Definitely Above Average: Stories & Comedy for You & Your Poor Old Parents [Abridged, Audiobook] [Audio CD]

Garrison Keillor (Author, Performer)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 2, 2000

From live broadcasts of A Prairie Home Companion.

After the birth of Garrison Keillor's daughter, the stories, songs, and sketches on A Prairie Home Companion took on a distinctly parental bent. This new collection gathers the warmest, funniest, most affectionate examples: dance tunes and comedy with sound effects; songs featuring Chet Atkins, Leo Kottke, Beaussoleil, and other guests; Ian Frazier's much-requested "Lamentations of the Father"; and Garrison's version of "The Princess and the Pea." Garrison says, "I test-played this album for my daughter, who is three, and she jumped around a lot."

Filled with stories, sketches, and songs recorded from live broadcasts, Definitely Above Average will delight parents and children everywhere.

Contents:

Oh Baby

Bananas

Children Go Where I Send Thee

The True Sad Story of Mr. Froggie

Baby Dance

Knock Knock Who's There

El Hambo

Hush Little Baby

The Baby Says Ha

Estrellita

Count Your Blessings

Brownie and Pete

The Horses Stood Around/Powdermilk Biscuit Theme

Tell My Ma

Happy One Step

Oh Susanna Fantasy

Wheels On the Bus

Songs That I Love Best

Baby Blues

Tell Me Why

The Chord That Jack Played

A Game of Chess

The Princess and the Pea

The Sound Effects Man Part One

The Snow Queen

The Sound Effects Man Part Two

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

GARRISON KEILLOR is America's favorite storyteller. For more than 35 years as the host of A Prairie Home Companion, he has captivated millions of public radio listeners with his weekly "News from Lake Wobegon" monologues. Keillor is also the author of several books and a frequent contributor to national publications including Time, The New Yorker, and National Geographic, in addition to writing his own syndicated column. He has been awarded a National Humanities Medal from the National Endowment of the Humanities.

GARRISON KEILLOR is America's favorite storyteller. For more than 30 years as the host of A Prairie Home Companion, he has captivated millions of public radio listeners with his weekly "News from Lake Wobegon" monologues. Keillor is also the author of several books and a frequent contributor to national publications including Time, The New Yorker, and National Geographic, in addition to writing his own syndicated column. He has been awarded a National Humanities Medal from the National Endowment of the Humanities.

From AudioFile

These songs and sketches are taken from live broadcasts of "A Prairie Home Companion" and, as such, qualify more as a concert than an actual book. It doesn't matter what the format is, though, because Keillor is a very funny fellow. Tape One contains musical selections of old children's favorites, twisted versions thereof, and some new material. Tape Two has sketches that aren't really for children, but certainly capture the fun of dealing with young ones. Most of the material is funny and warm and, in the case of "Lamentations of the Father," dangerous to listen to while driving. It is utterly priceless. Keillor fans might have heard some of these, but for the rest of us they provide a welcome diversion. R.I.G. © AudioFile 2001, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Audio CD
• Publisher: HighBridge Company; Abridged; 2.5 hours on 2 CDs edition (August 2, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1565114124
• ISBN-13: 978-1565114128
• Product Dimensions: 4.9 x 5.6 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 2.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,114,799 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

24 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Definitely BELOW Average, December 3, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Definitely Above Average: Stories & Comedy for You & Your Poor Old Parents (Audio CD)

This is missing much of the charm of the usual Prairie Home Companion programs. The first CD consists only of songs. If you listen to the show for the music you may like this. The second cd has a few long sketches, a couple of which were entertaining, the others were simply repetitive. If you're expecting the typical Prairie Home Companion show, look elsewhere.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Perhaps just a smidge above average, February 1, 2001

By A Customer

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Definitely Above Average: Stories & Comedy for You & Your Poor Old Parents (Audio Cassette)

If you are unfamiliar with Keillor, but like listening to old time radio shows, then you may enjoy this cd. I liked this collection, even though it is frequently corny.

While an adult would have to be a true fan to enjoy Keillor's singing on the music cd, my uncritical toddler bounces to the rhythms and enjoys the quirky music. As an adult, the cd with the sketches is more enjoyable. "Laws concerning Food and Drink: Household Principles; Lamentations of the Father" is worth the price of the cd alone.