Two years ago I began working on a new musical game that would
involve words that referred to body parts, but also had other meanings. Words such as "back," "nose
(knows)," and, of course, "rear."
After compiling a list of words that would fit my scheme I began
to construct rhyming phrases.
Let’s knuckle down and cut the waste.
Shoulder burdens that
we face.
At first I was thinking only of the opportunity for listeners to
cheerfully focus on the active play—bending
knuckles and pointing to their waists, shoulders and faces. Anyone familiar with my songs knows that
creating movement games like this, in the context of rhymes, is my signature
style.
I soon realized, however, that the rhyming phrases I was creating
sounded more and more like a campaign speech and, with a smile, I playfully
pursued that approach. The result is
"Vote For Jim Gill," a song in which the lyrics all reference body
parts, but also reference the sorts of promises we hear during election season
from candidates.
Give the song a listen and you'll hear a whole series of empty
statements and promises that you might hear other candidates say out on the
campaign trail. But I am the only
candidate that could have strung them together in ridiculous rhyme and created
an active movement game out of them as I did.
That’s a fact.
Who would have guessed that this year I would be the one
candidate that so many people can....well....get behind.
The song is just one of 14 new musical games on the
recording. There are finger plays,
sing-alongs and jump-alongs. The songs
were created as opportunities for children and the adults that work with and
care for them -parents, grandparents, care givers and educators - to sing and
play together.
"Vote For Jim Gill"
is a challenging listening game for young children and might also,
perhaps, help adults maintain a sense of humor during this election
season. My hope is that this game gets
played on and on for years when this current election is just a distant memory.
