Olivia Newton-John redone...

I remember listening to "Let's Get Physical" when I was much younger, but everything old is new again nowadays. With the inclusion of Let's Get Physical in a recent Glee episode, the song has found a whole new group of fans. Included in that group are my two sons. Well, kinda. They like the tune, but decided it needed to be updated a bit. On their own, they decided to rewrite [part of] it as Let's Get Digital. The chorus has been completed, but they still need to finish each of the verses. When they sing the "digital" part of the chorus, they vibrate their throat with their fingers to give a warbling effect; it adds so much to the song :-)

When they finish the whole thing I'll try to get them to record it and I'll post it here.

Fiddle dee dee

Just got back from seeing nearly 40 high schoolers rock the fiddles last night (well actually, violins, violas, cellos, drums, guitars and mandolins - and a few tap shoes as well!). It is not music that I choose to listen to often, but they were full of energy and, especially as younger performers, very entertaining. They've played at the White House and with several famous artists so other people think that they've got a wee bti of talent too. :-)

We had the older two kids with us last night as well and they both commented on how good the concert was. It's encouraging, but sometimes embarrassing, that these performers are so talented at such a young age. It takes a lot of dedication, practice, and probably some ribbing, to keep at it long enough to be at the top of their game.

We try to expose our kids to a lot of different things and then let them decide "what sticks," so to speak. My eldest son has tried the violin in the school band already and really liked it. He has an eclectic mix of music likes. I think that's really cool.

The Saline Fiddlers have more shows coming up in the area. If you get a chance to see them, I doubt you'll be disappointed.

World Cup Song

A catchy little tune...

As someone with a few kids, I've heard my share of Sesame Street music. Some of the songs I actually remember from my own childhood. The guys over at Mental Floss have put together a little quiz of Sesame Street songs. The provide very short snippets of the songs and you need to pick which song it's from. As a parent, I'm embarrassed to say I only got 80%. :-(

Leave a comment and let me know how you did...

I would LOVE to see these guys in concert!

See more Blue Man Group videos...

Bubblegum Pop music

Deezer's Back!

Looks like Deezer is back online. I hadn't checked it out for quite a while after the problems I'd been seeing with the embedded music I'd included with some of my posts. I'll add some more in the upcoming posts and see if they can stay online... {fingers crossed}

Hannah Montana Concert

My daughter (and my wife) had a great time at the concert last night. They both commented on Miley's (aka Hannah) stage presence and energy. The number (and speed) of the outfit changes was also something that amazed them.

My daughter sat with the other Radio Disney winners, most of which we had seen at other D-Tours so they already knew each other. I can't even imagine the decibels that were released that night from the tween screams alone, let alone the concert itself. I picture the movie Monsters where they turned the screams of frightened kids into energy to run their city. Hmmm... Maybe that's something worth looking into -- (c) established by this post if I take it anywhere! :-)

They got a few really good pictures from the concert, but most unfortunately turned out rather blurry. We did get a GREAT one of my daughter with Miley at the Meet-and-Greet. That one will be framed on her wall. She's almost back to normal, but this will definitely be an experience that she talks about for quite a while. She's now seen Corbin Bleu and Miley Cyrus/Hannah Montana, the two people she's been most enamoured with, both thanks to Radio Disney.

I can't imagine a 14-year-old with the energy and wits to maintain the schedule that she does. I just hope that she doesn't flame out like so many other young stars have. Her Disney support system while still in place and the experience of her father should help.

SHE WON! SHE WON! SHE WON!

THANKS RADIO DISNEY!

We went to another Radio Disney D-Tour tonight and my daughter won tickets to tomorrow's Hannah Montana concert! She is still freaking out after more than an hour. She keeps wanting me to pinch her to wake her up. "This must be a dream," she keeps saying.

We go for the fun and the exercise and something to do, but the prizes keep the interest up. I think that the interest will be there for quite a while after a win like this!

My wife and daughter will be enjoying the show tomorrow night and I'll take the boys for a guy's night out. We'll probably go see Alvin and the Chipmunks. They are both really looking forward to that.

THANKS RADIO DISNEY! YOU ROCK!

Double Bonus Days!

We take the kids to Home Depot for Free Crafts the first Saturday of every month. They get to hammer, glue, sand and screw together projects. They get a sense for craftsmanship, hard work and attention to detail. They get to feel more comfortable building things with tools. They get to have something to do away from the television. They get something to show for their work. They get a project pin to put on their overflowing "Home Depot Orange" apron. We get time with the kids doing fun projects. We get time away from the house. We get to see the kids progress in their abilities and independence. Home Depot gets to instill brand recognition and project enthusiasm to the kids at a young age that they're count on will bring them back for purchases later in life. Home Depot gets to express an appreciation for their customers and their community. All in all, it's a good thing. This month, it was extra fun!

