List (this is just for starters, it could really be anything you could think of/especially liked as a kid): Aunt Rhody
Oh, Susannah
Aiken Drum
5 Little Ducks
5 Little Pumkins Sitting on a Gate
This Land is Your Land
Jingle Bells
Frosty the Snowman
Wheels on the Bus
Bingo
I'm Bringing Home A Baby Bumblebee
Row, Row, Row Your Boat
All the Pretty Horses
Pony Boy
Itsy Bitsy Spider Honestly, it could be something that just sounds vaguely kids music-ish, too. I'm thinking about recording a version of "How Can I Keep From Singing," since hymns are such simply-phrased songs in general. Here's something I'm working on today. Also got a version of "You Are My Sunshine" coming down the line. Still haven't fleshed out the instrumentation, but you get the gist. Short and sweet, a little wiggle room for interpretation. Can be as silly or pretty or direct as you like.
This thread reminded me of a compilation disc I had called Saturday Morning Cartoons Greatest Hits. There's some nice versions of various theme songs and songs that were featured in cartoons, like Let the Sun Shine In which I think is an old song, but done on The Flintstones.
Right here. There are some surprisingly high profile bands and artists on this comp.
Oh, I don't know. I am familiar with Raffi and Peter, Paul and Mary too. I honestly wonder what all those cartoons has done to generations of children. Not so much the Hannah Barberra cartoons, more the ones from the '80's that were created to sell toys. kleinbl00 posted an article about those cartoons here. Anyhow, cool project! I hope it comes out really well.
Tabs for which one? Actually, scratch that, I don't have tabs for any of 'em. But if you had one in mind, I'd be happy to block out the chord progression for you. Glad you're excited to try! Thanks for the nice words, but this ain't no competition, and if it was, there are plenty of great voices around here. The important thing is just to get the creative gears spinning and come up with something unique.
I've found a nice tab for Jingle Bells in the key of D, with chords included but it definitely seems to simple to wow a preschool class. I don't know if I have the theory skills to fancy it up myself, do you or anyone else want to work with me on that? EDIT: On that note, I've never done anything like this before either. I've never done any serious recording, the most impressive show of my music have been classical guitar recitals and small gigs for friends. Can anyone give me a crash course on professional quality home recording? I literally have no idea where to begin. Real 'audiophile' I am, but I've only ever worried about the music coming back to me and don't know much about recording that music.
If it makes you feel any better, the fact that the audience is predominantly preschoolers and their parents means that you don't have to worry about making it too fancy or "professional" sounding- small children are actually much more inclined towards simple tunes rather than a lot of fancy footwork. I think it's enough just to have fun with it- if you do, it'll come through in the music and kids will gravitate towards it just for that alone. That said, I'd be happy to lend a hand as well- feel free to record your side of things, shoot it over my way (or give it to the community and see what others around here do with it), and I can add bits and pieces. As for recording setup- what do you have to work with? I once recorded a whole set of songs onto Garageband through the internal mic on my laptop and it sounded pretty okay. So it's possible to just use what you got. Optimally, if you have a digital flash recorder or else a tape recorder and a mic (any old mic will do), you can get a more directed sound. If you were doing guitar and vocals, I'd recommend multi-tracking (recording one by itself, and then recording the other on top of it), but this requires some sort of software such as Garageband (if you have a Mac it comes pre-loaded) or Protools or something of the like. If you can't multitrack, just bang it out and sing. NewMonya did guitar and Vox for "Happy Birthday" and got good results. If you're a classical guitarist, it's a little tricky to get a "professional" sound anyhow without a little bit of gear and know-how. The reason being that the tone of a good classical acoustic is difficult to record without some sort of tonal distortion/quality loss/phase issues; furthermore, as classical guitar relies so heavily on careful dynamic range, it can be hard to record at the right level with the right amount of musical "personality." Anyhow, none of this matters- if you tell me what you have at your disposal with which to record, I can tell you in general terms how to best go about it. I expect thenewgreen could, as well. And I'm pretty sure there are others around here with a fair amount of real recording chops who might be willing to pitch in their two cents.
What are you recording with and what reverb are you using. I love it. Is there a timeline for this project? I have so much going on right now that it is criminal for me to even consider this, but it sounds like fun. Plus I have a 2 year old daughter that I could use as my test-subject.
Recording setup is super basic, man. Rode NT1A plugged into a bottom-of-the-line M-Audio interface straight to Protools. Using the D-Verb plugin that comes with Protools LE- used to hate it, but it turns out if you jack up the diffusion and put a lower-end HF cut on it, it doesn't sound half-bad. Or at least it doesn't sound too tinny and digital. Guitar's plugged straight into the box, because it ends up sounding a little less conventional. Timeline's roughly by the start of next month, but honestly, there's no pressure. I figure I'll just assume that things won't really come in, and that way nobody feels too strong an obligation, and then if they do submit, it's a nice addition to the whole project. I more brought it here because it's just another fun chance to collaborate, and push everybody to be as productive and musically open as possible.