The Fine Friends Are Here - Dan Zanes DVD Review

Dan Zanes is amazing.

His hair, the leg slide thing he does, his raspy voice, the musicians he surrounds himself with - all of it practically perfect in every way. The Fine Friends Are Here!, his latest live DVD release (on the delayed heels of 2005's fine All Around the Kitchen!), is no exception.

A Dan Zanes live performance is a winning combination of exuberance and warmth. Zanes himself provides the youthful energy, while the coziness is supplied by the Americana instrumentation and horns. You get the feeling, watching Zanes and his fine friends play, that that they'd feel just as at home inside the posh Lincoln Center as they would on your front porch. Since Jalopy's stage is about as big as the latter, it proves the perfect venue to intimately experience the music of Dan Zanes. Considering that there is ZERO chance of actually getting to see him live in such a small space, this new DVD is essential for any Zanes-head.

As with his prior DVD release, this one is a mixture of live show and a handful of videos. The videos are sprinkled throughout, a move that works rather well. Highlights include the faux-classroom fun of "Pollito Chicken" featuring La Bruja on vocals, the gorgeous lullaby "Night Owl" and the rollicking "Wabash Cannonball" with Zanes on banjo, proclaiming that "it's not a party until someone plays a banjo". This entire DVD is a party, one well worth the price of admission.

Note: There is also a bonus 4-song sleepytime CD included in the package.

*Dan Zanes & Friends "The Fine Friends Are Here" DVD was provided to OWTK for review. The opinions expressed above are unbiased and true - no arm twisting took place in the review process.

Grow a Family Band Today at 9am

I imagine there are a good number of young families looking for good music to share with their babies and little children. That may be how you ended up here after all. You can take the easy path and turn to the Wiggles or Barney or Raffi. Those CDs are easily available and most everyone has heard of 'em. Don't.

While most folks that read OWTK and other Kindie Rock music blogs think the name Dan Zanes is a household one, I've found that this is far from the case.

I'm happy to let all the parents and grandparents out there looking for a cool kid's music holiday gift or an awesome baby shower gift for a passionate music loving family that there are some amazing alternatives to the banal, manufactured kid's pop music. To get started, you're going to want to log on to Amazon.com early this morning.

For 4 hours only today, starting at 9am ET/6am PT, you can pick up the Dan Zanes How to Grow a Family Band Gift Set for the ridiculously low price of $25 (and have it shipped for free!). This set usually costs over $65!

This set is the perfection introduction to the biggest name in the world of (quality) kid's music. It contains Zanes first 4 cds, a 5-song bonus disc and a sing-a-long activity booklet.

Buy it and Love it!