Wee Hairy Beasties – Animal Crackers
One of the toughest parts about raising kids is trying to find music they’ll enjoy but won’t make you sick. Raffi and Barney don’t pass this test, but there’s Dan Zanes, They Might Be Giants, and now this Chicago ensemble. Jon Langford and Sally Timms, singer Kelly Hogan and roots group Devil In A Woodpile team up to make a concept album that covers more species than a zoo. As they dig through folk, blues and ragtime, their cast of characters includes a bodacious ant, an overambitious turtle, a karaoke squirrel and starch-loving flies. They make it sound fun instead of overly cutesy or sentimental, which sinks a lot of children’s music.