My Name is Chicken Joe CD and Book by Trout Fishing in America

I don't know how it is with your children, but my two –– boy and girl, currently 7 and 9 –– have reached the stage where Barney and the Wiggles are beginning to fail as entertainment. They don't mind even Barney as background music, but the songs aren't always catching their attention enough to stop them from squabbling in the backseat (a point which is very important to me and my sanity).

I've tried other music but it's either too old for them (Kidz Bop) or just not that great. BUT THEN CAME My Name is Chicken Joe. Oh my gosh, something for the whole family... real music! The instrumentals are tight and professional, and whichever of the guys is singing, he/they has a marvelous voice. Best of all, the songs are catchy and fun and as a result EVERYONE, including dad, likes this album.

The My Name is Chicken Joe CD comes with a sturdy book. Or perhaps it's the sturdy book that comes with the CD. In any case, it's a hard cover with thick shiny pages filled with sunny artwork by Stephane Jorisch.

The first song/story is fully illustrated and tells the tales of critters that can't be judged by their names. Chicken Joe, for example, is a cat; and King Kong is a parakeet. Subsequent lyrics have an illustration but are mainly there so that kids can read along and sing along with TFiA– which mine have certainly done. (TFiA = Trout Fishing in America. And here's their site.)

I mentioned before that the melodies were catchy. Certainly something that's a must-have for kids. The other thing that the songs have are clever lyrics, themes that children can relate to, such as "Why I Pack My Lunch" (“The lunch bell tolls, we go bravely, To chicken knuckles with toxic gravy, Cream of tea bags, wombat pelt...”) and “Fill It Up” (about filling up an ice cream cone 'all the way to the bottom').

Wrap-Up:::
Good music for adults and kids. Children younger than 5 will most likely like the melodies, but might not get all the school references.

This CD and Book combination shut down all arguments and struggles in our backseat and so gets my rave review. Dad and I like the word-play and the fact that there are lessons tucked into the verses. We will definitely be checking out other CD's by Trout Fishing in America. They are awesome.


Pam
Somewhere in the X-burbs

My Name is Chicken Joe

• Accelerated Reading level : unknown
• Hardcover: 36 pages
• Publisher: Secret Mountain; Har/Com edition (April 25, 2009)
• ISBN-10: 2923163494

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Song Titles:

Chicken Joe
My Best Day
I Can Dance
Something Sweet
It's a Puzzle
Fill It Up
Why I Pack My Lunch
LALA Land
Boiled Okra and Spinach
Hard Ball
Count on Me