Fast & Feisty (by Princess Katie & Racer Steve, Children's Music)

Princess Katie and Racer Steve are the kind of musicians you might hear playing at a family wedding -- Katie's warm, versatile vocals glide over Steve's journeyman guitar work and a solid rhythm section in a variety of retro, rootsy musical styles.

The lyrics, meant to deliver positive, inclusive messages, will delight children with a larger-than-usual helping of goofy imagination, and enough clever twists to please parents as well. Standouts are "Bubbles," a song in which magical food is promised at a new restaurant in town and diners order up "your tall, thirst-quenching, much-needed, glass of world peace," and "We Dress Ourselves," a cheerfully punkish ode to liberating one's wardrobe ("We dress ourselves in stripes and dots/we dress ourselves in neon spots/we dress ourselves without interference"). The musicianship and songwriting are not truly extraordinary, but Steve and Katie's sense of fun, lively imagination, and obvious love of authentic roots music -- along with high production standards and Katie's warmly sparkling lead vocals -- work together to create a collection of songs and ideas that somehow ends up being greater than the sum of its parts.

Released on: March 18, 2008
Label: RocketNYC
Genre: Children's Music