The Grammy Awards took place a few weeks ago. Now, I’m sure Kasey Musgrove and Childish Gambino are fine (kidding, I know they’re great), but here in Artsplorers world, there’s clearly only one category we really had our eyes on – Best Children’s Album. The Academy has spoken, and now we’ve given our due consideration to the winner, Lucy Kalantari & the Jazz Cats for All the Sounds.
Kalantari is a Brooklyn based musician with a cool ukulele and a band that sounds straight out of a 1920s speakeasy – if the speakeasy closes by 7:30p.m. and the juice boxes are flowing freely. “Sounds of Summer,” the first song on the All the Sounds, perfectly captures a swingtime essence with cool drums and a bellowing horn section. It’s a toe-tapping ode to all things that universally sound like summer – ice cream trucks, outdoor concerts, barbecues, and parties. It’s seriously rollicking classic jazz.
Kalantari is an American born daughter of Latino parents (Dominican mother and Puerto Rican father), so Spanish language elements naturally pop up in her songs, like the second track, “La Cosecha,” a celebration of the family table, preparing and sharing a salad together with our friends, neighbors and family. My Miss 6 has been listening particularly closely to this one, loving learning the Spanish words for the different vegetables.
My favorite track is the jazz-hip hop fusion, “Are You Afraid of the Dark,” which features fellow kid’s artist Secret Agent 23 Skiddoo. “Are you afraid of the dark?,” Kalantari asks. “NO!,” shouts confident kid’s voices. The song is about more than just being afraid of the dark, but about finding a positive outlook to overcome your fears and negative thoughts. “How you react is up to you,” says the chorus. A rap break by Skidoo has him sharing how he chooses not to be afraid of the dark. “I refuse to be my own boogey-man,” he concludes. It’s an empowering message set to a driving tune that kids can feel strong telling themselves at bedtime or any time things feel tough.
We get to hear some scat singing in “Ain’t No Dog Like Mister,” a peppy ode to one great pup pal. Similarly upbeat is “Bunny Hop,” which improbably mashes up swing with opera in a clever dance ditty. And, for more dance, we go to tango town with a werewolf whose hunger is for dancing in “Howl to the Moon.”
Kalantari’s talented young son features in “I Know a Little Fellow” about the young cello player who “plays his little cello like a big, big fellow.” They move through a lesson in musical terminology – high/low, glissando, tremolo, pianissimo/fortissimo, and so forth. You could really give your kids a musical education with this one!
Kalantari’s arms are open wide open to the world in “The Peace Song,” (“I wish you peace/peace unto you”) and “Travellin’ All Around” a cheery meander about the joys of new experiences and friendships made through exploring the world. These flow right into the final track, title song “All the Sounds,” a beautiful lullaby about tuning into the sounds of stillness, imagination, and wisdom that you can hear when you get very still and quiet – “all the sounds in your heart.”
Lucy Kalantari really does explore a world of sounds across All the Sounds – sounds of seasons, sounds of your family and neighborhood, sounds of another language, dancing sounds, musical sounds, and the sounds inside ourselves, not to mention all the brassy, booming, tinkling, plucking sounds of classic jazz. The focus may be mainly on only one of our five senses, but it’s quite the big, brave, and joyful world that emerges by exploring all the sounds.
Read more about Lucy Kalantari & the Jazz Cats and find links to buy or download All the Sounds on their website.
Read the rest of our Listening Ears On reviews for more non-annoying children’s music!
Littlefolk by Angie Who
Little Steps, Big Adventures by Tiptoe Giants
Hey Hey, Let’s Play by Nay Nay
Helpful Songs for Little People by the Teeny Tiny Stevies
Beyond the Little Star by Benny Time
Season One by The Vegetable Plot
Here Comes Science! by They Might Be Giants
Storytime Singalong Volumes 1 and 2 by Emily Arrow
Bunny Rumble by Bunny Racket
Keep It Real! by Caspar Babypants
Scratch ‘N’ Sniff by The Sticker Club