby–ever!) and you can set it so that the volume fades as your little devil falls asleep… and because you can load it up with Rockabye Baby lullaby renditions to let your sweet child dream on and on.
It’s made from non-toxic plastic, is shock proof and you can even record yourself singing a lullaby (or message, if you’re shy) to replay at bedtime.
Want to make this the best baby shower gift of ALL TIME? Pair it with our Digital Download Gift Package, which is a beautifully packaged digital download card, so that the recipient can pick their favorite album from our whole series.
If you have a young daughter between the ages of 8 and 13 you have definitely heard of Justin Bieber. He’s a baby faced singer who can shut down a mall with severe pandemonium on a single visit. His most recent hit climbing the charts is “Baby” and it features Ludacris rapping on it. When I heard that Usher had signed this little guy to his label, I was quick to dismiss him and his music because I felt it was going to be another slick youngster singing about things he had no experience with. I was only half right. Bieber’s “Baby” is definitely an overproduced attempt at a hit single especially with the rap verse, but at its core the song is an innocent track about young love. If you listen to the stripped down version without all the voice affectation, it could even pass as a throwback to those simple pop songs about love from the sixties. Pass on the studio version and give Bieber a chance. Your daughter will think you’re the coolest parent alive.
Let’s be honest, most of us will never play guitar like Jeff Beck, hit the drums like John Bonham, or craft a song like Bob Dylan. The one thing we are all capable of doing is attempting to sing along with our favorite songs. Can we hit the same notes as Mariah Carey? Probably not, but there are a few rockers out there who didn’t get the job based on hitting the high notes. Here are the top three singers whose voices are probably just as imperfect as yours. That way, you and your kids can sing along and sound just like the rock stars.
3) Bruce Springsteen
Even Springsteen has admitted that his first band wouldn’t let him sing. We don’t put on The Rising because of its vocal qualities, we put on Springsteen for his moving lyrics and passionate songs. Singing along with Bruce never makes you feel inadequate, it does however make you want to get in your car and drive somewhere.
2) Brian Johnson
When your first album with a new band is Back In Black, it’s hard to top it. Johnson stepped in to lead AC/DC after Bon Scott passed away and he brought with him a voice that sounds like he started singing after screaming his throat raw for the past four hours.
1) Joe Cocker
I don’t know what is up with Joe Cocker’s voice, but I do know it works. Usually Beatles’ covers don’t live up to their originals but Cocker’s version of “A Little Help From My Friends” is a whole new song with a gravelly voice that gives it a new kick. Also check out “When The Night Comes,” you’ll be able to sing along and sound just like Joe himself.
Last year Cheap Trick released their album, The Latest, on CD, Vinyl and 8-track. It was the biggest selling 8-tack of the year (if that is something to get excited about.) It got me thinking, growing up we used to look through my parents’ record collection with both awe and wonder. We were amazed that they actually had decent taste in music as was evidenced by their Beatles’ Rubber Soul LP, and we were stunned that people could actually listen to music on these plastic discs with grooves. It always sounded scratchy and the needle never landed exactly where it was supposed to. We thought our cassettes were so much better and then with the arrival of compact discs we could not believe that we ever listened to music that was not digital.
Now as I raise my own kids, I’m struck by the enormous leaps in technology and how my children do not know anything before an mp3. My five-year-old son gets upset when he watches a TV set that is not hooked up to a DVR because he is unable to pause live TV. In my lifetime I have seen music move from vinyl to cassettes to CDs to mp3s. My kids started on mp3 tracks and I wonder where they will go fr
