Kwanzaa Music for Kids

There are thousands of Christmas music CDs available for kids and their families, but what about music that celebrates Kwanzaa?

I've compiled a short list of great Kwanzaa albums over on my About.com site, but I know there have to be more out there. If you know of an excellent Kwanzaa CD (or out-of-print LP), or if you're a musician who has recorded an album of songs celebrating the Seven Principles, please feel free to leave a comment or make suggestions.

Justin Roberts Wins Fids & Kamily Top Spot!

For the second time in three years, Justin Roberts earns the number one rank in the annual Fids & Kamily Awards for best children's music. His album Pop Fly comes in atop this year's impressive list of kids' CDs, including Frances England's Family Tree and They Might Be Giants' Here Come the 123s.

Here's the complete 2008 Fids & Kamily Top Ten, along with 10 honorable mentions and 47 nominated albums.

***Johnny Keener***

West Virginia-born, Portland, Oregon-based Johnny Keener throws his musical influences into the pot and dishes out a great collection of rootsy, bluesy, Americana for kids and their families. Long John is his second CD for children, the first being 2006's Elephants Over the Fence. Check out Keener's solo album for grownups, as well as his work with the band Yoyodyne.

Long John kicks off with Henry Thomas' classic "Fishin' Blues," made famous by The Lovin' Spoonful on their 1965 album Do You Believe in Magic, and by Taj Mahal on his 1968 album De Ole Folks at Home. Next is the rockabilly raveup "Run Around," a tune that would be right at home on a Buddy Holly 45.

From the old to the new and somewhere in between: the title tune is a call-and-response African-American field song, followed by a cover of The Apples In Stereo's powerpop "Energy," from last year's New Magnetic Wonder. And then comes a spirited cover of Creedence Clearwater Revival's "Down On the Corner," their hit from 1969's Willy and the Poor Boys.

"I Don't Want It" is a sea shanty/waltz, followed by a Stray Cats-like version of the folk tune "Cat Came Back." Then there's a cover of Cat Stevens' great singalong, "If You Want to Sing Out, Sing Out," written for the 1971 film Harold and Maude. The album ends with the quiet shuffle of Bob Marley's "Three Little Birds," and Johnny's own take on the oldie "Mockingbird."

Super folk/rock/blues for the entire family!

Vote for Change? Hey, Clap for Love!

Live from the Beat Kitchen in Chicago, Ann Torralba performs the title track from her latest CD, Clap for Love.

Little Miss Ann - "Clap for Love"

Tomorrow is a Highway

I'm happy this morning, happy that there's so much excitement in the air after last night's election, happy that the shitheads who always complained about the government finally got up off their lazy asses and voted, happy that my little boy got to go into the voting booth with me and see how important everyone's voice is.

The atmosphere was absolutely electric up here in the North Jersey/NYC area last night: I swear we heard a celebratory roar of the masses when the winning numbers were posted online and were aired on television. I listen to Matt Pinfield on WRXP in the mornings, and grown men, big burly dudes from Queens, Brooklyn, and the Jersey Shore, were calling in today on the verge of tears talking about how happy and excited they were about the election. Times ain't gonna be easy, but they sure are a'changin'.

So, in honor of President Obama, dig Pete Seeger and Lee Hays' classic but incredibly relevant "Tomorrow is a Highway." Download the song, listen to it with your kids, and talk about what's goin' on.

"Tomorrow is a Highway"

Tomorrow is a highway broad and fair,
And we are the many who'll travel there.
Tomorrow is a highway broad and fair,
And we are the workers who'll build it there;
And we will build it there.

Come, let us build a way for all mankind,
A way to leave this evil year behind,
To travel onward to a better year
Where love is, and there will be no fear,
Where love is and no fear.

Now is the shadowed year when evil men,
When men of evil thunder war again.
Shall tyrants once again be free to tread,
Above our most brave and honored dead?
Our brave and honored dead.

O, comrades, come and travel on with me,
We'll go to our new year of liberty.
Come, walk upright, along the people's way,
From darkness, unto the people's day.
From dark, to sunlit day.

Tomorrow is a highway broad and fair
And hate and greed shall never travel there
But only they who've learned the peaceful way
Of brotherhood, to greet the coming day.
We hail the coming day.

Words by Lee Hays Music by Pete Seeger (1949)
TRO - (c) 1950 (renewed) Folkways Music Publishers Inc. New York, NY

ROCK THE VOTE!!!

Celebrate Dia De Los Muertos with Uncle Rock!

"Picnic in the Graveyard" is pretty much the best damn song about Day of the Dead yer gonna find! Sounding like nothing less than a lost Los Lobos single, this track from Robert Warren's 2006 CD, Plays Well with Others, is a great introduction to the sentiment behind this ancient Mexican tradition.

Uncle Rock - "Picnic in the Graveyard"