Rockin’ Out, Toddler-style

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I’m a little ashamed to admit it, but it’s been a long time since I’ve seen a band in concert. A LONG time. I know it was well before Noah was born, and he’s almost 3.5. Somehow, breaking away for a concert, what with ticket costs, babysitter costs, etc, just doesn’t fit into our family budget that well. But I am pleased to announce that on July 14, 2007, I finally broke my live-music dry spell.

(Should I let you go on thinking that I’m cool again, or should I fess up and admit who we saw?)

Well, since it’s the whole point of this article, we saw Dan Zanes. If you’re not familiar with Dan Zanes, it’s probably because you don’t have a member of the preschool set in your house. Let me tell you – if you’re between the ages of 2 and 6, Dan Zanes is COOL. As cool as Mickey and Minnie and Thomas the Tank Engine. And that’s cool.

And the coolness projected on tv was entirely evident seeing him live. Even as an adult, this was one of the more enjoyable concerts I’ve been to.

The concert was general seating, so we arrived early, and sat in the 2nd row. We could have sat in the back though, because Noah (and I) spent the entire time on the floor in the toddler mosh pit. Before the concert, he ran around and danced. And then, just when we were starting to get antsy and expecting the big DZ and his friends to walk out from backstage, he appeared – not from backstage, but walking through the audience, playing “Sidewalks of New York” on ukuleles.

The fun continued from there. Kids (and parents!) dancing and jumping on the floor, inches from the musicians, everyone enjoying the funky folk/rock sounds of Dan Zanes and Friends. It’s obvious from his music that DZ appreciates music of all types. His albums, and concerts, include his own songs, as well as things you wouldn’t expect on a kids’ cd – Scottish folk songs, civil rights era spirituals, traditional songs, you name it. At one point in the show, the band played using some percussion instruments they found backstage – 2 Rubbermaid containers and a trashcan. Dan spoke of how they like to get local musicians to appear at every show, and this one was no different. We were treated to the African drums and dance of the Otesha Creative Arts Ensemble. We even got a visit from Father Goose for the last few songs (Father Goose, a.k.a. Rankin Don appears on all of DZ’s albums, with his cool, hip-hop/rap stylings for children, which may seem like an oxymoron, but he does it well), and you’ve never seen live music until you’ve seen Dan Zanes and Father Goose play Baa Baa Black Sheep.

And then, just in time for short preschool attention spans (a little more than an hour) the band walked back out the way they came in, singing Sweet Rosyanne. They stationed themselves in the lobby for autographs and visits with their preschool fans. Happy to sign anything – t-shirts, CD’s, posters or autograph books – and pose for pictures, Dan Zanes and Friends gave their audience the perfect ending to the perfect concert.

Emschwar