DVD Review: “It’s a…Farmer Jason!”

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farmerjasonMaking the jump from grown-up rock to children’s music is all the rage now, but Farmer Jason — a.k.a. Jason Ringenberg, the erstwhile leader of Jason & the Scorchers — has been doing it longer than most; he made his first foray into the kid-pop market in 2003 with A Day at the Farm with Farmer Jason, and since then, he’s divided his time between post-Scorchers solo records (such as 2004’s Empire Builders) and appearances as his agriculturally inclined alter ego, who has been rocking the junior set in concert and a local access PBS series, bits of which have been repurposed for his new DVD, It’s a…Farmer Jason!

Given its humble origins, the DVD is about as endearingly low-budget as you might expect, despite a NASCAR-type block of corporate logos emblazoned on the back of the case. Nothing too flashy, just Farmer Jason kicking it up with bunches of his little fans (as well as a handful of special guests, including Webb Wilder, Todd Snider, and ex-Scorcher Warner E. Hodges). For kids raised on overcaffienated Nickelodeon fare, I suppose It’s a…Farmer Jason! might seem a little too slow, but that speaks to a defect in current children’s programming trends, not a weakness in the DVD; Ringenberg is an enormously appealing host, and the songs — which include titles like “Punk Rock Skunk,” “Ode to a Toad,” “Potato Rap,” and “The Tractor Goes Chug Chug Chug” — are tons of instantly memorable fun. It’s simple, sweet, and positive — in other words, everything you want in entertainment for your young ones. Check out samples and buy the DVD (for the low, low price of $16.75) at Farmer Jason’s official site

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CD Review: The Sippy Cups, “The Time Machine”

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61b9Xtr3TVL._SCLZZZZZZZ_[1]The Sippy Cups: The Time Machine (2009, Snacker)
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While San Francisco-based children’s band the Sippy Cups might at times remind you of the quirky and energetic B-52’s, there is no doubt that they know how to take their own experiences as parents and turn them into some of the catchiest kids’ fare you’ll ever hear. The Sippy Cups’ latest, The Time Machine, is symbolic in more ways than one, as they claim that their sound has matured right along with most of their listening audience—and they also tried to convey the message of growing up and all that goes along with growing up, and how it should be fun, to their young fans.

For example, the topics include personal experiences such as losing teeth (“Loose Tooth”), or having fun with math (“Seven is the New Fourteen”). The title track sounds like it could be the theme song for a TV show, and “Don’t Remove the Groove,” a song about making everything you do musical, is catchy and funky in a retro disco sort of way. And the crunchy guitars and sugary harmonies on “My Angry Voice” should teach kids about both keeping your anger in check, and about channeling it into a rocking song.

While The Sippy Cups might appeal to kids that are beyond toddler age, their latest is something that parents should have no trouble getting into as well. And haven’t you had enough of The Jonas Brothers anyway?

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CD Review: Bob Marley, “B Is for Bob”

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Bob Marley – B Is for Bob (Tuff Gong, 2009)
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A perfect blend of the utterly crass and the undeniably entertaining, Tuff Gong’s latest Bob Marley compilation stitches together a dozen previously released tracks — eight of them with subtle remixing and repurposing from Ziggy Marley — bundles them with a whole bunch of nifty bonus content, and serves them up for one more round of consumption. On the one hand, it’s label tomfoolery at its most repellent — how much Marley product do these people need to sell? — but on the other, it’s really sort of brilliant; after all, now that Legend has passed the 10 million-in-sales mark, is there a reggae fan left on Earth who doesn’t own his greatest hits? It’s time to start building new ones, which is where B Is for Bob comes in. Though I doubt most people have ever thought of him as a children’s artist, a lot of Marley’s music is quite kid-friendly — simple, catchy, and carrying messages of peace, love, and happiness — and though it seems safe to say the original versions of these songs would have worked just fine, Ziggy’s remix job hasn’t done them any harm; in fact, unless you’re a dedicated Marley disciple, you probably won’t even notice a difference.

Adding value to the compilation is a raft of extra online material, unlockable when you insert the disc into a Web-connected computer.

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In exchange for purchasing these songs for the umpteenth time, you get things like coloring book pages, a music video, and a one-year subscription to Parents magazine. None of it is truly essential, of course, but it’s a fun little package, and something that’ll make a terrific gift for any budding Bob enthusiasts in your life.

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You might get more sparkle from a more contemporary artist, but for classic songs that will last a lifetime, this batch is just about impossible to beat.

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