I was never a Raffi fan as a child.
I don't know if we owned any of his music, but I certainly preferred my
Music Machine record if we did. Now as a parent I've bought a few cheap kids CDs from bargain bins if they have a song that makes me wax nostalgic, or a song I know Luke likes...and I did shell out full price for the CD versions of some Veggietales Silly Songs albums,
but generally the kids listen to whatever we choose, which when Bruce is in charge means his music, often in record form. With our digital cable we get music stations, including a kids' one. Needless to say on the
Treehouse music station, Raffi gets his fair share of plays on it alongside Fred Penner singing
Sandwiches, and
The Cat Came Back. I do enjoy the odd Raffi song, mostly because he mentions my name in at least 2 songs I've heard, which may not be a big deal for all the Jennifers I know, but for me, it puts a smile on my face, even as an adult.
Yeah, you can hum or even sing along with Raffi, but generally I always thought of his music as, well, Fluff...singing about infant whales, and whatnot. But there is one song that I never remember hearing as a child. It's called
All I Really Need.
The refrain is simple "All I really need is a song in my heart, food in my belly, love in my family". When I hear (or sing) that simple refrain I feel warm and content with myself and the world. People in North America spend so much time and money on getting enough and being happy that they have no time to actually enjoy having enough and being happy. Just go into any bookstore and find the section labelled "self-help". There's rows and rows of books telling everyone how they can improve their lives, their children, their attitudes.
Now I don't want to put down people who read these books in the hopes of improving themselves, we could all try a little harder at that, heaven knows I sure have plenty of room for improvement. But there's also something to be said for being happy with who you are and what you have. I've never read any of those
Don't Sweat the Small Stuff books, but my mother the worrier thought they were good. I personally think you don't have to waste your time with any of those books, just pick up a the Raffi album and keep singin'.
I don't know if we owned any of his music, but I certainly preferred my Music Machine record if we did. Now as a parent I've bought a few cheap kids CDs from bargain bins if they have a song that makes me wax nostalgic, or a song I know Luke likes...and I did shell out full price for the CD versions of some Veggietales Silly Songs albums, 
but generally the kids listen to whatever we choose, which when Bruce is in charge means his music, often in record form. With our digital cable we get music stations, including a kids' one. Needless to say on the Treehouse music station, Raffi gets his fair share of plays on it alongside Fred Penner singing 
Sandwiches, and The Cat Came Back. I do enjoy the odd Raffi song, mostly because he mentions my name in at least 2 songs I've heard, which may not be a big deal for all the Jennifers I know, but for me, it puts a smile on my face, even as an adult. 
Yeah, you can hum or even sing along with Raffi, but generally I always thought of his music as, well, Fluff...singing about infant whales, and whatnot. But there is one song that I never remember hearing as a child. It's called All I Really Need. 
The refrain is simple "All I really need is a song in my heart, food in my belly, love in my family". When I hear (or sing) that simple refrain I feel warm and content with myself and the world. People in North America spend so much time and money on getting enough and being happy that they have no time to actually enjoy having enough and being happy. Just go into any bookstore and find the section labelled "self-help". There's rows and rows of books telling everyone how they can improve their lives, their children, their attitudes. 
Now I don't want to put down people who read these books in the hopes of improving themselves, we could all try a little harder at that, heaven knows I sure have plenty of room for improvement. But there's also something to be said for being happy with who you are and what you have. I've never read any of those Don't Sweat the Small Stuff books, but my mother the worrier thought they were good. I personally think you don't have to waste your time with any of those books, just pick up a the Raffi album and keep singin'.
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