Media Blitz

In anticipation of Saturday's Rock-n-Romp at the Shell, we've been doing a media blitz. It's our first ever public show and our first ever partnership with the Memphis Music Foundation. We're really excited! We have a great line up (Robby Grant, Scandalouz Vandalistz, and the Kenny Brown Band) and lots of fun activities planned for the kids (sprinklers, a badass Balloon Man, and the Hooper Troopers). Oh and lots of beer!

Yesterday Robby Grant and his son, Five, kicked off the media blitz by giving the Live at 9 viewers a little preview of their set for Saturday. The board members and some friends brought their kids along and we had a nice little romp right there in Peabody Place. Marvin Stockwell and Pat Worley Mitchell also did an interview.

Later that afternoon, Marvin, Kate Crowder, and I went to WKNO to do a "Checking on the Arts" spot with Kacky Walton. It was really fun to meet her in person (and hear her cuss like a sailor when not on air) and get to promote one of my pet projects on my favorite radio station.


This week's Flyer also features a RnR piece, The Swing Set, by Mary Cashiola. She popped into our Debbie Lee mixer last week and got the deets on Rock-n-Romp's humble beginnings in Debbie's DC backyard.

Saturday morning, Marvin will hit the airwaves again on Action News Weekend.

Hopefully all of our hard work (and fun) will pay off. We'd really love to see a big crowd on Saturday. (Hint, hint. I'm talking to you! Tell your friends!)

We'll start at 4pm, so plan your kids' naps accordingly!

For Those about to Soft Rock

A few weeks ago, Shannon gave us a head's up about the Gustafer Yellowgold show at the Barnes and Noble in Germantown. I had never heard of it, so I checked out the website. Described as cross between "Yellow Submarine" and Dr. Suess, I was intrigued.

I thought it might be a little "young" for the monkeys, but decided to check it out anyway. I ordered the first CD/DVD combo and set up a test screening at home. We played the CD in the car first, and it was met with lukewarm enthusiasm. THEN we played the DVD, which is full of homemade drawings and minimal animation for each song. The monkeys loved it! When we played the CD in the car the second time, it totally came alive and we were all singing along.

I mentioned that the guy who created Gustafer Yellowgold was coming to town and asked if the monkeys wanted to go check it out. "YES!" they replied, hardly believing their luck.

As we drove out to the burbs, I patted myself on the back for being 1) a super mom and 2) Gustafer Yellowgold's dream fan. However, once we walked in and saw the very small crowd assembled, I realized that I should have 3) gotten the word out to all of my friends.

Anyway, while waiting to get started Morgan Taylor, the voice of Gustafer and the artist behind the videos, was sitting off to the side of his projector enjoying a sandwich with his young son. Meanwhile his wife was busy unloading merch and attractively displaying it across mini benches. It was precious.

A nice B&N employee did a little introduction and then the show started. Morgan started off by saying, "Who's ready to soft rock?" which was hilarious.

The monkeys had a short list of songs they wanted to hear and Morgan played them all, including "Your Eel."


(Warren does his own rendition of this song called "Your Unagi.")

Between songs, Morgan did some storytelling and cracked a few jokes. We all thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. I would love to get him at a Rock-n-Romp, or sit out on the Shell on a Saturday afternoon listening to him play. I talked to his wife a bit, and it turns out they've been touring since January, so who knows, they just might come back some day!

Until then, check out the CDs/DVDs!

Silly Faces

Jiro commandeered my camera at breakfast and instructed each of us to make a silly face.

