Music Review: 4 Kidz by Kidz: Holiday Tunez
What Parents Should Know
Parents need to know that this CD is as clean and innocent
as a CD of 20 holiday standards could possibly get. There's
absolutely nothing to worry about content-wise. It uses the PC
word "Holiday" in the title, but note that this is really a
Christmas CD, with no mention of other winter holidays.
Families can talk about how these versions compare with more
traditional arrangements and discuss which they prefer and why.
Is it charming or annoying that the kids sound just like
regular kids?
The 4 Kidz franchise keeps rolling along. Sung entirely by children, 4 KIDZ BY KIDZ: HOLIDAY TUNEZ is one of the better CDs in the series, simply because these songs are supposed to be sung by kids. It has a real easy feel about it, like watching a bunch of polished sixth graders perform a Christmas pageant. There's little or no recognition of other holidays on this album, so this may not be the CD for families who don't celebrate Christmas. There's a nod to New Year's with "Auld Lang Syne," and other non-denominational songs (few realize that "Jingle Bells" was originally written for Thanksgiving). And that's not a bad jumping-off point to discuss with kids the differences between holidays.
Quality-wise, this is one of the few 4 Kidz CDs that's listenable for the whole family, lacking the strange juxtaposition of children singing Britney Spears' lyrics. "Santa Claus Is Coming to Town" is done Bruce Springsteen-style, perhaps as a nod to the adults. Despite the advertising, a rocked-up "Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer" features one voice sounding suspiciously like an adult, as does the next song "We Need a Little Christmas." Maybe some of the kids hit puberty during recording. The music itself is a bit more polished and of better quality than most of the 4 Kidz CDs, adding up to a package worth buying for kids.
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