Piedmont

I went solo today to the Piedmont library, since Lisa had some Children's Music Web Award work to finish up at home. Piedmont has the pleasant problem of more people than space, so I set up in the main library. Here's what it looked like from my perspective. (Except I don't remember that big funny-looking kid in the back with the colorful green and yellow shirt. Hmmm...)

Here's what it looked like from the audience:

Posing with kids after the show:

Well, only one more show to go this summer! That's Duncan on Thursday at 11:00!

Oh, and by the way (now that the summer is about over) you can download the "Catch the Reading Bug Song" for free from ReadingSongs.com. Let me know what you think. Thanks!

Metropolitan Library System

I did four shows Thursday and three on Friday in the Metropolitan Library System, as a replacement for Al Bostick, who was ill. This was a very last minute engagement - we got the call Wednesday afternoon! It was kind of surreal to suddenly find myself in the middle of an unexpected (but familiar) Metro Library tour.

All the shows went well. Here are some photos from the Belle Isle library in OKC on Thursday afternoon. Here we are catching the reading bug:

"There coming after YOU!" - from the song "Creepy Crawly Party Time":

Signing a poster:

At Harrah, my audience was mostly a daycare group of three and four year olds! They were young for my program, but so cute! We had fun. Here they are dancing:

Charles Page Library in Sand Springs

I had a fun visit to the Charles Page library in Sand Springs today. It was a small group in a small room, with a few kids that were really active and/or vocal, so we had a lot of interaction, and it got a bit squirrely at times, but in a good way! The teen volunteers were having about as much fun as anyone, and the librarian had them come up to help me out "on stage" during "Silly Song." Unfortunately we didn't get a photo of that, but here's one Lisa took during the show:

And another with some audience members after the show:

This afternoon we got a phone call from the Arts Council of Oklahoma City. Apparently storyteller Al Bostick, who was touring the Metropolitan Library this week is ill and in the hospital! So I will be substituting for Al for the seven shows left in the tour, tomorrow and Friday. 

Al is a great performer. Evalyn got to see him at the Yukon Children's Festival in May, and has been re-telling one of his stories ever since! Those will be some tough shoes to fill, but I'm glad I'm available to help out. Our thoughts are with Al and we wish him a very speedy recovery!

Norman

Yesterday I did two shows at the Norman library. I look forward to this one each summer. I have loyal fans in Norman who come to see me year after year. One mom brought a CD wallet with five of my CDs in it so she could be sure and figure out which one(s) she didn't have at the sales table!

During lunch Evalyn started asking Lisa and me what book series we read when we were kids. Whenever we've talked about that, one character has been lurking in the depths of my memory - and I haven't been able to drag him into the light. Yesterday he finally stepped forward. I was thinking maybe it was a sciencey kind of story, or was it a mystery? And the kid's name was Dan? Danny? Danny... Dunn? Could that be right? I looked up the name and found Danny Dunn, Science Detective and Danny Dunn and the Homework Machine, plus half a dozen others.

So in this photo I'm on a trip down memory lane with Danny Dunn. Evalyn is reading a Katie Kazoo (A character I mention in my "Catch the Reading Bug" song). 

Lisa did some video taping and only took one still photo during the performance:

Evalyn made herself a cozy nest under the sales table for some more Katie Kazoo, Switcharoo...

After the evening show, the children's librarian, Basha, was complaining that I didn't sing her favorite song. So I grabbed my guitar and sang "Trick or Treat, Smell My Feet," just for her.

Here I am with Pam Jones. We were recently paired up by SongU.com to write a song together. She lives in the Texas Panhandle, but just happened to be heading into OKC for a workshop, so she was able to come see my program. How cool is that? Not too many SongU folks probably get to meet their song challenge partners face to face before they start writing.

Posing for a photo with an audience member:

Just three more shows and my summer performance season is over! (That was fast.) I'll be in Sand Springs at the Charles Page library this Thursday at 10:30 AM, then Tuesday the 22nd in Piedmont at 10:00 AM, and Duncan on Thursday the 24th at 11:00 AM. 

