Album Notes

When he was a little boy, Mike Mennard was painfully shy. His mother tried to figure out how to get Mike to \"come out of his shell.\" One evening as she cooked supper, she handed Mike an ice cream scoop and said, \"Mike, pretend this is a microphone and entertain me.\"

He did.

For hours that night—and for countless nights, thereafter—Mike performed silly songs and poems to his mother. It\'s safe to say that Mike came out of his shell, and decades later it’s difficult to imagine Mike as anything but a performer. But he claims that that shy little boy still lives inside, which helps him to relate to children—shy ones, as well as not-so-shy ones—better.

Today, Mike Mennard is a nationally known and award-winning songwriter and poet for kids (and their families). He lives in Lincoln, Nebraska, with his gorgeous wife and brilliant son (and he\'s only a little biased). He teaches literature at Union College in Lincoln.

Mike Mennard\'s newest CD, Pirate\'s Do the Darnedest Things, brings together Mike\'s two great loves--pirates and, well, more pirates. The seven seas have never been this much fun!