The Rocket Went Up! cover
Artist: The Deedle Deedle Dees
Album: The Rocket Went Up! (Sing-A-Long History Vol. 2)
Age Range: 5 through 10
Description: Lloyd Miller and the Deedle Deedle Dees have always worn their curiosity on their sleeves. On their latest album they continue to explore the world around them by singing about the people who explored the world around them. Astronauts, Nobel Prize winners and Darwin get their day, but so do Henry Houdini, Typhoid Mary, and Diana Nyad. As a songwriter, Miller sometimes runs toward the Craig Finn school of lyrics, words spilling out in torrents. That can be great, like on his rap battle with Secret Agent 23 Skidoo on “Tesla v. Edison,” but, keeping in mind the album’s title, doesn’t always make for the best singalongs. There are a number of songs here, however, that strike me as perfect for that singalong environment, such as “Every Time I Stand Up” (there’s definitely a physical component here as well) and “The Rocket Went Up!,” a call-and-response that would make Ella Jenkins proud.
The album is all over the map subject-wise and musically, but that’s always been a feature, not a bug, in the Dees’ world. Curious kids and their curious parents will enjoy these diversions into the nooks and crannies of historical narratives. Recommended.
Note: I was provided a copy of the album for possible review.
