Customer Reviews

The Bottle Let Me Down: Songs for Bumpy Wagon Rides

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Since my daughter was born, I have pondered on the question of how long I would have to endure dull and obnoxious "children's" music. Well, Bloodshot has given me the answer! NO MORE!

Its nice to have familar artists (and some familiar songs! I immediately broke into singing Senor El Gato like we had never left the first grade) on this album. The songs are cute and silly (Funky Butt is ironically funny for parents) and fun to sing.

I will buy this for any friends or family who have children.

PS- Godfrey is not about a pedophile, but rather about a cranky old, homeless wannabe magician who is perhaps crazy but harmless. its a silly song and maybe one of my favorite tracks on the CD.

There are two reasons why I decided to make this my first review of a product ever:

1. This is probably the BEST children's music CD out on the market and it is most enjoyable to listen to over and over again (as we parents do when our kids like a particular collection of songs and request them time and time again). This CD is a unique collection of oldies and some new goodies; each and every one of them a gem. I am a music enthusiast that has been rather disappointed with many of the children's music being mass prduced today and found this one to be exceptional. It features a group of Chicago musicians and is released by an independent record label in Chicago, Bloodshot Records, who need to start working on their next chilren's album...

2. To the person who thinks that Godfrey is about a pedophile (not to trivialize your concern):
a) please listen to the words and do not overread the simplcity of the lyrics.
b) accept Godfrey as what he is, a crazy, cranky, old, "sickly, unemployed, amateur magician" who hangs around the playground because his only captive audiences for his gross (BUT NOT SUGGESTIVE) tricks are schoolchildren.

Thank you for reading my first review and I hope it inspires you to add this album to your children's (or your) music collection...

It seems an unlikely idea - alternative country singers getting together to do a children's album - but it works brilliantly.

Rosie Flores opens the album in great style with her cover of the classic song Red red robin. It sets the tone of the album, which is almost relentlessly upbeat, fun music, with just the occasional slow song like It's not easy being green, performed by Rex Hobart and the misery boys. Yes, this album is occasionally slightly silly, but nothing to make you squirm or run away from.

Apart from Red red robin, perhaps the most famous songs here are Camptown races (done as an instrumental), I am my own Grandpa (sung here by the Asylum street spankers), Three billy goats gruff (narrated by Carolyn Mark) and The fox (sung by the Waco brothers). Snowball is a new song by the Handsome family, set to the tune of the classic train song Wabash Cannonball. Likewise, On top of spaghetti, with new lyrics sung by Jane Baxter Miller, uses the music from On top of Old Smokey.

Many of the other songs are completely new, specially written for this project. All the contributors clearly enjoyed themselves. Buy this album and join in the fun.

I'm still not sure if I want kids, but this CD will be the first thing I play for them if I do! This pastiche of alt-country songs from the fab label Bloodshot includes Kelly Hogan's silly (sexy even!) "Rubber Ducky" and Trailer Bride's lovely "Lullaby." Original tunes by masters like Alejandro Escovedo mix well with standards like "Rockin' Robin." Equally good for cocktail parties and little tots' birthday soirees.

What happens when an alternative label figures out that their acts and the fans are all growing up and having kids? A little something for those in this next generation growing up with the belief that a guitar is still a machine that can kill facists, that's what. Wonderful childhood standards, like "on Top of Spaghetti" and "The Crawfish Song" are covered with a fabulous sense of whimsy. "Rubber Ducky" is given the joyful respect it's come to deserve. And folks like Alejandro Escovedo show that they can still write like a ten year old, in the best possible sense of being ten. This album is a great mix of old favorites, new standards, and completely original songs, all of which are perfect for the completely original individuals we're trying to raise. It's good to know that in the 21st century, a modern kind of folk music is getting to the kinderfolk. Thanks Bloodshot, and thanks Uncle Pete.

This is a fun album. The music is a mix of well-known and new songs sung energetically and with the emphasis on making them fun. The first track, Rosie Flores' Red, Red Robin is terrific, and many others -- Hinky Dinky Dee, Camptown races, On Top of Spaghetti -- will have you cheerfully singing along and teaching your kids the words....

Listening to the samples will give you a good idea of the album's style.

We really enjoy this CD, as does our 3-year-old daughter. Classics like "On Top of Spaghetti" are mixed with new songs like "Don't Wipe Your Face On Your Shirt," a particular favorite of mine. In my opinion, Robbie Fulks' song "Godfrey" does work on more than one level -- nothing I think a kid would ever, ever get, but the lyrics did cause me to raise an eyebrow slightly (I mean, this is Robbie Fulks we're talking about... he's got a pretty edgy sense of humor, and let me be clear that I know this because I own several of his discs). I probably wouldn't give this CD as a gift unless I knew the parents well and felt confident they wouldn't have a negative reaction to "Godfrey" in particular.

That said, this is a highly entertaining compilation, and one of the better kids' CDs I've come across.

What a breath of fresh air! This collection of "children's" songs is great for the entire family. Wonderful renditions of "Red, Red Robin," "Don Gato," "Don't Wipe Your Face On Your Shirt," "On Top of Spaghetti," and many more that will entertain you and your young ones for hours.

Great service and a great product. I bought it for a friend and I am sure he will love it. Really great music.

Bought this YEARS ago when my kids were still little. LOVED the edgyness and originality of the whole thing. As the kids got older they started to "get" the twisted-ness of it and enjoyed it on a whole new level. The polarizing song about "Godfrey", the sickly unemployed amature childrens magician can be used to quickly evaluate potential "friend families". "Cool" parents that you will want to hang with will think it's hysterical and sing along loudly, Uptight parents who react with shock and distress are ones that you don't want your children (or yourself) to be exposed to!