Dance to the tunes of Playhouse Disney - Disney for Em W/O

Well, it's been a while since I wrote my last review. It's just been a very busy October, but I hope to get back to my old form very soon. In the mean time, I'm firing off this review in participation of the 'Wish Upon A Star Disney write off for Baby Em'. All proceeds collected from this review will be matched and donated to Baby Em's fund. Please see Lisa_J or ImAmes profile page for more information on this write off. Also, please see the overwhelming list of participants at the end of this review. Please, if you can, read those reviews as well. Every little bit helps.

On to the review.

If you've read some of my past reviews, you know that I'm a (relatively) new father. My daughter, Rebecca, was born in July 2000 and my life has never been the same since (all for the better, I assure you) :)

Since that time, I've talked to you about how my life and, more importantly, my house has been slowly transformed from an organized and comfortable living space to a top-to-bottom toy chest. Electronic toys play happily along 24 hours a day...some of them hiding in nooks and crannies that I have yet to discover. Stuffed animals sit in every corner, Lego's under ever chair and sofa. The list goes on and on - and I wouldn't change it for the world. Well, most of the times :)

But of late, a more devastating change has occurred. As Rebecca has discovered TV and her collection of Baby Einstein DVDs, she has also been sucked into the world that is Disney - Playhouse Disney to be exact. Playhouse Disney is a collection of kid shows that play on the Disney cable channel. Some of the shows include Bear in the Big Blue House, The Book of Pooh, PB&J Otter, Out of the Box, Rolie Polie Olie (my favorite) and Stanley. Each show has its own charming characteristics and, true to any Disney entity, they're filled with sing-a-long and memorable songs and tunes.

Seeing how much our daughter enjoyed the shows on Playhouse Disney, my wife quickly picked up a copy of their CD called, accordingly, Playhouse Disney Soundtrack. Here, reproduced exactly as they appear on the various TV shows, are some of the most memorable songs available.

When we first put the CD in, my daughter promptly sat down and waited for the TV to turn on. When it didn't, she had the most perplexed look on her face. Her mother and I broke into laughter of course. Hey, if you can't have a little fun at the expense of your kids, that what's the use? ;)

In time, she realized (finally) that this was just music, and not video/music combined. That was the good part. The bad part was that this CD never leaves our CD player. I have no time to play Rush anymore. Then again, my wife has no time to play her Barry Manilow albums, so it seems like a fair trade off. Sorry - I know, I'm digressing.

Anyway, if my daughter's reaction to CD is any indication, it should be a huge hit to your own children especially if they are familiar with one or more of the Playhouse Disney shows. And with 26 songs on the CD, there's sure to be some songs that will capture the attention and imagination of its pint-size listeners (and those older ones too).

A track listing with a brief description of each follows along with the show it's from follows.

From: Bear In The Big Blue House
1. We're All Different
2. Dancing The Day Away
3. You Will Find Your Way
4. It's Great To Be At Home
5. Let The Rhythm Take You

It's a shame that Bear is on so early in the morning, otherwise my daughter and her parents would watch more of it. Fortunately, we can still catch up on some sleep and experience Bear with the collection of 5 songs here. Fun to listen to with a lot of beat, easy to dance to (for a 15 month old anyway), and not too tiring after multiple playings, the Bear tunes bring the magic of the show to life. You can almost picture bear dancing along in your living room. And, of course, in our case, you don't have to imagine it since Rebecca has a Bear stuffed animal. But what else is new :)

From: The Book of Pooh
6. Everyone Knows He's Winnie The Pooh (Theme Song)
7. Mental Attitude
8. Your Best Wishes
9. Who Is Me
10. Find The 'X'
11. Goodbye For Now

My wife, and now my daughter by default, are Winnie-The-Pooh junkies. So when Disney released the newly created Book of Pooh which mixes computer animation with Pooh-life like puppets, the two women in my life were thrilled. I shrugged. :) But Book of Pooh does a masterful job of conveying new 21st century Pooh stories while retaining the old-world charm of the original. The songs, usually sung by the chorus of characters, are always light-hearted and enjoyable. From the theme song, which is truly a catchy tune, to the hilarious Mental Attitude, every Pooh song is destined to be a winner with your little one. My only gripe is that Eeyore's Tailaversity song isn't included on this CD (my favorite). But not to fear, it is included on the Book of Pooh DVD. So I'm covered :)

From: PB&J Otter
12. Oodelay-O (Theme Song)
13. Bubble-O Popple-O
14. Noodle Dance
15. Friends
16. Go Slow, You Know

5 tunes from one of the two entirely animated shows, PB&J Otter has some nice appeal for kids of all ages. Usually silly, but with a decent moral value taught in most episodes, PB&J Otter succeeds in many areas, especially there fun songs. The Noodle Dance is my daughter's favorite, likely since it's played on every episode. But it's a good example of the wholesome fun that Disney is famous for. Good, songs with pep and spirit. More that you'll be hearing multiple times, but without the hair-pulling side effects.

From: Out of the Box
17. Out Of The Box (Theme Song)
18. You Can Do It
19. You Never Know
20. Listen To The Rhythm
21. Until We Meet Again

The live action show that started Playhouse Disney, Out of the Box is a fantasy-filled show with hosts Tony and Viv. Taking the notion that kids play more with boxes than the toys that come in them, an entire 'box' house is developed where fun activities are abound. One of those activities is, of course, singing. The songs here, including the theme song, are more Disney-esqe songs that are easy to follow along and sing to. Both Tony and Viv have exceptional vocal abilities (I'll assume they're not lip-synched by other artists) which makes the songs even more enjoyable.

From: Rolie Polie Olie
22. Rolie Polie Olie (Theme Song)
23. Totally Chocolate Dinner
24. The Twirl

The fully computer animated Disney show, Rolie Polie Olie is arguably Rebecca's favorite show. She is absolutely mesmerized by the hijinks of little round-headed alien Olie and his family. The show's a winner, and the nostalgic theme song is a delight. It's a shame that only three songs represent this show, but the three that are included are all perfectly performed and a hoot to listen to. If you like the songs, you'll love the show.

From: Stanley
25. My Man Stanley (Theme Song)
26. The Great Big Book Of Everything

Disney's latest fully animated show is called Stanley. A show about a boy, his goldfish, dog and cat and, most importantly, his imagination. Stanley's exploits teaches him (and the viewer) various aspects about all kinds of animals. It's an education program wrapped up in a cartoon, but you'd never know it - it's that well done. Not heavy on songs, the two main ones that are played on each episode are included. The theme song is nice, but The Great Big Book of Everything sung by his dog and cat is addictive. Just try getting that one out of your head :)

And there you have it. A large collection of new Disney tunes to coincide with Disney's Playhouse shows. There's no question about it - if you or your children enjoy Playhouse Disney, then this CD is guaranteed to be a hit. If you've never seen it, or don't have access to the Disney cable channel, then get this CD and at least hear what you are missing.

Enjoy, thanks for reading, and please check out these other fine writers who are participating in this Disney for Em write off.

Thank you.

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Participants:

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