“All around the kitchen, cock-a-doodle-doodle-doo,” starts the song for which this Dan Zanes DVD is named. The first ever DVD from Dan Zanes and Friends, “All Around the Kitchen” features a live concert as well as some of Dan’s music videos. The concert footage was taken at New York’s Knitting Factory and most of the videos can be seen on Playhouse Disney, Sesame Street, or NOGGIN. “All Around the Kitchen” is fun to watch as you can participate along with the concert audience. Your child will also love seeing his/her favorite Dan Zanes videos anytime.
The Show
At the start of the concert, English folk singer David Jones introduces Dan and the band and encourages the audience’s participation. Before each segment of the concert, a sign appears with some of Dan’s album art. A description of the segment is shown and is read by a child. The first segment is the song “Wonderwheel.” It starts off with just Dan playing the mandolin with the other band members appearing to hide behind and read the newspaper. As he sings the song, the band members join in gradually. I think this was a cute way to start the concert.
As the concert progresses, Dan and Friends sing familiar songs from their albums. One great audience participation song is “Polly Wolly Doodle.” Dan describes this song as “a good sing-along song and good for clapping.” The audience gets up out of their seats. The adults form a “tunnel” with their arms and the children dance through while the band sings.
The last song performed at the concert is “Sidewalks of New York.” Dan says this is the favorite waltz of his and the band’s. The music is just Dan playing the mandolin and Cynthia playing the melodica, which is a hand-held instrument that has a keyboard on top and is played by blowing air through the mouthpiece while playing the keyboard. Dan and Friends walk through the audience as they sing and go outside the theater — on the sidewalks of New York.
The Videos
Dan has been on Sesame Street and many of Dan’s videos have been featured on Playhouse Disney and NOGGIN. “All Around the Kitchen” is another way to see those videos.
The video portion begins with “Jump Up,” the first song feature on Dan’s “Family Dance” CD. This was a video that was made on “Sesame Street.” Dan is standing on the steps outside a building with a friend and begins playing the mandolin and singing. As the song goes on, more of the band members come and join him. As they sing and play their instruments, more children come to jump and dance.
“Hello” is one of my favorite Dan Zanes videos. In fact, I first heard of Dan Zanes and Friends when I saw this video featured on Playhouse Disney. The video for “Hello” brings the style of Dan’s album art to life, as it is completely animated. It features a smiling sun, dancing clouds and flowers, and even children floating in a puddle in an umbrella. Through the entire video there is a butterfly playing the banjo.
If you’ve never experienced the joy of music from Dan Zanes and Friends, “All Around the Kitchen” is a fantastic way to start. You and your child can enjoy the music together and even participate along with the concert audience. I guarantee you will become a fan of Dan as my daughter and I have.
For more information, please visit Festival Five Records.
“All Around the Kitchen” is available at CDBaby, Amazon, Best Buy, and other retailers.