I’m going to stray from my standard CD review format for this one.
Why? Well, it’s a compilation CD and a lullaby one at that, so the “sounds like” and “sits in the cafeteria with” sections I usually roll with wouldn’t be terribly relevant or helpful here.
SING ME TO SLEEP – INDIE LULLABIES
I’d argue with anyone that most folks don’t need another lullaby disc in their home; no additional, overly soothing versions of “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star” or “Rock-A-Bye Baby” are necessary at this point.
The tranquil “Sing Me To Sleep – Indie Lullabies” is about as far removed from those tired ballads as possible. This new restful set features indie rock acts doing a myriad of well-selected covers and deserves strong consideration even if you’ve got a CD worth of mellow tunage your kiddo already adores (and falls asleep too like clockwork). I’d also argue that “Sing Me To Sleep” is the world’s greatest adult lullaby record. Let me rephrase that. Should such a musical sub-classification of “adult lullaby” exist, I cannot image a collection of tunes in that genre better than “Sing Me To Sleep”.
This sleepytime disc blends the familiar (“Dream a Little Dream Of Me”, “Moon River”, ELO’s “Can’t Get It Out of My Head”) with the less so (“Have You Forgotten”, a killer Red House Painters tune – the curse word in which has been replaced) and a song best known when sung by Kermit the Frog (“Rainbow Connection”). All the “Sing Me To Sleep” songs are performed by credible acts like Dala, Dean & Britta, Neil Halstead, Stars and Tanya Donelly (Throwing Muses, Breeders, Belly) and while none stray all that far from the original work, the result is still a CD that allows you to set the dial to ‘chill’ for a cool 48-minutes. Whether that’s after dark, during a rainy Sunday afternoon or at your kid’s naptime is totally up to you.
I’d have preferred it if “Sing Me to Sleep” made use of The Afghan Whigs sultry take on “Moon River”, but I’m not going to quibble with Tanya Donelly’s gentle, swaying interpretation.
Dala’s “Dream a Little Dream of Me” is positively lovely. The Rest’s spot-on “Pure Imagination” is a gorgeous mashup of Andrew Bird and Willy Wonka himself. It’s a tune, much like “Purple People Eater” (which Rani Arbo & Daisy Mayhem take ownership of on “Ranky Tanky”), that needed so badly to be covered and included on a kid’s album. Once you hear it, you’ll ask “Why doesn’t every kindie rock band do this song”?
Not every track is a hit, but it’s damn close. The one dud, oddly enough is The Beatles “Dear Prudence” which gets The Shining treatment here courtesy of Casey Mecija. The vocals freak the hell out of me. I’ve deselected that one from the iTunes playlist to prevent nightmares of tricycles in hotel hallways.
If you’ve read enough of OWTK through the years, my love of indie rock is probably no secret to you. As such, this album (and it’s sweetly painted artwork) is so totally in my wheelhouse. If you, like me, prefer the indie side of the musical spectrum (define that however you’d like), “Sing Me To Sleep” will fit snuggly in your home and lead to much snuggling with loved ones.
“Sing Me To Sleep Indie Lullabies” will officially be released on May 18th, but pre-orders are being accepted now. In addition to the regular CD, an album of the limited edition variety is also available. The special is actually a pretty sweet deal. For $25 you get the 1st pressing of “Sing Me to Sleep” which includes extra songs by Chicago’s The Coctails, Papercuts (doing Don Henley’s “Boy of Summer”), Laura Gibson and more, a blue vinyl 7″ featuring two more songs (including an original one by Sigur Ros), a poster and a button set. The fact that a kid’s release includes a vinyl record is beyond awesome, and scores bonus cool points. Granted, if you haven’t a turntable in your abode this fact becomes more than meaningless, you’ll just enjoy the special download code to get the two tracks in a more modern way. Head over here to get more info and to order this limited edition collection.
The Sing Me to Sleep Limited Edition Bundle
All proceeds from the sales of “Sing Me to Sleep Indie Lullabies” are donated to The Valerie Fund, a non-profit organization that provides for the comprehensive health care of children with cancer and blood disorders.
*A copy of “Sing Me to Sleep” was provided to OWTK for review. The opinions above are honest and unbiased – no arm twisting took place in the review process.
