Caspar's voice is smooth, easy to understand, and very appealing, working well for this style of song. He takes children's classics like "Itsy Bity Spider" and "Cotton Eyed Joe" and puts them to a whole new tune or adds new verses to keep listeners engaged and wondering what's next. Caspar left the tune of "Mary Had a Little Lamb" alone, but added new verses, and it is the only track with children singing with him. In many songs, Caspar does voice-overs and harmonizes with himself. Most of the songs hold a steady beat in 4/4 time, but the occasional tune like "Robin on a Wire" includes off-beats to create a jazz-pop fusion. "Take Up the Sun" has some surprising minor notes in it, making it a little different than most children's songs, which are typically all in major keys. Most of the tracks include repetition and rhyming, which will help your child learn the songs faster.
One of the most notable aspects of Caspar's music is the humor. Some of the humor is even funnier to the adults, although children will certainly appreciate it. For instance, the song, "$9.99" is about a teddy bear that is falling apart and ends up getting tied to the grill of a garbage truck for a year! "I'm a Nut" is another hilarious tale put to music; this one includes lines like, "I put on Special party pants, asked myself to dance. I said no, then I said yes," and "I asked myself to marry me, had to take some time to think. I know that I am the best. Called myself and I said 'yes'!" There's even an interlude with 'chopsticks' whimsically thrown in. Little ones will love to sing or clap along with the staccato notes in "Dust Mites" and act out the verbs for each verse in "Run Baby Run." The songs sound like they could be on the radio, and the catchy tunes will have you and your little one bopping your head and tapping your knees in the car, with full-on dancing at home!
My three-year-old friend, Sam, insists this CD is his hands-down favorite. He listens to it daily and said Caspar Babypants is "the coolest singer ever!" Sam had me cracking up one evening when I asked him what he'd done all day. Sam said he played by himself, and when I started to say, "Oh, I'm sorry to hear that," he interrupted and said, "I liked it! I'm a nut!" referencing the song from this CD about just that - doing everything by yourself, and loving it!
--Audra