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MP3 Randy Kaplan - Five Cent Piece
17 MP3 Songs
KIDS/FAMILY: General Children''s Music, FOLK: Traditional Folk
Details:
Five Cent Piece is the new record (not just) for kids by Randy Kaplan.
The c.d. features all-time classics like “Over the Rainbow”, “Kids” (from Bye Bye Birdie), & “You Can’t Always Get What You Want” and original songs like “Shampoo Me”, “Mosquito Song” (you gotta flick-a-flick-a-flick-a-flick-a-flick-a-flick-a-flick, flick that mosquito in the m-m-m-m-mud), & “Roaches” (they’re tryin’ on your underwear, checkin’ out your grocery list, readin’ your copy of Metamorphosis) and many, many more!
Randy has been a music teacher at Beansprouts and Special Sprouts in Park Slope, Brooklyn since June 2004. In addition to his school shows, he performs for children twice weekly at Perch Cafe, also in Park Slope. He sings at many events in New York, including festivals, picnics, and parties. His diverse repertoire includes popular and obscure children’s music; old-time blues, folk, and jazz; showtunes (Kids, Time Warp, Doin'' What Comes Natur''lly); adaptations of rock ‘n roll anthems (You Can''t Always Get What You Want, Alice''s Restaurant, Yellow Submarine); and, of course, original songs.
Randy performs (for grown-ups) at The Living Room in Manhattan and at other venues throughout the country. He is from Long Island, New York and has lived in Los Angeles, California and Lawrence, Kansas. He has released five c.d.s but this is his first kids'' record!
Selections from reviews of FIVE CENT PIECE:
"Brooklyn’s Randy Kaplan hits the mark with his first release for kids, Five Cent Piece, which combines a gloriously wacky collection of oldies. We love “You Can’t Always Get What You Want,” about a little boy throwing a tantrum along with the Rolling Stones’ admonishment, and “The Donut Song,” about really wanting that tasty treat."
-Susan Avery / NEW YORK MAGAZINE
“With a bunch of groupies under the age of five, you probably wouldn’t want Randy Kaplan rockin’ out in your living room, even if you had the space. Instead head to The Living Room, a hip Lower East Side haunt where you and your kids will have plenty of space to groove, and no mess to clean up afterwards. Kaplan, who released five CDs for grown ups before putting out his first kids’ album, is continuing to celebrate with performances that all of his fans can enjoy. Five Cent Piece, a mix of Kaplan’s own original work as well as covers of Mom and Dad’s favorites, will have ears of all ages perking up. Parents will appreciate classic Stones with “You Can’t Always Get What You Want,” while their offspring may lean more towards songs about city apartment inhabitants—namely mosquitoes and roaches. The lyrics are silly—“they’re tryin’ on your underwear, checkin’ out your grocery list, reading your copy of Metamorphosis”—and parents will laugh too, getting the joke that’s years over their kids’ heads.”
-Sophie Friedman / TIME OUT NEW YORK KIDS
"Following up his stupendous “Perfect Gentleman” album with an album that’s for children and adults who still like their music fun and sing-along-able Kaplan covers such children’s classics as “Over the Rainbow”, “Kids” of ‘Bye Bye Birdie’ fame, “I’m a Little Dinosaur”, and “You Can’t Always Get What You Want”. His own originals are just as entertaining and fun for both adult and child. My own 5-month-old son really loved this album. Thanks Randy!"
-J-Sin / https://www.tradebit.com
“Randy has one of the most interesting voices I''ve ever heard… He shares some of the nasal twang as singers like Michael Stipe and Arlo Guthrie, and there''s also just a bit of grit in there, as if his vocal chords forgot to shake their shoes out after a day at the beach. Most significantly, Randy''s voice is incredibly easy-going and welcoming, and you feel like you''re sitting next to an old friend on an old couch and he''s playing a new tune for you and you know you''re already going to be enthralled with it the first time you hear it because, ya know, it''s your good friend, Randy.
"That''s an important quality to have for this material, because Randy is very much in the Arlo Guthrie vein of story-telling through songs, and if he wasn''t such a friendly character then some of the songs with a lot of talking might get tiresome. But my kids and I love this CD and are happy to let Randy spin his yarns over and over and knit us up into a warm little mitten.
"Much of the CD consists of new renditions of classic songs like "We''re in the Same Boat, Brother", "I''m a Little Dinosaur", "Freight Train", "Kids" (from Bye Bye Birdie) and "You Are My Sunshine". All are done in a sweet folky style with smooth fingerstyle guitar as the backbone, and different tracks include some nice accompaniment including trombone, mandolin, violin and accordian. "Over the Rainbow" is one of those songs like "Unchained Melody" or "O Holy Night", where I thought it would need a particularly virtuoso vocalist to pull it off, but Randy''s version is one of the most beautiful I''ve ever heard. The earthy twang of his voice along with the gently rolling guitar may not be in perfect pitch or perfect intonation, and yet it is so "just right" in every deeply soulful sense that really matters. It doesn''t hurt that the song is so great to begin with, but Randy has made this version truly special.
