Track Listing

1. House Party Time
2. Wabash Cannonball - with Bob Weir
3. Queremos Bailar - Barbara Brousal, Dan Zanes
4. Hop Up Ladies
5. Washington at Valley Forge
6. Jamaica Farewell - with Angelique Kidjo
7. Tankoh-Bushi - Yoshi Waki, Dan Zanes
8. Down in the Valley
9. Waltzing Matilda - with Deborah Harry
10. West Indian Counting Song - Aggie Decaul, Courin Gibbs, Dan Zanes
11. Sunny Old Sun
12. Tennessee Wig Walk
13. Shining Star
14. How Do You Do? - with David Jones
15. Daniel in the Den - Donald Saaf, Dan Zanes
16. Surrounded By Friendship - Cynthia Hopkins, Dan Zanes
17. Old Joe Clark
18. Hey Little Red Bird
19. We Shall Not Be Moved
20. A Place For Us - with Phillip Glass

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #3221 in Music
• Released on: 2003-10-07
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: .33 pounds

Amazon.com
For parents, listening to Dan Zanes provides not only instant Raffi relief, but also the warm sense of belonging to the right crowd. On each disc he trots out a posse of cool friends like Sheryl Crow, Suzanne Vega, and Lou Reed and he delivers his openhearted lyrics with the rare roots-rocker's gift for stirring grace into grit. It would seem that the release of his fourth record, House Party would be ripe for a backlash--how long can the hokey conceit of a bunch of aging groovsters banging out kids' tunes in a Brooklyn basement hang onto its charm? Looks like we'll have to wait and see, because House Party rages on with the same winning, welcome-to-our-homespun-revolution vibe as its predecessors. Deborah Harry takes a twirl on "Waltzing Matilda," Bob Weir fires up the "Wabash Cannonball," and Angelique Kidjo bids "Jamaica Farewell," but the Zanes originals are this record's proving grounds, and they pin the tail on the donkey with bulls-eye precision. Contributions from returning regulars Barbara Brousal and Rankin' Don--the best couple of favors a party could hope for--send Zanes' campaign to become the guy who turned lampshade-wearing into a kindergarten fashion craze soaring. --Tammy La Gorce

Customer Reviews

I LOVE this guy!
My 2 year old is hooked. He is our resident DJ and this is his new favorite of choice, and mine too. Nothing puts a smile on ALL our faces in the witching hours of late afternoon/early evening (when I'm trying to get dinner made) like this CD. Between Dan Zanes and Ralph Covert, my kids have stopped asking for TV. In fact, if the TV is on, the younger one will go turn on the music anyway. You cannot go wrong with this CD.

Dan Zanes -- Weapon of Mass Diversion
Much like Patty Loveless on "Mountain Soul" and with equal success, Dan Zanes has gone for a more organic, slightly less contemporary sound on "House Party." The result is a timeless record of quality music.

The title is particulary apt, as the album has the feel of a group of friends and family taking turns in the parlor with old, favorite tunes, evoking a fond comparison to Kate and Anna McGarrigle's "The McGarrigle Hour."

While Dan Zanes has set the bar fairly high with his previous albums, there are many higlights on "House Party": Cynthia Hopkins makes one remember what a beautiful instrument the accordion is; Philip Glass adds his own special somberness to the album's closing "A Place for Us"; "Tennessee Wig Walk" is the most fun I've heard on record in many a day; David Jones, on "How Do You Do?" is straight out of "Mary Poppins"; and, Deborah Harry's voice is as fine as always.

It's become a cliche to say that Dan Zanes' music is as enjoyable for adults as it is for children, but it's true. The seeming simplicity of the songs makes them instantly accessible to children, and the many layers of top-notch musicianship make the songs gems to be prized by their parents.

dan zanes & friends do it again!
i've been a fan of dan zanes for a while. his albums are one of the very few "children's" music CD's that i continue to listen to even when my daughter is not in the car. i wouldn't even classify them as "children's" music, but rather "family" music. this album is lots of fun and has a wide variety of music. you won't be disappointed with any of the dan zanes CD's, and this one is no exception.