The idea of teaching lessons to children through song and story is age old. Aesop's Fables (not to be confused with Aesop Rock) are classic examples of fun stories with deep meanings. I don't mind these deeper meanings as long as they 1) Are consistent with the Truth 2) Are consistent with other stories and songs 3) Aren't ridiculous.
Unfortunately, the Fisher Price Little People Sing Along, has not satisfied my baby propaganda criteria.
For instance, here are a few excerpts
"Bam, Bang, Crash, recycle ALL your trash"- All trash is not recyclable, especially in Troy TN
"The clock struck 7-go straight to heaven"- This is a little too morbid for my child's ears
"There were ten in a bed and the little one said roll over, roll over. So they all rolled over..." Since when did 9 sleepy children listen to the runt of the lot to their own detriment. One of the voices apparently sees the incredulity of the situation halfway through the song because he yells, "This is getting ridiculous."
"That bear was fast when chasing me, but glory be I found a tree." First, it is rarely a good idea to run from a bear. Second, bears are much better tree climbers than your average child.
"Alice the camel has no humps, now Alice is a horse." NO NO NO!!! Alice is dehydrated, or undeveloped. I would hate to hear what they would tell the young sister in Song of Songs chapter 8.
One of the all time worst is during the song "Here we go round the mulberry bush..." On the fifth verse they are going around the cabbage patch. Then after they sing that verse one of the kids (who is most likely an adult trying to sound like a kid) says enthusiastically, "Cabbages are fun!" That is taking it too far!
2 comments:
I feel ya, Drew. I feel ya.
They Might Be Giants has three kids albums. They are ridiculous, but in a totally fun way. Kids music I listen to without kids around. "No!" which has some odd fables. "Here Come the ABCs"-alphabet, and I think they have a numbers one.
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