Baxter Springs, Pittsburg, and Fort Scott, Kansas

Whew - three shows and a long drive home yesterday, but we survived it well! It was a fun day, actually.

Our first show was at Baxter Springs, in a very unique space, as you can see below. The library is housed in the original courthouse, which is well over 100 years old, and the children's area on the second floor is dominated by this great wide-open space. Lisa tried to capture the scope of the room in a couple of shots here - not easy to do! 

For Evalyn, the best part of Baxter Springs was the cat. Yes, the library has its own cat! He and Evalyn became fast friends. In the background of this photo you can see a Magic Tree House book, forgotten and neglected on the floor. We look for the next book in that series at each library we visit. They are not always easy to find, so when she finds the next book to read, it's a big deal. The fact that she didn't get through her Tree House book tells you how much she loved playing with that cat.

Here's another angle on that wide open space, with the sunlight shining in behind me.

Evalyn in Kitty Heaven:

Our second stop was Pittsburg. I had a very energetic crowd there. Their singing blew me away, especially on the first two songs. The walls of the Pittsburg program room were covered with the body of this whimsical bookworm:

At our final stop, Fort Scott, the space was small enough that I went without a sound system. That made for a fun and intimate show, with a small but enthusiastic group!

Evalyn sat in the back of the room reading Captain Underpants. After the show a mom confided to us that before she realized Evalyn belonged to me, she had puzzled over why this one kid wasn't responding at all to the music! 

Let me see your ant mandibles! "Dig, dig, dig..."

My awesome audience!

On our way home we drove back through Pittsburg and stopped for dinner at Napoli's, which I found listed in a smoke-free dining guide online. It was the best Italian food I think we've ever experienced! Highly recommended!

Chetopa and Galena, Kansas

We are on the road tonight in Kansas. I did two shows today, first in Chetopa, and then in Galena. My seven-year-old daughter Evalyn, who is bored with the show by now, took the camera from her Mama and snapped a whole bunch of photos during my first couple of songs. Most of them turned out really great. Here are a few of those:

Lisa took the camera during "Silly Song" (what did you expect?) and took a series of Evalyn imitating me in the foreground.

This one speaks for itself:

We had a really great time during "Pop Up Sit Down." In fact in both groups today somebody said "do it again!" at the end of that song! 

A couple of photos with audience members after the show in Chetopa:

At Galena, the librarian presented me with a book bag filled with goodies! We'll sure use the book bag - we have one but we always over stuff it at the library. Especially lately - Evalyn's been going through dozens of books a week! This hat was also in the bag, and it inspired this patriotic pose:

Here is a rare photo of my roady, packing up after the show. What did you say? He looks just like me? Really? I never noticed.

Tomorrow: Three shows! Baxter Springs, Pittsburg, and Ft. Scott.

Connors State College, Back in April!

Last night Lisa, Evalyn, and I walked over to Boomer lake with our folding chairs. We set ourselves up in front of the community band and read books while soaking up the patriotic music. Then we moved onto the deck (where the band had been) for an awesome view of the fireworks! 

This past couple of weeks I've been trying to get organized in the office. I read "Getting Things Done" by David Allen (otherwise known as "GTD") and I "processed" all my "stuff"! Everything is indeed very organized for the moment, though it's not all done, by a long shot! We'll see if I can keep up the "weekly reviews" and actually become more productive. So far it seems very promising.

Here's one of the items on my to do list - catch up with my blogging! I like to try to put photos up within a day or so after each gig. There are a few I've missed lately and need to catch up on.

Back in April I visited Conners State College in Muskogee to help the Child Development Club celebrate the 100th anniversary of their campus. They brought in Head Start kids from all over the county for an Oklahoma Celebration concert, and then they did a balloon release and a picnic. 

Here's a photo of my audience. Check out all those colorful pointy party hats (click for a slightly larger version)! 

Here's the balloon release:

Later that day I did an evening show in the same venue for a small but enthusiastic group. Here are some photos with audience members afterwards.

This little guy and I got deep into a discussion about shoes.

David Brinkman, From My Pen

Back in 1997/1998 I co-wrote three songs with David Brinkman. David contacted me from his home in Aberdeen, Scotland, with lyrics that he wanted set to music. Together we wrote three songs: "Walk Away," "Our Princess," and "Mayday Fair."

