"Not On the Test" by Tom Chapin

Wow, I was considering writing a song on this topic myself, but Tom Chapin has nailed it! He brings his gentle humor to bare against testing mania in this pointed yet entertaining video. If you want to learn more, Tom has also put up a website dedicated to the song and the topic. Enjoy, and be warned - the guitar hook will stick in your head all day long.

"Home" by David Tobocman

This beautiful vocal piano performance matched with warm whimsical paintings makes for a great snuggle-time video. 



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"Baa Neigh Cock-A-Doodle Do!" by Buck Howdy

Here's a fun video for Springtime from Buck Howdy. The animal photos are hilarious! Enjoy. 

A quick reminder - if you click the arrow you'll see the video here. If you click elsewhere in the picture you'll go to YouTube, where there is no control over what people can post in their comments. Some folks are just out to ruin it for everyone else. Stay here. Stay happy!

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"Seven Days of the Week (I Never Go to Work)" by They Might Be Giants

Everyone's abuzz about the new They Might Be Giants CD and DVD, Here Come the 123s. TMBG has put out free videos from the DVD through their "Friday Night Family Podcast." You can see more videos on their Disney website, too. Here's my favorite so far. This is a simple fun song that will stick in your head. The video is cute and adds quite a lot of humor. I couldn't find an official release of the video on YouTube, so enjoy this one while you can before it gets yanked. Use the above link to subscribe via iTunes and get all the recent videos - they're all great!



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"I Like Dinosaurs" by Mr. Billy

It's been a while since I posted a video, but we've been slowly steadily building an audience in the mean time! I hope you're enjoying watching these with your kids (or with your adults as the case may be). Here's a new one from Mr. Billy. It's another skillfully edited romp showing a great sense of humor and positive energy. I think you'll love it. Yes this is our third Mr. Billy, but he is special to us seeing as how he helped get this blog up and running. More videos and more variety coming soon...



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MR. BILLY: Greatest Hits Schoolhouse Rock collides with Classic Rock, an iParenting Media Award winner. Nothing but the BEST interactive children’s rock & roll songs about dinosaurs, Dr. Seuss, bubbles, dragons, butterflies and more. They Might Be Giants fans will love this CD.

"Dance Tonight" by Paul McCartney

This is the first single from Paul's new CD, Memory Almost Full. The song is kid friendly and it has a very Dan Zanes-ish vibe to it, I think. Simple, and folky with an inclusive sort of dance and sing along vibe. The video is very intriguing. It takes a view or two before you catch everything that's going on. Evalyn really enjoyed it and wanted to watch twice in a row. I've had fun hearing her take on what's happening.

Although the new CD is not a kids' album, I've always thought Paul should do one. He put out DVD collection of children's animation that he made a couple of years ago, which is very cool. And many of his songs, from "Yellow Submarine" to "Tropic Island Hum" are actually meant for kids, and those songs are some of his best. Paul, are you reading this? When you get around to doing a children's CD, give me a ring. I'd love to help out!

"Winter in Wisconsin" by Mr. Billy

Here's a new one from our very own Mr. Billy! He shot two hours of footage out in the snow to bring you what has to be the most fun ever packed into a two minute kids' video. Note the awesome editing! Mr. Billy has done a fantastic job marrying the images to the music. Simple, but very creative and very effective. Bravo, Mr. Billy!



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MR. BILLY: Fruitcake AWARD WINNING winter and holiday kids/family music collection by “Northeastern Wisconsin's Family Favorite Children's Entertainer” Mr. Billy. Contemporary and winter cool. Add this CD to your FAMILY holiday music collection today.

"Too Many Presents!" by Uncle Rock

I don't know if kids ever feel this way, but the parents watching this video can relate...TOO MANY PRESENTS! Yeah, I love the lines, "They're all made out of plastic, they come from way across the ocean. Yeah, they're all made out of plastic and tomorrow they'll be broken". This song is from the CD "Here We Go!"..way to go Uncle Rock.

UNCLE ROCK: Here We Go! Roots Rock Romp

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"We Need Mud" by Charity and the JAMband

I feel a sense of Deja vu here..."We Need Mud"..."I Like Dirt"...Mmmm...Interesting. Apparently I like to get messy, I mean who doesn't, right? Anyway, here is a muddy little video that I love by Charity and the JAMband. I first heard of these guys on Lisa Harper's Kids Music Planet Podcast a few weeks ago. What I find really neat about this video is that there is NO VIDEO! What??? (Are you losing it again Mr. Billy?) No, really, it's like a slideshow on steroids...all still photos, cool visuals (check out Devils Tower and the beach) and a great chant with karaoke style lyrics that pop up now and then. Check it out and leave a comment on this one, and if you haven't seen my other "messy" video, scroll down and check out The Thuderlords doing "I Like Dirt".

CHARITY KAHN: Charity and the JAMband: Rock Your Socks Off The original rockin', dancin', soulful celebration...family style.

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"Jump Up" by Dan Zanes

Dan Zanes makes awesome videos for kids! They are colorful and energetic, well shot and edited, and what I really love about them is that even though they are production videos (as opposed to live performances) you actually see what you hear - the instruments in the recording are represented on screen. I think that's important for kids, so they can match the sounds to the instruments. Too many production videos have sounds coming out of nowhere, which doesn't help young children learn how those sounds are made. So kudos to Dan, and congratulations, too, on his recent Grammy!!! It's great to see a children's Grammy go to a real person rather than a cartoon character!

My daughter Evalyn and I spent the morning watching videos to bring you the best of what's out there. Out of about thirteen choices, this was her favorite pick, and mine too!

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DAN ZANES AND FRIENDS: Family Dance Contains the songs "all around the kitchen" and "jump up" as heard on noggin and sesame street.