Well, well well! Three amazing dreams came true, all in the last week. First, I finished the album of children’s songs that I’ve been so diligently working on ever since I wrapped up the Bend in the Middle album. Second, I can now officially say that I, as an artist, have been covered. That’s right, someone else performed a song of mine, in public!. And third, it wasn’t just any “someone else,” but my dream-band of singers: the entire group of kids in the first and second grades at Horizons K-8 in Boulder! I’ve never been more proud.
As you may recall, Horizons is the school where I worked as a counselor for 11 years, retiring last year to pursue music more full-time. I stayed in contact with the choir director, who is the loveliest human around. She helped me put together the kids choir of seven wonderful singers who make an appearance on four of the album’s 10 tracks. In that process, she really connected with my song, “Be One First,” and taught it to the school choir to perform at the spring concert. And perform, they did! Belting out my song with such vigor that, while I was able to record it, was also a tall task given the tears I was simultaneously blinking away. A true dream come true, for sure. And one school this year, let’s see how many we can get singing these songs by next year!
The album, Another Perfect Day is done, and the first single, “Be One First” comes out this Friday, May 9th. As it sounds, it’s a song that I wrote specifically to reinforce a friendship lesson for the little ones: that in order to HAVE a friend, you have to BE ONE first. The song is fun, catchy, and features a great mandolin by Greg Schochet, plus the wonderful kids’ choir.
Kyle Donovan once again produced the album, and we had a very playful, fun, time making it. There are two songs that are very clearly for kids, reinforcing both a friendship lesson and conflict-resolution strategy. But the other eight tracks are general enough for all-ages to connect with, and catchy enough to get stuck in both your head and heart.
As you might guess, writing for kids has given me a whole new avenue to explore my “relentless optimism” as it’s been called. And the positive messages of love, inclusion, and the joys of feeling good are sure to resonate with listeners across the ages. That was my intention, anyway: To get us all singing about feeling good, loving ourselves and each other, and remembering that we are here to have a very fun time.
First track comes out this Friday, May 9th, followed by another single June 13th, another July 25th, and the full album hits the streets September 5th. Thanks as always for being part of the ride. This is getting really fun.
JD