Search - Sandra Boynton, Aaaardvarks, The Heath Sisters :: Philadelphia Chickens (Sandra Boynton's Imaginary Musical Revue)

Ann R. from HOUMA, LA
Reviewed on 2/26/2013...

This CD is so much fun that I am smiling as I type this review. The quality of the music and lyrics and performance is excellent. And it is silly and funny. I enjoy listening to it even when my grandchildren aren't even in the same state!!

More uneven than "Rhino Tap" but still a great all-ages list

Jennifer M. Macleod | Canada | 07/04/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"We sort of did this out of order... we got Rhinoceros Tap first and LOVED it! Then, we took out this one, and it was a bit of a tougher sell.



The songs - I have to say - are great! However, to some extent, you feel like the "celeb singers" are showing off a little more than the lone singer (Adam Bryant) on the Rhino Tap album.



While Bryant's voice becomes friendly and familiar through that collection, here, each new song basically introduces a new singer; the success of this format, in my mind, is varied.



For what it's worth, we didn't have the liner notes and had NO CLUE who was singing what until I just now checked on Amazon. So here are our top picks - the kids' and mine - based solely on how much we enjoy the song and singer:

2. Nobody Understands Me - Meryl Streep (worth the price of the album if you're a Streep fan!)

5. Please Can I Keep it - Laura Linney

9. Faraway Cookies - Caitlin McEwan (a fantastic ballad to chocolate chip cookies!)

11. Fifteen Animals - John Stey (they're all named Bob!)

17. Pig Island - Scott Bakula (hee hee)

10. The Intermission Song! - Aaaardvarks



Least faves:

3. Philadelphia Chicken - The Bacon Brothers (I know, it's the title track, but the sound is too jazzy for my kids!)

12. Belly Button (Round) - The Heath Sisters

We also don't enjoy the instrumental reprise at the end of the album... I don't feel it's necessary and the kids always ask me to skip past it.



Some of the songs CAN get tedious pretty quickly, like "Be Like A Duck (Keith Boynton)" which just seems to go on WAY too long. There were a couple like that on Rhino Tap as well (like the Dinosaur round), but maybe those songs would appeal to younger children (my "big kids" are 10 and 11 and the baby doesn't have an opinion yet!).



Overall, this album features the same great mix of tuneful tunes, intelligent lyrics and Boynton silliness as Rhinoceros Tap, with only a couple of minor low points. Every member of the family will enjoy this album over and over - which is saying a lot, since my car-music "insanity threshhold" is usually kinda low. :-)))"

ABSOLUTELY THE BEST! (for all ages)

Jennifer M. Macleod | 04/29/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I have given this cd/book/music to many kids and adults, including my mom. I've also kept it for myself! The songs are so fun and funny, they crack you up. They also introduce kids to all types of music, from blues to jazz to country to everything. The book itself is great, and I read stories to my grandson and nieces from it. And this is the best bargain in the business: You get the cd with 19 songs, the hard cover book with illustrations and words to each (which we enjoy as stories), and the sheet music for piano and additional lyrics in the back. The favorite of one of my nieces is "Please can I keep it -- it followed me home." The other niece loves "Those Dinosaur Blues," and MY favorite (or one of them) is "Be Like a Duck." But then the song by aardvarks pretending to be cows is charming, too. You just can't go wrong. BUY THIS!"