Video: "HBD, Dude!" - Mista Cookie Jar & the Chocolate Chips (World Premiere)

Southern California's Mista Cookie Jar is testing my hyphenating abilities.  His blend of hip-hop, soul sounds, Motown riffs, California vibes, and whatever else he throws in the mix can be too much for the English language too handle.

For his latest track, "HBD, Dude!," MCJ and his Chocolate Chips mix a surf-rock guitar track and some flowing verses that include the word "hashtag" to produce a very 21st-century celebration of someone's birthday.  (You can buy the track via that link above, or iTunes and CD Baby as well...)

For the video, which I'm world-premiering here today, Mista Cookie Jar can't be contained to a single POV, either.  He takes Beach Blanket Bingo-era footage, hand-animates it a bit, and throws in a nice Facebook/Instagram reference or three.  Throw in some kids eating cake and surf-dancing, and you've got yourself a party.

I'm going with "surf-hop."

Mista Cookie Jar and the Chocolate Chips - "HBD, Dude!" [YouTube]

Happy Birthday to Me

Well, not me personally.  This site.

That's right, exactly ten years ago today I burst forth onto the kids music scene with these words (actually, these words, but whatevs):

Welcome to Zooglobble! It's my hope that this blog/website will become a reference site for great kids' music that parents can enjoy as well. If you like Ralph's World, Laurie Berkner, Elizabeth Mitchell, and Justin Roberts, among others, stop by on a regular basis for news, reviews, and goodness knows what else. It might take some time, but we'll build this up to something worth your time.

Thanks in advance for your time and patience.

Those 75 words launched a million more -- probably two million more.  Over the past ten years I've reviewed well over 600 albums, listened to probably close to 3,000 albums, featured hundreds if not thousands of videos, interviewed dozens of artists, and done lots of other things I can't count.

My life is different now than it was in 2004, and one such way is that I'm busier to the extent that I'm not going to try to count those things, my math-nerd tendencies notwithstanding.

Of course, the most important things that have happened over the past ten years as a direct (and indirect) result of my work on this site are difficult if not impossible to quantify -- bonds shared with family, friends made across the country, communities supported, joy felt.  Through luck and hard work I've had the opportunity to meet some great people, learn new skills, and have some amazing experiences.

Thanks to everyone who's made their way here over the past decade -- there are far too many of them to pick any one of them out except for my wife and kids who have indulged me in this hobby.  Thanks to musicians, readers, and all of you in this world who are supporting the creation of art for kids and families.  To paraphrase Richard Scarry, there are all kinds of musicians.  The best musicians record kids' albums.

Thanks, y'all, for coming to the party, don't be stranger 'round these parts, and don't forget your goodie bag on the way out.

You Get a Present for Spare the Rock and Zooglobble's Birthday

So ten years ago this week, this humble little website was born (more on that a little bit later this week).  And nine years ago earlier this month a humble little radio show, Spare the Rock, Spoil the Child, first aired.  In that time, I've written hundreds of reviews and featured hundreds of reviews, while Bill Childs and his kids have played thousands of songs on air (and internet).  We've done lots of other stuff separately and together, and we each have new and exciting projects in the works, but my site has always been at the heart of what I do, and I'm sure Bill feels the same way about his show.

I thought it might be fun to celebrate both this site's birthday as well as Spare the Rock starting its tenth year on the air, something that might span a year's worth of time.  And, yes, Bill was very much onboard.

So we're pleased as punch to announce the first in a series of free kids music tracks for you to enjoy.  Bill and I are talking to some of our favorite kids' musicians, both those making music for kids even before we hopped onto the Internet as well as newer artists continuing to shake up the genre, asking them if they'd be willing to write a song to give away.

But in the spirit of collaboration Bill and I have often shared, we're asking them to write and record those songs with another kindie musician.

Our first track is called "When I'm Ten" and it's from Seattle-area bands and friends Recess Monkey and The Not-Its.  It's bit of a nod to the Not-Its' song "When I'm Five," but it's got a crunchiness (and slightly older perspective) all its own.  Recess Monkey bassist Jack Forman reports that "writing the tune with Drew [Holloway from Recess Monkey], Sarah [Shannon] and Danny [Adamson, both from the Not-Its] was totally organic - like we'd all been in a band for years."

Play the song below or download it -- for the next month only -- here.  [Sorry, the month has expired. Will the song ever resurface? Who knows????]

(Recess Monkey photo credit: Kevin Fry)

Monday Morning Smile: "The Birthday Card"

This video comes from brothers Ryan Mayers and Matt Mayers.  Matt Mayers is the husband of Stephanie Mayers, the swell gal who helps keep the Festival Five and Kindiefest ​trains running on time.  This features a cute kid (Matt's and Stephanie's daughter), a feel-good message, and, most importantly, a very important dessert.  Very. Important.

Happy Birthday to Me!

OK, not me specifically -- this site.  That's right, in 2004, eight years ago today, I put my cyberstake down in the ground and said I was going to start writing about kids music.

And then I promptly went silent for another couple months.

But then I started posting all the reviews I'd written over the past 2-3 years, and eventually artists started e-mailing me out of the blue offering copies for possible review, then NPR called, yadda yadda yadda, and now kids music is a big deal (again).

I've had fun writing this site.  If I had to guess (now that the site is spread out over a number of different categories, it's more work to total), I'd guess that I've written maybe 2,800 posts and published more than a million words on kids music.  That's a lot of time to spend writing about anything; add to that the time spent listening to family music, and, well, there's a reason I'm not really up on the latest TV.

Anyway, writers and creators always say they write and create for themselves, and that's true, but most of them -- including me -- like to know that they have an audience reading or listening in.  So thanks for the time you've spent reading, and thanks, too, to the musicians and others who've spent time creating and asking me to give their art a try.

And it wouldn't be a birthday party without a small goody bag, so I'm running an instant contest -- enter your name below by 9 PM West Coast time tonight, August 27, 2012, and I'll randomly select one person to win a free CD (I have a wide array of good, new disks for your enjoyment).  If you want to say how you found this site, that'd be great, but not necessary.  Thanks for reading and playing!