... it's got Lollapalooza. Although Kidzapalooza's website is mum, Lollapalooza does list a few children's musicians, including Justin Roberts, Candy Band, the Q Brothers, Peter DiStefano, and Chicago's much-revered Ella Jenkins. More are certainly on the way.
Oh, and if you don't like those artists, there might be a few others of interest in the main lineup. You know, like 30 or 40.
Lollapalooza is scheduled for August 4-6, 2006, in Chicago's Grant Park.
Jamarama Reviews, Part Two
A few weeks back, I searched for some reviews of Jamarama's West Coast swing. An extensive newspaper review turned up nothing, but a few blogs provided a little bit of coverage. Since then, Jamarama had six more dates and completed their spring tour (no further dates have been announced).
The list of reviews on these second set of dates is once again slim and unfortunately none of them are nearly as interesting as, say, a behind-the-scenes view of the tour. Still, one takes what one can get... and, you know, the only one that goes into more detail than "Dan Zanes is awesome" in the midst of a whole bunch of stuff utterly irrelevant to this blog is Fran's review of the Dallas show. Lots of pictures.
I tried, people...
News: Jamarama Live! Sets Western Tour, Ignores Fifth-Largest City in America
One of my favorite scene in the classic mockumentary This Is Spinal Tap is when the tour manager of the band Spinal Tap tells them that their Boston gig has been cancelled, but tries to soften the blow, telling them, "Don't worry, it's not a big college town."
I bring this up because in looking at Jamarama's western and southwestern swing in March and April 2006, there's one city that, uh, seems to have been overlooked.
Saturday, March 4 Santa Barbara, CA Arlington Theater
Sunday, March 5 Long Beach, CA Terrace Theatre
Saturday, March 11 Marin, CA Marin Center
Sunday, March 12 San Diego, CA Spreckels Theatre
Saturday, March 25 Las Vegas, NV Aladdin Resort & Casino
Sunday, March 26 Fresno, CA William Saroyan Theatre
Saturday, April 1 Salt Lake City, UT Ford Theatre
Sunday, Apri 2 Denver, CO Paramount Theatre
Saturday, April 8 Dallas, TX Nokia Theatre
Sunday, April 9 Houston, TX Verizon Wireless Theater
No offense to the fine folks of Fresno, but where in the name of Raffi is Phoenix on this list? We're not all senior citizens, golfers, and cacti, you know. Kids. Lots of kids. Swarming with kids. And a population bigger than any of those cities listed above (OK, the LA area deserves its shows, no quibbling there).
Sigh. I'm especially disappointed because Dan Zanes is taking over from Laurie Berkner as the headliner on this swing (with the Ohmies filling in on some dates). Would really liked to have seen him...
News: They Might Be Giants Like Kids, But Not Too Much So
One of the things I've always enjoyed about TMBG shows is seeing parents bringing their kids. In the back of the crowd, enjoying the noise and lights and energy, it seemed like a nice way to bring parents and children together.
Well, have I been wrong all these years? Because They Might Be Giants' (main) tour page now includes the following disclaimer:
Also, we enjoy having the opportunity to perform for children at our kid's shows, but there is simply no place for children at the regular TMBG shows. Things get very adult specific in terms of language. The volume is extreme even in the back of the hall, and there is usually large amounts of smoke of every variety; but most important of all-there are routinely a small number of very large, drunk, excitable adults who, at regular intervals 1.) jump off the stage directly into the crowd 2.) slam dance through the crowd 3.) throw bottles into the crowd and 4.) knock people down in their revelry. Over the years we regret to report we have seen many different kinds of serious injury due to crowd rowdiness-injury that would be far more serious to a small child than to a flexible 18 year old. There is essentially no controlling the random nature of crowds. This is why we cannot allow children at our shows. Please-get a baby-sitter. Make no mistake-TMBG shows are adult-only affairs. Do not bring children to shows that are not specifically for children. You will be turned away.Sigh. Maybe they're right. (But I'm still sad I didn't get a chance to take my daughter to a "regular" show.)