Fireworks on the Bluff

After a lovely day spent in the Alleys' backyard, we rushed downtown to catch the fireworks. Sadly, we ended up seeing most of them while stuck in traffic, but we did make it to the bluff for the finale and some cardboard surfing. The boys were having so much fun, I decided to give it a go. Jiro and I piled on a piece of cardboard and took off down the hill. We were going really fast and near the bottom, we totally wiped out and flipped over each other. I mooned hundreds of people, which was bad, but I didn't completely squash Jiro, so that was good. I bruised the hell out of my shoulder, but I feel that I narrowly avoided a much more serious injury. Satchel informed me that "everyone who sits up wipes out." I would have appreciated that nugget of advice a little sooner! (Somebody remind me next year!) All I could say was, "Wow, good thing I had a few beers or this would really hurt."

Summer Drive-In

I'm 37 years-old and I have never been to a drive-in movie--until tonight. Man, I have been missing out! What fun! (And what a bargain! $7 per adult, kids under 10 free--for a double feature! Concessions were also cheaper than a normal Malco. One caveat--you need to be able to stay awake past 8:45pm!)

Satchel was so intrigued by the drive-in concept. It was hilarious. He just couldn't fathom how a movie could be played on a big screen in the middle of a parking lot.

The weather was actually quite nice and it was fun to be doing something different. Warren and I sat in the front seats of the car, and the monkeys alternated between the backseat, the hood, the ground, and my lap. (Jiro was a 50 lbs. heating blanket!)


We were just getting our feet wet tonight. Next time we'll have a grill, exotic seafood, fancy beverages, and a large pick-up truck with a giant bean bag in the back. Oh, and someone who can take really good pictures!

Bicycle

This week's column has the best title ever! (Not.) Bike rides in park take path to smiles details our latest adventures. Take a peek if you have a minute.

Kid Lit

I just read that there's a $900,000 grant from Volunteer State Health Plan to the Books from Birth program, in conjunction with Dolly Parton's Imagination Library. Books from Birth provides a new book each month to a child until age 5. Any child in Tennessee younger than 5 can register.

I signed Jiro up a few years ago, and we have really loved the program. Jiro's all time favorite book that they sent is My Lucky Day. It is the story of a little pig who outsmarts a fox. I must read it to him him 2-3 times a week. (Looking for the link on Amazon, I just discovered that the author/illustrator has several other books. Yay!)

I definitely think getting a new book in the mail every month is a great way to get kids interested in reading. And I love getting books that I might not have otherwise known about.

A couple of weeks ago, Warren and I went to Burke's Books in Cooper-Young and picked out a stack of books for the boys. We ended up with a great haul that included Maurice Sendak's In the Night Kitchen, Rumpelstiltskin, Jack and the Bean Stalk, and a Hansel and Gretel pop up book.

In the Night Kitchen was incredibly bizarre and included full frontal boy nudity! (The monkeys loved that part!) Re-reading the latter three "classics" was quite an eye-opening experience. In Rumpelstiltskin we have an evil little troll who wants to take the lazy but beautiful liar of a princess' first born as a slave. In Jack and the Beanstalk we learn that stealing from a giant is perfectly acceptable and that stealing more than once and killing the giant is okay too. In Hansel and Gretel the parents leave their children in the woods because they can't afford to feed them! That one nearly sent me over the edge--I feared the kids would never want to go to the Old Forest again. (All I remembered about the story was the house made of candy!)

My point? The Imagination Library is doing a much better job of picking out books for my kids than I am. Those of you with little ones should sign up! (Register at imaginationlibrary.com or pick up a form at your library.)

Debbie Lee & Family

Debbie Lee, the woman who came up with the Rock-n-Romp concept, is traveling through town with her family. They're on the tail end of a two week road trip that took them to New Orleans, Austin, and Memphis. The Rock-n-Romp board wanted to show Debbie our appreciation, so we threw together a little mixer. We had nearly all of our board members--past and present--in attendance with their families. Everyone brought a dish and sixer and before we knew it, it was like we'd known Debbie forever. She and her husband, David, are incredibly nice people who are extremely easy to talk to. It was a real pleasure having them all to ourselves for a couple of hours!


Hopefully they'll come back and get a chance to experience Memphis Rock-n-Romp first hand!