I've received regular updates from David since then on his progress with a new CD to include the three songs. Now after a decade of hard work and seemingly endless setbacks, his persistence has paid off. David's new CD, "From My Pen" is finally available!

Following is a photo of David with a shelf full of his new CDs in a local CD shop. Below is the CD artwork, and below that is David's press release about the CD, including links for more information. 

Oh, and since you know that I do children's music I should say that this CD is not aimed at kids. A couple of topics, such as serving time in jail, and dealing with drug addiction are pretty mature, but they are handled tastefully. I would say it's a family-friendly CD for the most part. Check it out!

Press Release

For immediate release 30/06/2008

 HYPERLINK "http://www.silvermile.co.uk"

 HYPERLINK  "sales@silvermile.co.uk"

 HYPERLINK "http://www.myspace.com/davidbrinkmanmusic" 

Silver Mile Records, based in Aberdeen, Scotland would like to announce that it will be releasing the debut Cd, 14 track album, “From My Pen”, SMR 003, featuring the work of singer/songwriter David Brinkman, on Tuesday, 1^st July,  2008,  and it will be sold in various retail outlets around Scotland, and online.

Local artist Dod Dow, pictured with David in the Aberdeen HMV store, has produced a new original painting of the clipper Thermopylae, designed and built in Aberdeen,  to help promote the song “A Tall Ship” which tells the story of a homesick Scotsman working his passage home, and his feelings about his people and his country.

Niall Mathewson – Musician/Engineer/Producer:

“David’s album is an eclectic mix of ideas that he has been collecting and honing over a period of years. It features an interesting dynamic range of material from the lush string arrangement of “Love is a Game”, or the more electronic feel of “Cindy Clark” to the more acoustic mood of “In Time” and “Our Princess”. He also manages to inject a good helping of blues with “If You’re Without A Woman”, the happy sounding “Queen Bee” and the thought provoking “Serving Time”. There’s even some jazz on offer with the smokey sounding “Another Lover”. A few of the songs fall into no particular category, but are just good pop songs, such as “Someone Like Me”, “Here Without You”, “Walk Away”, and “A Tall Ship” or “Mayday Fair” and “Jojo’s Café in Paree”. I hope that you will enjoy David’s album and I hope that you will find, like me, that it has something for everyone”. 

For more information please contact David Brinkman on 01224 – 647075, or by email at sales@silvermile.co.uk

Tri-City TV and Collinsville Library

This morning I visited the Tri-City TV studio in Bartlesville, OK for some taping. After dealing with technical problems, we recorded two live song performances, "Big Red Fire Truck," and "The Cat Came Back," for the children's cartoon show the station is putting together. Then we recorded an interview for their talk show. Tri-City TV is a public access station which is "coming soon" on channel 59 in Bartlesville. If all goes well, it looks like I'll be heading back up there in the near future to work with them on creating some production videos of my songs!

I had a great lunch with storyteller Fran Stallings and her husband Gordon while in town. It was great to catch up with Fran, even if time was short! 

Then it was off to Collinsville for a library program. I had a really great audience today; they were quiet and attentive when appropriate, yet enthusiastic with their participation! I love performing for a group like that! 

Here are a couple of photos from after the show:

Here's a photo I just came across on my desktop from my October 30, 2007 visit to Collinsville. I just thought I'd add it here! The kids are on stage to help me out with "You're a Dinosaur." 

Catching Up

Here are a slew of photos from last Thursday at Perry and Mustang.

But first I want to share an email with you that I received from one of the dads who saw the show at the Mustang library, and likes to perform my songs himself for his son at home:

"The Mustang Library Show was awesome, loved the show and so did my son. We all love your CD's especially The SLimy Green COncert Thingamuhoochee ... uh yeah, that one. Having the song lyrics with chords on them was a super wonderful Idea.. I really like playing the Silly SOng and Love That Baby (I change the gender in my cover lol) for my son Hunter. I named him after Jimi Hendrix (middle name) and Hunter S Thompson (first name). He must have good musical taste...because he loves your stuff too." - Ron Horschler

Thanks, Ron, emails like that really make my day! I'm glad you and Hunter enjoyed the show and my CDs!

