Bloggin' up a tiny drizzle...
Blog: Itty-Bitty Review: Newborn, Too - Sara Hickman, Radio Playlist: New Music September 2014
Videos: "There's a Monster in My House" - Eric Herman
Listen to Music: None this week
Free Music: None this week
Kids Music Reviews: None this week
iOS Apps: None this week
Upcoming Releases: Constantly updating...
Podcasts
Kindie Week in Review: None this week
My Other Other Gig: None this week
Bake Sale: None this week
Sara Hickman was one of the first kindie crossover artists -- musicians who made their name making music for adults who discovered the world of making music for kids. Starting in 1999, when she released the album Newborn, followed by Toddler a couple years later, the Texas-based Hickman always kept one toe in the kindie world, releasing or coordinating 5 albums and a DVD.
Fifteen years after releasing Newborn, Hickman has a brand-new album for the youngest of young'uns -- Newborn, Too. While Newborn was a mix of lullaby and uptempo tracks, the new album is designed just for sleepy time. As is often the case with lullaby albums from intelligent singer-songwriters, Newborn, Too features a number of well-chosen modern songs given new life in this new lullaby setting. Some are familiar -- John Lennon's "Beautiful Boy" and Billy Joel's gorgeous "Goodnight, My Angel" -- while perhaps the most affecting are less well-known, such as Adrian Belew's "Dream Life." Hickman's emphasis on families of whatever sort on songs like "Family Tree" and "Welcome Home" (a lovely song for parents with newly adopted children). While some of the songs are a bit too brightly produced for my own sleepy time lullaby preferences, the album generally stays safely in the lullaby camp (and avoids the goopiness lullaby albums can be prone to).
The 47-minute album is most appropriate for kids ages 0 through 5, and with its emphasis on modern songs, appropriate, too, for adults looking for a mellow album featuring Hickman's strong voice and interpretive sense. It's been awhile since Hickman made a straight-up album for kids, but Newborn, Too is a welcome return to the fold. Recommended.
The July playlist is a little smaller than the June playlist (see that playlist here), but this is a nice 20 minutes or so of tunes.
As always, it's limited in that if an artist hasn't chosen to post a song on Spotify, I can't put it on the list, nor can I feature songs from as-yet-unreleased albums. But I'm always keeping stuff in reserve for the next Spotify playlist.
Check out the list here or go right here if you're in Spotify.
**** New Music July 2014 (July 2014 Kindie Playlist) ****
The Not-Its! – Raise Your Hand
Bill Currier – Old Macdonald Family Band
Jon Samson – Mockingbird (Something to Say)
Daisy Uke – Watering Can Can
Raffi – Love Bug
Mista Cookie Jar & the Chocolate Chips – My My My
Sara Hickman – Beautiful Boy
Zooglobble
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