Friday Free-for-All # 12

Hot Peas 'N Butter, The Pod Squad

The Pod Squad is Hot Peas 'N Butter's fourth kids' CD, a collection of well-produced tunes performed in English and Spanish by Danny Lapidus and Frank Cotto and special guests. Standouts include originals "Beautiful Dream" and "Time to Fly", and traditional tunes "Ocho Candelikas" and "Peggy-O". But, for cryin' out loud! did they have to make the sponsor's name as big as the band's on the front cover?!?



The Learning Station, Brain Boogie Boosters

Perfect example of "don't judge a CD by its cover": At first glance I thought this was another mass-produced collection of impersonally-performed edutunes ... wrong! Written by Don and Laurie Monopoli and Dr. Becky Bailey, with performance help from Paul Opalach, these catchy songs encourage exercise, relaxation, and meditation. Great for classroom use!



The Jellydots, Changing Skies

On Changing Skies, Doug Snyder's Jellydots songs mature with his audience. Rather than continue with a carbon copy of his debut masterpiece "Hey You Kids!", Snyder writes deeper, sometimes darker, songs that fans of his first album will be able to appreciate lyrically and musically as they grow older. Check out "San Diego", the great pop song "Sunshine", and the string of five wonderful ballads in a row that close out the album. A chart-topper!