"Randy also does a very funny version of "You Can''t Always Get What You Want", where he replaces the Stones'' verses with another Arlo styled story about a kid who wants to play all day at the playground and doesn''t want to get dressed into his pajamas after his bath and wants to eat nothing but ice cream and... well... you know how the chorus goes. In the third chorus, Randy goes off and provides voices for different family members and a strange menagerie of pets singing along. This takes what David Grover and his band did so well with "Where''s My Pajamas" and one-ups it. I was laughing out loud when he got to the snake and the horse and the cow. And I love his little interjections between the chorus lines like, "Adapt this as your first mantra!" and "Use it preemptively!" Good advice, indeed. This track is nearly ten minutes long, which might be a bit much for some, but I enjoyed it all. This track also shows off Randy''s ability to do funny voices and to be an engaging goof, which is evident on other tracks as well…
"Randy also offers four original tracks. They''re all kind of odd in their own way, which is good. Again with being ''peculiar'' in a good way. I especially liked the first original, which is a story song about a shark who invades Randy''s bathtub and orders him to "Shampoo me!" I love the phrasing when he sings the title, with his high chirp on the "poo" and the low growl on "me", and the second verse in particular is very funny as the shark counters Randy''s complaint about his lack of hair by telling him, "You don''t have any, either," and pointing out that he still has a bottle of shampoo nearby, regardless. "Mosquito Song" is a lowdown bluesy number about Randy trying to flick a mosquito away from him. "Roaches" is very pleasant musically, but a bit disturbing as it describes an apartment where roaches are everywhere, even on the bookshelf reading Kafka (of course). The song ends with the roaches singing in a way that sounds almost like vocal slide guitar. "Mostly Yellow" is a sad ballad about how Big Bird, with his Fruit Loop ankles, has never flown anywhere, so he''s "mostly yellow, but just a little blue"…
"It''s the little details during his song commentary, the warm and welcoming feeling of the music, and the instantly engaging and friendly nature of Randy''s voice and character that makes this such a winning recording. I really enjoy listening to this, and look forward to hearing more kids'' music from Randy."
-Eric Herman / https://www.tradebit.com
"Kaplan has released five CDs for adults, but has also taught and played for kids often. His debut (kids’) CD is a mix of well-chosen (and often reworked) covers and skewed originals. Artists covered include Jonathan Richman (the winsome "I''m A Little Dinosaur"), Arlo Guthrie ("Motorcycle Song"), and Elizabeth Cotton (the timeless "Freight Train") among others. One of the best tracks on the disk is "Grape Juice Hesitation Blues," his reworking of the traditional "Hesitation Blues," which features some great Don''t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus-style interplay between Kaplan and a ragged chorus of kids.
"The originals are a little odder, featuring songs about sharks in the bathtub (the spacey "Shampoo Me"), pesky mosquitoes (the bluesy "Mosquito Song"), and, well, "Roaches," which features little squeally roachlike-sounds in the background.
"For the most part, Kaplan plays it straight and lets the music do the talking -- indeed, one of the best things about the album is the terrific musicianship, especially when they''re playing traditional songs such as "Freight Train" or "Over the Rainbow." But Kaplan likes to tell stories, and so a number of songs include spoken word portions including... wait for it... "You Can''t Always Get What You Want." Yes, my friends, the Stones cut has been put on a kids and family album, a decision so shocking that my wife, whose interest in music doesn''t quite match mine, sputtered, "But, but, that''s a classic!" For those who are worried, don''t be, Kaplan has crafted a 10-minute story using only the occasional chorus for punctuation…
"With his mixture of somewhat different arrangements traditional bluegrass and folk instrumentation, affinity for storytelling, and wide choice of covers… Kaplan has fashioned one of the more unusual kids and family albums of the year, good for chilly winter afternoons or late summer days. Recommended."
- S.A. Shepherd / https://www.tradebit.com
"Guitarist Randy Kaplan knows something about kids -- to the toddlers of Park Slope, Brooklyn, he''s as recognizable as Elmo from his coffee house morning shows and pre-K gigs.
"But as his first record for children shows, he''s also an excellent musician and songwriter. Kaplan combines refreshingly straightforward takes on traditional folk songs like "Freight Train" with his own kid-friendly lyrics -- including the "Grape Juice Hesitation Blues," shorn of all illicit desire. It''s territory familiar to Dan Zanes fans, but wittier, with less of the folk-music-is-good-for-you attitude.
"Then there are Kaplan''s own compositions, like "Mosquito Song" and "Roaches", with menacing man-bug dialogues to make parents squirm and kids cackle. (The roaches sing "We''ll be here forever, because we''re immune to all your poisons...") The real surprise is the sensitivity of the arrangements, as on Bridget Law''s plaintive violin solo for "Over the Rainbow." Thankfully, unlike Ralph Covert, Kaplan goes easy on background singing from kids; here, less is more. "Five Cent Piece" is a welcome release for parents who''ve had enough Laurie Berkner for one lifetime."
-M.J. Wilson / https://www.tradebit.com
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