Ron has his own blog, here, with lots of cool music videos. 

Now on to the photos. The first two are from the Perry library, where I performed in the outdoor pavilion. The wind blew my banner down, but other than that it was fun to be outside singing on a sunny morning.

Then it was on to the Mustang library where we met Eric Herman and his family between shows. Eric is another children's musician - in fact if you like my songs, you're sure to like his as well. He's been on the road with his family in their big colorful RV traveling across the country for about four months! If you catch one of his library "bug" shows this summer, you might hear him play one of my songs!

Here's me and Eric:

This is me on the left, then Eric's daughter, Evee, and two other kids watching my daughter Evalyn and Eric's other daughter Becca put on a puppet show. Evee is short for Evelyn, by the way. It's not too often we get two of them in the same room!

For some reason Lisa loves to photograph me during "Silly Song":

Here is Becca dancing during "Pop Up Sit Down," with Evee and Evalyn crouching in the foreground:

Evalyn says she was just happy in this shot:

Oklahoma Storyteller Chester Weems was also in the audience. He took the following photos and sent them to me. This one shows how big the room is!

Here I am signing autographs after the program:

It was a busy day, followed by a busy weekend because I had a Children's Music Network board meeting to attend. Tomorrow, I'll be taping some segments for Tri-City TV in Bartlesville, and I have a 2:00 program at the library in Collinsville. 

I'd better get some sleep!

Super Flea III

Tonight I'm getting ready for tomorrow's programs at the Stillwater library - that's always a fun day, with three packed shows. 

Here is the third and final installment of Evalyn's comic based on my song, "Super Flea." Relevant lines from the song follow. Click the image for a larger more legible version.

Panel 1

As he's cleaning up and thinking "That's it for today,"

His antennae sense new trouble down the street!

Panel 2

What's flying toward that burning school?

Panel 3

"But wait," shouts Flea, "That book was overdue!"

Panel 4

He flips it out and trips and flap, he's trapped in chapter two!

Panel 5

Will he perform the sly escape tradition doth require?

Or will he just be roasted like a weenie?

Ft. Gibson and Checotah + Super Flea Part II

Today I performed at the libraries in Ft. Gibson and then in Checotah. Evalyn came along for the ride, but Lisa had to stay home to get some other work done. Ev and I had fun together. She did a whole lot of reading in the car and during the shows. 

The libraries sure are having fun decorating for the theme this year! Here are some photos from Checotah...

Here is Part II of Evalyn's comic book adaptation of my "Super Flea" song. Applicable sections from the lyrics follow. Click the image for a slightly larger more legible version.

Panel 1:

When last we left our heroes they were prisoners in the pound

Confined behind a combination lock

Panel 2:

Houdini's Guide to Picking Locks - Flea looks up what to do

He picks the lock and exits in a blur

Panel 3:

Super Flea to the rescue!

Panel 4:

Meanwhile two librarians are tied up at the desk

Watching helpless as their books are being destroyed

Panel 5:

By a vacuum-like contraption hooked in manners most grotesque

To the forehead of a leering humanoid

Panel 6:

We watch the Doctor's eyes pop as his bottom goes in the air

Being lifted by the Flea's atomic might

Panel 7:

But then Flea sees the waistband of the Doctor's underwear:

It's woven out of siphonopterite!

(Skipping ahead a bit)

Panel 8:

A monstrous pile of literature has buried Dr. K.

Super Flea flips lightly to his feet.

Ada + Super Flea Part I

I performed today at the Ada library. It wasn't quite the same without Janet Lee there. She has been the children's librarian for as long as we can remember, and we've been visiting Ada every summer for many many years in a row. She has retired, and we'll miss her! When Evalyn was a baby Janet gave her a stuffed buddy, and "Purple Monkey" has always been one of Ev's special favorites. She likes to bring him back to visit his place of origin. She brought him today, but was disappointed he didn't get to see Janet.

In a moment, some cool artwork from Evalyn. 

First, Lisa took a few photos during "Pop U p / Sit Down" at today's show...

