The Beat Kitchen Fall Kids Concerts!!!!

So here is the line-up for this year's kids concert series at the Beat Kitchen. The Beat Kitchen is my favorate place to play. It may be the pre-show bloody mary's, the yummy food, the great sound, or the intimate crowd. It also may be Gomez, the bar owner's commitment to bringing great kids' music to Chicago. Or it may be the parents reminiscing about hanging out at this bar in their younger years. Whatever the case, parents love to meet out with their other family friends for some live music. As far as Kids Concerts, we might not have Jammin' Java, that cool Bowery Poetry place in NY, or World Live Cafe PB & J but Chicago does have the Beat Kitchen. Let's toast to that!

10/25 Shana Sings
11/1 Human Tim + Robot Tim
11/8 Karen 4 Kids
11/15 The Little Miss Ann Band
11/22 Mary Macaroni
12/6 The Swing Sets "Remember the 80's"
12/13 Lindsay & Jesse
12/20 Jeanie B! and the Jelly Beans

Free Music at the Library!

So, the neighborhood I live in in Chicago is off the beat and path. While I have incredible "Latino"-owned and "Polish" owned grocery stores, the closest library has slim pickins. So when I pick my daughter up from her school which is in a much swankier neighborhood, we hit the library over there. The Lincoln-Belmont Library which is just a block away from the Whole Foods has a really stellar kids music selection. Today, I went through their cd's and found several Ella Jenkins. I can stop right there but I won't. To add to the list, there was Laurie Berkner, Joel Frankel, Jim Gill, Susan Salidor, Bill Harley, and even the Jimmies. Actually, over by the "grown-up" music, there were several musicals and bands kids love too.

Goodbye Mary Travers

For some reason, 80's music never spoke to me when I was a teenager. I enjoyed Cat Stevens, Simon and Garfunkel and Bob Dylan. I learned how to play guitar after hearing Joni Mitchell's "Blue" album. Of course, one of the first songs I ever learned on guitar was "Leaving on a jet plane". I know John Denver wrote this originally but for some reason Peter, Paul, and Mary's version was the one that stuck for me. Honestly, I don't know very much about Mary Travers life but I do feel a connection to her and her voice. It's like when I smell lilacs and it brings me back to catching fireflies in the backyard as a kid. Rest in Peace Mary Travers.

On the Waterfront Fest

So there are some pro's and con's to playing kids music and writing a kids music blog. The pro is that you know the inside scoop on what fests have a kids stages because you've played them. The con is that when you're writing about a fest that you're playing at it comes off as self-promotion. (Which I'm not exactly opposed to).

Anyways, Bill Osbourne has an impressive line-up at this year's On the Waterfront fest in Rockford, Illinois. Not only is the Little Miss Ann Band playing but so is Thaddeus Rex (a reading enthusiastic kids musician), The Boogers (kids music meets the Ramones), and Secret Agent 2 Skidoo (kid-hop music all the way from Asheville, NC).

Cheap Trick may have paved the way with their music in Rockford, but us kids rockers are going to keep it going.

Thanks, Nanette for the Mix Cd!

So for all three of you who may be reading my blog, I'm back. Where have I been you ask? Oh well. . I wish I had a good answer to that but mostly doing a lot of gigs, enjoying summer, camping, and playing with my new ukelele. You might remember that I teach at the Old Town School of Folk Music. I teach Wiggleworms where I play guitar and sing to parents and their babies. I've had the good fortune of having an amazing supportive group of strong sassy moms throughout my five years of teaching. In fact, it was one mom who gave me 2 cd's (Smithsonian Folkways Children's Collection and an Elizabeth Mitchell cd) that encouraged me to make a children's cd. Anyways, recently one of the moms from my class, Nanette gave me a mix cd that has really inspired me lately. Sometimes, my current music taste falls heavily into indie rock music. Well, the mix she gave me is definately more folk based and the songs messages are very touching. Above is one of the songs that both my daughter and I really like. It is called "The Little Birds" and I think it is off of Putamayo kids.

The Beatles

Kidzapalooza 2009

Tor Hyam is back with an incredible line-up for this year's Kidzapalooza stage at Lollapalooza Fri. August 7 to Sunday August 9th. Frances England is my personal fave.

FRIDAY, AUGUST 7th

Yuto Miyazawa
Paul Green’s School of Rock All-Stars
Frances England
Secret Agent 23 Skidoo
Zach Gill (ALO Jack Johnson)
Special Guest
Lunch Money

SATURDAY, AUGUST 8th

Frances England
Zach Gill (ALO Jack Johnson)
Quinn Sullivan
Secret Agent 23 Skidoo
Care Bears on Fire
Special Guest
Ralph's World

SUNDAY, AUGUST 9th

Care Bears on Fire
The Q Brothers
Ralph's World
Lunch Money
Peter DiStefano & Tor
Perry Farrell
Paul Green’s School of Rock All-Stars