Mother Jones
“Hello Gabby. It’s Raffi.”
Four little words and I was instantly transported. Raffi might very well be the first person outside my family whom I truly adored. Now he was talking to me on the phone. A real phone! Not a banana phone.
I was part of a generation who grew up with Raffi songs. Because of Raffi we wonder what we might see down by the bay where the watermelon grows. We know the solution to sillies is to shake them out. We found out we liked to ate, ite, ute, and eat eeples and baneenees. And, of course, we learned all about our favorite whale, Baby Beluga. There are a lot of us.
“You are one of millions of what I call Beluga Grads,” he told me. “There are apparently between 20 and 50 million, depending on how you count it.”
If my fellow grads were anything like me, Raffi was the remedy for childhood problems, from skinned knees to boring car rides. He kept us company during restless nap times and was the mediator in shouting matches with siblings. An entertainer and a friend, his sing-along lessons were musical memories that defined my childhood.
So when I learned that, after a decade hiatus he was releasing a full album of new children’s songs, I couldn’t wait to learn more. His latest, Love Bug, continues Raffi’s rich musical tradition, combining musical depth with content little kids can relate to. He utilizes a vast range of musical styles: Minor melodies and acapella harmonies are sprinkled among upbeat folk and reggae songs. One track is simply wind chimes. Each song contains a message or a new lesson—and in 16 tracks, Raffi covers a lot. “Mama Loves It” makes it fun to help out with the chores. “In The Real World” emphasizes the importance of personal connections. There’s an ode to Pete Seeger—a new version of “This Land Is Your Land”—and a song called “Turn This World Around” honoring Nelson Mandela.
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