Member of Hall and Oates, The Avett Brothers, and Springsteen bands get together to create a parent friendly rock and roll kids album celebrating great children's books. (Red Hook, NY, & Worldwide)
“No one had anything to do when the pandemic hit.” said singer/songwriter Frank Migliorelli, “So I thought I’d call up a few friends and see if they wanted to make a rock n’ roll record- for kids.” And when your friends include a bunch of musicians who play with Bruce Springsteen, Hall and Oates, and The Avett Brothers to name a few, you know it is going to be a pretty damn good record. From this collaboration, 'Wer'e Not Kiddin' Around' was born.
“I had this idea years ago to do a bunch of songs that were inspired by some pretty great children’s books, and started writing and demoing them. When the pandemic hit, I had all of these ideas and asked my band, The Dirt Nappers if they would be into recording a kids record.” Frank Migliorelli
Sherryl Marshall, who has sung on all of The Dirt Nappers records (and is a member of Buster Poindexter’s Banshees of Blue) suggested reaching out to Charlie Giordano and Soozie Tyrell of Springsteen’s band. “I hadn’t seen those guys in 30 years- we used to hang out in New York clubs back when I was producing bands in the late 80s and early 90s. Since they weren’t out on the road, they were totally game.” Migliorelli then tapped a few other contacts-Porter Carroll, Jr. formally of Atlantic Starr and currently touring with Hall and Oates, and fiddle player extraordinaire Tania Elizabeth from the Avett Brothers.
The songs were inspired by a number of books that Migliorelli encountered over the years. “I used to write kid’s music for a living-publishing music for video games and educational products. Plus I would do “story time” in my kid’s classrooms when they were growing up-which usually was embellished with a guitar and a few songs.” Migliorelli remembers.
“I started thinking, every good book deserves a good song, and the idea for this project was born” Included in the collection are musical tributes to classics like Mike Mulligan and his Steam Shovel, Flat Stanley, and Harry the Dirty Dog. “I also included a few songs about some newer books-I didn’t want it all to fall into the “classic rock” mode,” joked Migliorelli..
“I just want parents and kids to remember how important reading and books are.” Migliorelli said “Hopefully,if this project gets one kid excited about reading, or if one parent takes their kid to the library because of this music, this will be the greatest Dirt Napper record ever.”
New Companion Website for Children's Album In addition to the collection of songs, the band is launching a companion website that highlights activities, features music videos, and resources for kids and parents to explore. The site will launch Sept 15 and will be accessed through www.musickideos.com. Follow Music Kideos on Instagram
About The Dirt Nappers
The Dirt Nappers are a variety of seasoned sidemen-Mike Heaphy on steel (Steve Forbert), Dan Weiss on keys (Joan Osborne, Goo Goo Dolls, Duncan Sheik), Thad DeBrock on guitar (Judy Collins, Graham Nash, and Susan Vega) Tony Tino on bass (Asbury Jukes, Gavin DeGraw), and Tommy Deihl on drums.
Follow Frank Migliorelli on Instagram.
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