"Sometimes it helps me feel laid back and loose..."
Evalyn is ready to "pop up"...

In the car today Evalyn started working on a comic book version of my new song, "Super Flea!" Here is the first page for you to enjoy, followed by the song lyrics it is based on. Click the picture for a slightly larger, more legible version.

Panel 1

Who's faster than a lightning strike?

Panel 2

More powerful than dynamite?

Panel 3

Yet smaller than a bumble bee?

Panel 4

It's Super Flea to the rescue!

Panel 5

And with his sleepy sidekick, Mighty Mutt

Panel 6

His mission is to rid the world of every evil nut.

To be continued... 

McAlester

I did two shows at the McAlester Library today. The children's librarian there, Anita, works mighty hard for her kids. In between her two library programs she re-sets the room to distribute a free lunch to any kids who show up for it. She has a great bunch of kid volunteers working for her, and she's also a real go-getter when it comes to drumming up funding from the community.

This photo is from "Insect Zoo," a new song, which I'm still working out the participation to. Any song that includes kid interactions takes some time to "settle" - every show I learn a little something new about what works and what doesn't. Here we're doing "grasshoppers gliding." (That's Anita back there helping me out.)

The rest of these photos were taken with some of the helpers. I've kind of gotten to know these kids over the years that I've been visiting McAlester and it was great to see them again today!

Here we are with a toad! There were also painted lady butterfly chrysalises, and a preying mantis egg for the kids to observe.

Pryor

I had two fun shows at Pryor today. Check out the awesome background - it was covered with all kinds of colorful bugs. There was even one beetle on there I thought looked very realistic; then it moved! It was real! 

After the morning show everybody was in the mood for photos. Here are the Headstart kids:

Hmmm... this one looks familiar!

These next two sets of kids we saw at McDonald's between shows!

Cute bunny!

Okeene and Watonga

I did two shows today, one in Okeene and one in Watonga. Lisa and Evalyn came along to help out. Without Lisa's driving & running the sales table, I'm sure I would be worn to a frazzle. Many thanks to the librarians in Watonga for taking and sending me the following photos!

Moore

Last night I performed at Buck Thomas Memorial Park in Moore for their concert in the park series. I was the opening act for Zoom City. Oddly enough, we've appeared on the same stage before for a similar concert series in Paul's Valley! 

Last night was a fun show. The weather was great, if a bit windy. I had an attentive audience and it was cool to be outside.  A good-sized group of kids came up front to participate for "You're a Dinosaur" and "Pop Up, Sit Down." I also did my new bug songs, and I saw some pretty impressive dancing going on during "Creepy Crawly Party Time."

After the show, two young fans came up to hand me some artwork they had done by way of a thank-you. Is that cool, or what? I scanned in their pictures so you can see them too:

The World I Imagine

You know when you get to talking with your friends about how unfair the world is? And you get all into how it ought to be different? Then you kind of laugh at yourself and say, "Well someone should just put me in charge! Ha ha!" And then you drop it go on about your business...

Well Debbie Jordan had a bunch of those kinds of thoughts and she didn't just drop it, she published it! Her book, The World I Imagine, is now available at Amazon.com. In it she lays out a simple but comprehensive common-sense plan for world peace. Debbie, you've got my vote if ever you run for Supreme Master of the Planet!

So how did I find out about this book? Well, I'm in it! Debbie contacted me a while back asking permission to quote one of my songs. She uses a few short quotes from "If Kids Ruled the World," a song I wrote with fifth graders, in the introduction to her book - right on page one! Her point is that many songs express the wish to run things. She even quotes John Lennon later in the same paragraph!

It was exciting to receive a book with references in it to one of my songs!

Tomorrow, I open for Zoom City at 7:00 PM at Buck Thomas Park in Moore, OK. It should be a fun evening outdoor gig, if it doesn't rain!

Zarrow

Today I performed at the Zarrow branch library in Tulsa, OK. We had a great little group; a lot of fun! We got into a whole discussion about eating bugs (sparked by the song "The Kid Who Ate a Bug.") Did you know some folks are serious about insects as a food source? It's called