MIKE MULLIGAN AND HIS STEAM SHOVEL is an inspiring tale of how determination, hard work, belief in oneself, and some creativity from a young mind can lead to success. The colorful music written by Stephen Simon and performed by the London Philharmonic is tinted with Irish Harp and Uilleann pipes. Yadu narrates with the help of guest performers James Shaffran, Paul Brennan, and Sebastion Simon.

The CD begins with the story of Mike Mulligan and his Steam Shovel Mary Anne. A narrator and expressive orchestral instruments voice the tale. One can see the cars weave, airplanes dive, and other action unfold in the imagination as the French horns, trumpets, and trombones play their parts. In the second track, Bonnie Ward Simon, Executive Producer, takes listeners on a brief historical journey into Virginia Lee Burton's creative process as she wrote the story.

Stephen Simon details the differences between Scottish and Irish pipes and presents numerous techniques a composer uses to create an original musical score. Then the story repeats for the newly educated listener, who is guaranteed to hear it differently the second time. For those who want to sing the Mike Mulligan song, there's a karaoke instrumental. A short song about Mike Mulligan sounds tossed-off, but that's a small glitch on an otherwise well-oiled musical machine encouraging educational fun. Families will dig it!