Elmo's Lowdown Hoedown

Perky, fun, and funny, this album is great for parties.

Artist: Sesame Street
Genre: Children's Music Label: Sony Wonder Parental Advisory: No Edited Version Available: No Release Date: 06/16/1998

Common Sense Note

The wide range of country styles and truly funny jokes provide adults with almost as much fun as the kids.

Learning is handled in fun ways. "Readers of the Open Range" promotes books; "Tall Short Texans" acknowledges the differences between people and encourages self-respect.

Country music is one of only two musical styles (jazz the other) that is truly of American origin. The music here demonstrates country's variety: cowboy songs, fiddle and banjo pickin' songs, square dance music, slow twangy waltzes, woe-is-me ballads and even zydeco. Adults and kids can try to define what makes it sound American; instruments, words, melodies, rhythms, voice quality, etc.

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Common Sense Review

Reviewed By: Lisha Papert Lercari

Get ready for a knee-slapping good time. While, for some, real (grown-up) country music can be intolerable, ELMO'S LOWDOWN HOEDOWN is thoroughly entertaining for all. One seventy-year-old grandfather routinely played this when his three-year-old granddaughter visited.

From Cookie Monster's slow mournful "Handful of Crumbs" waltz, to the "Frog Struggle Song" ("It's a long hard road, but I'm gonna get there…") the country flavored jokes do not stop. The best is Polly Darton singing "B-U-S-S-T-O-P says the sign right next to me" and then waiting at the sign forever.

The lessons here are abundant. Listeners can practice a tongue twister while learning the letter T. In "Lonesome Joan", Bert and Ernie discuss friendship and the importance of letting others help. "The Dirtiest Town in the West" instructs us not to litter.

Bottom line:ELMO'S LOWDOWN HOEDOWN sheds a new and refreshing light on country music

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