**One of the Top 10 Best Kids CD's of 2008** so says Amazon.com.
"It’s not strictly necessary to be a classic-rock kind of parent to appreciate this 12-pack of cool songs for cool kids (a follow-up to Daddy’s all-time coolest Cool Songs for Cool Kids from 2001), but as mastermind John Boydston, a.k.a. Daddy a Go-Go, might concede, it helps. For one thing, a fondness for the Rolling Stones’ 1970 live classic “Get Yer Ya Yas Out” makes appreciating the future classic “Get Yer Yo Yos Out” that much easier. (Ditto “John Barleycorn Must Dye,” a kid-ready riff on Traffic’s 1970 chestnut “John Barleycorn Must Die.”) For another, “Rock of All Ages” follows a fine Daddy tradition of not cutting a record until tear-the-playroom-roof-off levels of real rocking have been achieved. Yes, songs about root beer, bus drivers, and teddy bears are part of the equation. And yes, it’s possible 4-year-olds will taunt their parents with renewed vigor after taking in the truly infectious “Nana Nana Boo Boo.” But it’s also possible--pretty much certain, actually--that grown-ups will feel a ground-floor connection with Boydston after spinning Rock of All Ages. He may be a dad, but he never stopped being a righteous dude." -- Tammy La Gorce, Amazon.com
**Check out a new Daddy A Go Go video on YouTube following this link - you might have to copy and paste it into your browser, clicking might work too: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LdtxyLOdn2Y
A few more reviews coming in on this new Daddy A Go Go CD:
In a round-up headlined "Children's Music Enters the Next Generation" The Los Angeles Times says: In his sixth family CD, “Rock of All Ages” Atlanta's John Boydston celebrates kids and classic rock with slick '60s pop references, entertaining lyrics with a froth of good-for-you messages and feel-good, sing-along bounce. Sample highlights: 'Round and 'Round' with its dance-happy drive, and "' Lost My Teddy Bear,' a kid's lament for the loss of childish things -- tinged with suspicions of parental involvement. (April 30th, 2008)
The School Library Journal says Rock of All Ages is "a must-have for all libraries....Parents-Choice Award-winning musician John Boydston rolls out his sixth album, full of good time, classic rock and roll which 'pays tribute to kids and modern family life.' Performing mostly on guitars and drums, he is joined by his two sons who complete the Daddy A Go Go Band. Nine of the songs are Boydston originals. Among them are "Get Yer Yo-Yo's Out," a nod to the Rolling Stones' classic "Get Your Ya-Ya's Out," and "John Barleycorn Must Dye" (the ballad of a boy who lives to tie dye), a wink to Traffic's classic "John Barleycorn Must Die." He also offers a rip-roaring rock cover of "What a Wonderful World." Boydston's "Mono Mojo Mix" of "Snoopy vs the Red Baron" sounds very similar to the original; and he gives a great performance of Chuck Berry's "Round and Round." Among the other songs are "Rock of Ages," "School Bus Driver," and "The Root Beer Song." (May 2008)
The Nashville Parent Says: "Daddy A Go Go, aka John Boydston, marks his 10th anniversary of creating cool rock tunes for kids with this spectacular new CD. Daddy continues to shine with clever tunes that keep things real on the kid level, like the way the backup kids emphasize the wrong word in 'The Root Beer Song.' Driving beats provide the perfect musical backdrop to the pure fun and silliness in some of the cuts, including 'Get Yer Yo-Yo s Out' and 'Nana-Nana Boo-Boo.' An upbeat, rockin version of Louis Armstrong's What a Wonderful World completes this must-have album for kids of any age." (April 2008)
Stomp And Stammer says: "There seems to be no shortage of aging alt-rockers going the kiddie music route these days, from Dan Zanes to "Farmer" Jason Ringenberg to They Might Be Giants. But none of those well-known acts employ actual kids in their bands. Atlanta's prolific Daddy A Go Go may be masterminded (and largely played) by John Boydston, but when they perform live his boys Max (13) and Jake (16) play guitar and bass respectively, while family friend Jonathan Paz (16) keeps the drumbeat going. All of them play on "Rock of All Ages" the groups newly released sixth album, along wiht a few local ringers like Dave Michaelson and Walt Brewer. It's more of the upbeat, wildly entertaining rave-ups, sing-alongs and silly puns that have endeared the group to kids (and their parents) nationwide for ten years now. And "Get Yer Yo-Yo's Out" gets the award for funniest song title I've heard in a long time." (April 2008)
Kidsmusicthatrocks.com says: "Amps to eleven, Fenders to the fore ... Daddy A Go Go is back in town! Everybody's favorite guitar dude returns with his sixth album for kids, Rock of All Ages, a CD full of puns, parental pop music winks, and headbanging riffs. There are allusions to "Roll Over Beethoven", "Be-Bop-A-Lula", "She Caught the Katy", Dark Side of the Moon, and American Bandstand ... and that's just in the first song! (Hey, the album title is a Badfinger tune!) From the rave-up "School Bus Driver" to the anthemic travelogue "Idaho!" to the absolutely ridiculous "Root Beer", John Boydston lets the jokes fly and the rock and roll thunder.
A lot's happened since the release of 2006's Eat Every Bean and Pea on Your Plate: Boydston and his two sons played gigs as the Daddy A Go Go Band at both the Austin Kiddie Limits Music Festival and the SXSW Music Festival, and guitar slinger Rick Derringer recorded one of Boydston's songs for his latest album Rockin' American. Not bad for a dad from Atlanta, huh?
"Rock of Ages" kicks off the album with a buzzing six-string and a karate kick, followed by two singalongs, "Nana-Nana Boo-Boo" and "School Bus Driver", that are perfectly crafted for live show audience participation. And if KISS made kids' music, I think it would sound kinda like "Idaho!", featuring drum/cowbell breakdown.
Then comes a pummeling version of "What a Wonderful World", via Joey Ramone; and the deliciously corny campfire tune "The Root Beer Song", in which Boydston stops the kids' accompaniment due to their overzealous emphasis on the wrong word in the chorus, and making him think twice about teaching the kids songs about Helsinki and Amsterdam.
Next up is "John Barleycorn Must Dye", Boydston's slap-back rockabilly nod to Traffic, which presents the tale of a kid who's a little too enthusiastic with his tie dyeing; then a rockin' cover of the Royal Guardsmen's "Snoopy vs The Red Baron"; and "Get Yer Yo-Yo's Out", Boydston's shout out to the Stones' 1970 live album (arguably their best official concert recording).
Boydston rounds off the album with "Money Doesn't Grow on Trees", a song that questions Grandad's words of wisdom, and bears a more than passing resemblance to the Stones' "Dead Flowers"; "I Lost My Teddy Bear", a tune about letting go of childhood toys; and a solid cover of Chuck Berry's "Around and Around", featuring Max and Jake Boydston (13 and 16 respectively) on guitar and bass, and their buddy Jonathan Paz on drums."
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Alternate titles not considered for this CD:
“No Country Music for Old Men” and “There Will Be Rock”
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