Sunday Singalong: Safety Comes First

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Just a few weeks ago, I featured a song called Red, Yellow and Green as a “Sunday Singalong” video.  That song was a part of my safety theme in music therapy throughout the month of March, as was the song in this week’s video.

“Safety Comes First” originated as a request from a music therapist in California who was looking for a song that incorporated the rules of being around cars and parking lots.  I’m so glad she asked me to write it, because I think it’s so important for my students to be educated on this topic, as well.

Sunday Singalong: Boogie Baby

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This song was a staple right out of internship, when my repertoire was still small and I hadn’t yet thrown myself into heavy-duty songwriting.  So my students heard it a LOT that first year, and it climbed to the top of the “hits list” right away.

But as my repertoire grew and most of the songs I used in music therapy sessions were my own, “Boogie Baby” fell by the wayside.  In fact, during one class’s Total Request Live edition of music therapy, we all racked our brains but for the life of us, could not think of the song everyone used to love so much.

They finally did think of it, and then the following week, another class made a list of “Rachel’s Hits” for a CD to play in the classroom.  Sure enough, “Boogie Baby” was on that list!  Since it came up twice in such a short time span, I figured it was time to feature the song in a video.

Are you familiar with this fun little tune?  If so, maybe you can clue me in on its origins, since I heard it for the first (and last) time from my internship supervisor.  I think it will be making an appearance in some of my upcoming sessions!

Sunday Singalong: Wave Goodbye to Winter

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It’s here!  It’s here!  Hellooooo, SPRING!  My students and I have been singing Wave Goodbye to Winter all month long in anticipation of the new season, and though I had planned to feature this song in last week’s video, laryngitis got in the way.

As you can tell by listening, the song was written to be sung before spring actually begins.  But I’ll continue singing it for the rest of March with just two minor lyric changes:

Sing because spring is finally here.
Sing because the sky is blue and clear.
Sing with the birds, up in the tree,
Sing and clap your hands with me.

When I started writing this song last year, I didn’t intend for it to be a movement song.  But it’s hard not to move and dance around when you’re singing about something as happy as waving goodbye to winter…am I right?

Sunday Singalong: Red, Yellow & Green

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Happy Sunday! I had a bit of a hard time trying to decide which song to feature in this week’s video. There was the option of another Valentine-related tune since this is the last Sunday in February, but truth be told, I’m ready to move past this month and get to March (specifically Spring). There was also the option of talking about the cold, snowy weather, but I’m over that, too.

So I took the path less traveled: a song about the traffic lights. I’m going to introduce Red, Yellow & Green to my students at school this week, so this gave me a chance to practice and re-memorize it :)

Another great song I use in conjunction with this one is Red Means Stop by Mr. Heath.  It really deserves its own blog post…my students love it because it lets them flex their creative muscles while still learning traffic safety.  Any other songs you recommend on this topic?  Share them in the comments!

Sunday Singalong: The Rhythm Of Love

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I heard this song for the first time as I was driving home from work a couple of weeks ago, and I was immediately hooked.  It was simple, beautiful, and happy…my three favorite ingredients when it comes to music.  I knew then and there that I just had to add it to my Sunday Singalong playlist.

My adapted version is less a love song about another person and more a love song about life.  I can’t wait to introduce it to my students next month — I envision creating all kinds of rhythms of our own using drums, shakers and whatever else I decide to throw into the mix.  Did you notice that my Rhythm Ring made another guest appearance in the video?  I can’t get enough of it!

Earlier in the week, I asked my Facebook and Twitter friends to guess which current, love-themed pop song I would be covering today.  Props to Kristen Bozard for nailing it, and an honorable mention to Jess Kaps for lots of awesome guesses.  Jess, you gave me some great ideas for future videos!  If the rest of you have additional suggestions, please leave them in the comments…because I am a total sucker for overplayed radio hits.