Quick, what do Jewel, Andre 3000, Kenny Loggins, Johnny Cash, Zooey Deschanel and Ziggy Marley share in common?
Yes, they’re all famous bipedal hominids. You win.
Casey PhillipsLess obviously, they’ve each dabbled in writing songs for children. I know, I was shocked, too, but a surprising number of mainstream artists have produced albums for tykes and tykettes.
Last week, as part of my son’s nightly ritual, I pulled out a book to read to him before bed. That evening’s selection, “I’m a Manatee,” was written by John Lithgow, an actor who is far better known for his roles on “Third Rock From the Sun” and “Cliffhanger” than for his children’s literature.
As I was putting the book away, I saw a note on the cover indicating it came with a companion CD. Our copy was secondhand and was missing the disc, but a curiosity-fueled trip to YouTube turned up a recording of Lithgow singing a rousing ditty about submarine herbivores.
Surprisingly, it was good – really good. Not exactly what I was expecting considering Lithgow’s famous turn as a music-loathing pastor in “Footloose.”
That recording gave me hope, however, that the soundtrack to my future morning commutes needn’t consist solely of “The Wiggles’ Greatest Hits,” annoying songs about racehorses and endless repeats of the “Frozen” soundtrack.
Since Henry was born, I’ve dreaded the day he latches onto some terrible song written “for children” and insists on hearing it until the point I feel death is more appealing than queuing it up again. Those fears were groundless, though, as a minimal amount of digging has uncovered some awesome, surprisingly tolerable children’s music by “adult” bands.
The Barenaked Ladies’ “Snacktime!” is fabulous and actually won the 2003 Juno Award for Children’s Album of the Year. They Might Be Giants have a ton of great, quirky children’s songs, including “Nonagon” – named for the nine-sided geometric shape – and “Why Does the Sun Shine?,” which miraculously teaches children about stellar fusion without putting them to sleep.
Truthfully, worrying about searching out “age-appropriate” music for Henry is a toothless conundrum. As his dad, what he listens to is still my prerogative, at least for a while. As long as it doesn’t contain machine-gun bursts of profanity that he might embarrassingly repeat, I see no reason why he can’t listen to The Beatles, Bob Dylan and Mumford & Sons with me on the way to day care.
Or am I just a terrible father? What kids songs made you want to shove glass shards in your ears? Which ones were surprisingly enjoyable? Email me your playlists and suggestions.
Contact Casey Phillips at cphillips@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6205. Follow him on Twitter at @PhillipsCTFP.