PARENTS’ CHOICE

Ezra Idlet and Keith Grimwood, the duo known as Trout Fishing in America, are the real deal: solid rock ‘n roll and jazz pros who fuel their comic and soulful songs with powerhouse vocal and instrumental stylings (complemented here by musicians Luther Gray, Fred Bogert, David Renko and others). Cautionary messages, with Trout’s trademark tongue-in-cheek delivery, include ‘Too Good to Be True’ — a bebop-cool track involving a found bag of money — and ‘Always Chew Your Food’ (‘It would be so rude if you died choking on your food/You’ll never be invited back again.’) Idlet and Grimwood are equally deft with thoughtful approaches to themes of unity and diversity (the title track and ‘Martin Luther King and Rosa Parks’). The songs’ direct appeal to children comes from first-hand experience: according to the album’s liner notes, many of the tracks were inspired by the duo’s workshops in elementary schools.
Lynne Heffley ©2008 Parents’ Choice

Soulful, relatable songs for school-aged kids.

Common Sense Review
Reviewed By: Kathi Kamen Goldmark

Ezra Idlet and Keith Grimwood — aka Trout Fishing in America — deliver 14 original songs about both everyday life concerns (a hole in your favorite jeans, nasty alarm clocks, the importance of good manners, the history and horrors of spinach) and big, important concepts (Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King, Jr.’s contributions to the world, embracing individuality and personal differences). There’s also a fantastical romp with a tiger and a monkey, life lessons learned while training a puppy, and a cautionary rockabilly tale about rumors and gossip.

All of the songs are performed with taste, integrity, and humor in the duo’s signature soulful style. Idlet and Grimwood dusky, comfortable voices and bluesy instrumental accompaniment are easy to hear and understand without ever talking down — musically or lyrically — to children of any age. As a result, BIG ROUND WORLD is one of those albums that parents might find themselves listening to even when there are no kids in the car.

For more terrific, funny music written solidly from a kid’s point of view, check out TFIA’s own My Best Day.

Common Sense Note
Parents need to know that the 14 songs on this CD address a wide variety of topics of interest to younger school-aged kids. Real-life moments both large and small — from Rosa Parks’ bus ride to ripping a hole in your favorite jeans — are fair game in these clever, well-performed songs.

Families can talk about the topics raised in the song ‘Martin Luther King and Rosa Parks.’ Kids: What do you know about these two heroes of the Civil Rights movement? How could you find out more? How do you think the world would be different if they hadn’t done what they did? What can you do to make the world a better place for everyone?

We are very proud to note Performing Songwriter Magazine( June 2008), has chosen three time Grammy Nominees, Trout Fishing in America as one of the 100 most influential independent artists in the past fifteen years. Sandwiched in the pages between Phish, and Widespread Panic, Trout Fishing in America could not be more pleased with company that included, such independent music luminaries as Willie Nelson, Jack Johnson, Ani DiFranco, David Byrne, Tom Waits, Bradford Marsalis, Alison Krauss , Jimmy Buffett, Steve Earle to name a few.

Trout’s latest release was nominated for a 2009 Grammy Award for “Best Musical Album For Children” making them four time nominees. “When we got the call about our Grammy nomination, we were both surprised and excited! This was a big year for kids music and there were a lot of great CDs released. This is our 4th nomination, but the fact that we recorded and produced Big Round World in our studio in Arkansas makes the nomination sweeter. We love LA and we will be there!”

If you would like to contact Kids Place Live on Sirius/XM Radio to request your favorite Trout Songs, send an email or call toll free 866-328-2345.

Update to this post Fall 2011:

The Trout’s were thrilled to visit Kids Place Live to sing songs and tell the story from their new book/cd “Chicken Joe Forgets Something Important” published by The Secret Mountain. It’s always fun in the Rumpus Room performing live with an audience of kids of all ages! A fan sent us this photo with Robbie Schaefer introducing Keith and Ezra.

Fall 2007 – Trout Fishing visited Sirius and XM Satellite Radio stations to record some new songs that are not yet available on CD or as downloads. They visited with Mindy at XM (pictured below) and recorded a Live in the Rumpus Room concert that aired over Memorial Day Weekend. At Sirius radio Trout recorded a set of songs live that the station will play throughout the year.

Trout Fishing’s music is now available for download from the brand new Fisher-Price Song & Story Online Store!! It’s like an “i-Tunes” for kids! You can download your child’s favorite tunes and stories onto their Fisher-Price Kid-Tough FP3 Player. It’s like a kid’s MP3 player, but it’s made by Fisher-Price, so it’s really fun and made just right for kids ages 3-8. It has simple controls and a durable drop resistant design so it stands up to rough preschooler use.

Just like i-Tunes you add content to your Kid-Tough FP3 Player by downloading songs and stories from today’s popular children’s artists and authors from the safe, user-friendly Fisher Price Song & Story Online Store – the first online store of its kind to specifically offer only child appropriate content!

For those of you who own a Fisher Price Kid Tough Song and Story Player, we’d like to let you know that three Trout Fishing albums are available for downloading: My Best Day, inFINity and our Christmas album, Merry Fishes To All.  All three are Grammy nominees.

No player yet? Check the new Fisher-Price Kid Tough Music Player with microphone. Your kids can sing along!

Rob recently wrote us to let us know that he had picked several Trout Fishing in America songs to be referenced in his two new books.

Children’s Jukebox,2nd edition, is an updated version of Reid’s first book. It is a subject index of children’s recorded music and, as a reference tool, is aimed at libraries and schools. Something Musical Happened at the Library incorporates music with children’s literature with practical suggestions and is aimed for librarians, teachers, and parents.

“Several references to your songs appear in Something Musical Happened at the Library. For example, I recommend that teachers and librarians listen to “Boiled Okra and Spinach” after reading the picture book Princess Picky by Marjorie Priceman. I do the same with “It’s Better Than That” with the book The Secret Knowledge of Grownups by David Wisniewski. I also have a short list of the funniest children’s songs and 18 Wheels on a Big Rig heads that list,” Reid said.

He also mentioned that he has a chapter titled Rob’s Favorite Original Children’s Songs that included 11 Easy Steps and Science Fair.

More information for Children’s Jukebox can found from the ALA Editions catalog by clicking here.

More information for Something Musical Happened at the Library can be found by clicking here.