Each night before bed, we try to talk to the kids about what is in store for the next day. Last Friday night, we mentioned that it was Home Depot Craft day on Saturday. In addition to their excitement, my daughter mentioned that Radio Disney was going to be there as well. BONUS! We've been taking the kids to the Radio Disney D-Tour shows for a year or so now since they came to our market. The high-energy shows are very entertaining and the kids often walk away with free stuff as well (CDs, DVDs, t-shirts, posters, etc). With all of the hype over the Hannah Montana concerts going on again (she announced a second show in our area a little bit ago), they were looking forward to having another chance to win tickets. With about 50 or less kids at the shows we've been to, the odds are pretty good -- even better when we take all three kids and triple our chances!

This time, the D-Tour had a balloon artist, an animal clown and face painting in addition to their normal show, AND the kids craft. By now my kids all know the Disney cast members at the show and greet them as soon as we get there. Each of the kids loves to participate in the show (though to differing degrees) and has a great time. We didn't win Hannah tickets that time, but we went to another show on Sunday...then Monday. Still no tickets :-( But tomorrow's another day. Literally. The last chance to win tickets from Radio Disney's Local D-Tour before Friday's show. Cross your fingers...

This one is stuck in my head too...

My wife thinks I like this song because Colbie Caillat is cute (I don't disagree, kind of an old-school Jennifer Aniston look to her, but not as beautiful as my wife! Love ya honey!), but it's really the haunting melody that is suck in my head for some reason.

I read an article in the Wall Street Journal a while ago about how Colbie's label tried to falsely pass her off as this "out-of-the-blue" up-and-comer, but I don't care. I like her earthy song style.

My son the Songmeister

OK, so maybe we watch and listen to a little too much Disney Channel. After getting my 4-year-old son a cup of juice this morning I apparently put things back in the fridge in the wrong order. He was quick to correct me saying that the orange juice should go in back and the apple sauce in front. I apologized for this lack of discipline and he said, "That's OK Dad. Everyone makes mistakes." Then almost in the same rhythm, realized that he had started something and continued in song with "Everybody has those days. Everybody makes mistakes. Everybody has those days."

He's often thrown Hannah Montana, Mylie Cyrus, High School Musical (1 and 2), Backyardigans, Go, Diego, Go and other lyrics back at the rest of the family -- in context. It's great to know that he's paying attention (see: Life Lessons...), has s good memory, likes to sing and in general is having fun with it. He often gets the rest of us laughing so he gets a positive response from it. We usually lose it completely when he adds dance moves :-)

Let them sing it for you!

I've tried my hand at poetry and songwriting before, but it's just not a talent that I posses. It usually comes out way too cheesy. So, I let Hallmark put into words the feelings I have. Hey, they get paid to do it, so I'm just helping the economy...

But, until now, I didn't have much hope of getting someone to write a song for me. Now, using this Let them sing it for you site, I can type in words from Hallmark, and let them do the singing. Voila! A new song!

Life lessons from Hannah Montana

I know, I know. Not the type of person you'd expect to learn life lessons from, but certainly better than Paris Hilton, Britney Spears or any of their ilk. As a program on the Disney Channel aimed primarily at your impressionable teenage girls, the show does a great job of trying to reverse, or at least balance out, some of the nasty images that teens are exposed to from the mass media. In songs like Nobody's Perfect, Make Some Noise, Old Blue Jeans, Life's What You Make Of It, and True Friend, pre-teenage and teenage girls (and anyone else who listens) can learn how important it is to be true to yourself, to repel the peer pressure, to stand up for what you believe in, that you can make a difference in the world, to cherish your friends, and to accept mistakes, learn from them and move on. These are the tings I want to instill in my kids. I love that my daughter, and even my youngest son, not yet 4, knows the lyrics to these songs and can sing along in the car. And, so far at least, the actors in the show seem to be as clean as the characters they portray.

The mass media is all about sensationalizing failures and either making fun of people who make mistakes, or promoting ridiculously unhealthy habits and body styles. Disney is still known as a family-friendly station (radio, TV, movies, music, electronics, communications, and entertainment in general) and I hope it stays that way. As they continue their migration from just trying to entertain the very young to older and older teens, I hope that their clean public image and reputation continues. Their wildly popular, and very chaste, High School Musical series is proof that, while sex does sell, you can still succeed by limiting those sales to those old enough to understand.

Another, earlier song called Who Said, talks about not letting other people dictate who or what you can be as a person. Another very important lesson, not only for our nation's youth, but for us "older generations" as well. We're not done living yet.

Rock on Disney!