Mitchell continues to captivate listeners of all ages with her organic sounds; often just an acoustic guitar and her soft angelic voice as comforting as your own mother or grandmother. A few of the songs include additional instruments, but always subtly, maintaining the intimacy of every song. The comfortable homey feeling is created by the 'live' sounds of Mitchell softly counting into the songs and speaking directly to her partner 'Danny' (Littleton) before or during a song. Perhaps the most organic track on the album is Rock & Roll, which is an impromptu recording of a child simply repeating "Hey!" while a kazoo plays. Listeners learn it's a performance when the child stops and adults (presumably, Mitchell and Littleton) are heard clapping and encouraging in the background. Mitchell then counts to three, and the child joins her in simply saying "rock and roll" a few times. And the song is over. It's beautiful in its simplicity. The songs range in tempo from the slower and relaxing beat of Pony Boy, to the lively tempo and attractive cadence in One Day, Two Days, Three Days Old. Mitchell and Littleton harmonize in multiple songs, while Mitchell's voice is looped and she provides her own backup singing in Shoo fly.
The generally relaxed tempo and repetition of melody and lyrics in most songs on the album lends well to singing or humming along. A very fun song to sing along with is Little Sack of Sugar, with all the triple repetition of 'hey', 'hee', 'ho', 'jiggle' and 'tickle'. This is a fun song to sing along with while lightly bouncing your little one on your knee or tickling them. Freight Train is unique on the album, as it's the one song where Mitchell and Littleton speak directly to one another in the song. Mitchell asks Littleton where they should go on the freight train today. They first go to Brooklyn, then the California, and finally to Africa. Each verse speeds up, as Mitchell explains 'we need to go fast to get there, since it's so far away.' You can add your own hometown into the song to relate it more directly to your child. Listeners may also be surprised to hear Jingle Bells on a non-holiday themed album, but hearing Mitchell perform it, is quite convincing that it's not just a holiday song. A "ha ha ha" is heard loudly in the background after "laughing all the way". Encouraging your child to move to the music, sing along, or beat the tune out (gently) on their knee will help them further relate to the music.
I first listened to this CD with my niece when she was two years old. She had thrown a fit that afternoon and was still pretty worked up half an hour later. In an effort to help calm her, I remembered this album I had just bought (having read that is can have a soothing effect on listeners), so I popped it in and encouraged her to snuggle up on my lap. She stubbornly refused at first; however, when the music started she did sit down on the floor to listen. After the first song, she crawled up to the couch - but sat on the opposite side of me, arms still crossed defiantly. Finally, after a few songs, she had inched her way onto my lap and closed her eyes when I put my arms around her and hummed with the music.
--Audra