40 Winks [Soundtrack]

Editorial Reviews
From Parents' Choice®
A recent entry into children's music, Jessica Harper has already proven worthy of a top spot in the children's music field for 1) her tuneful weave of gospel, soft jazz and folk stylings, 2) her lyric clarity and wit, and 3) the unusual purity of her varied harmonies and lead vocals, sung in a voice as smooth as warm honey. In this, her fourth album, every song is an enchantment: "Slow Down, Lizzie," an a capella mosaic of gospel rhythm and unusual lyric structure ("Bedtime now, little Lizzie, sun won't set without your sweet smile; Oh, now didn't you grab this day and shake it, now didn't you shake it, so complete, so complete"); the inventive "Dream Song" ("I dreamed I went to Egypt in a pink wheelbarrow; I danced across the desert with a very friendly pharaoh"); "In This Room" ("There's a garden in this room; There's a tiny flower"); "A Tinker, A Tailor"-a mother's promise to always be there for her child, no matter what path his life takes; and "The Farmer's Son," a playful, loving variation on "Old MacDonald," in which a father tenderly soothes his baby boy. The collection ends with Harper's piercingly sweet rendition of traditional song, "Great Big Dog," painting a vivid portrait of a young rural mother softly singing to her sleepy baby as dusk falls. A 1998 Parents' Choice® Gold Award.

Reviewed by Lynne Heffley, Parents' Choice® 1998

Los Angeles Times
"Simply one of the most lyrically inventive, musically distinguished lullaby albums ever..."

Album Description
Winner of the 1998 Parents’ Choice Gold Award, 1998 NAPPA Gold Award, and 1999 Oppenheim Platinum Audio Award.

40 Winks [Soundtrack]

Tracks:

Calling All Children
40 Winks
Slow Down Lizzie
Dream Song
In This Room
Ten Sleepy Sheep
Someone Like Me
This Starry Night
The Farmer's Son
Visiting Cinderella
A Tinker, A Tailor
Red Balloon
Great Big Dog

Album Description

Winner of the 1998 Parents' Choice Gold Award, 1998 NAPPA Gold Award, and 1999 Oppenheim Platinum Audio Award.

Customer Reviews:

40 Stinks!.......2006-11-04

This CD is WAY too upbeat for a bedtime CD. The music all has a fast tempo and the singers voices comes over the music was too loud. My child would not sleep! I'm going back to the Celtic Lullaby CD that I was using before. I would not recommend this CD for bedtime.

Forty Tiny Sinks.......2005-03-29

My children like this and all the rest of Ms Harper's works. Is clever just the province of adults? How about catchy? The songs are wonderful little stories that children get caught up in, and the melodies are very hummable. I like em too.

I give this CD to all my new-parent friends........2001-12-19

I strongly disagree with the "music fan from Philadelphia." My eleven-month old daughter absolutely LOVES 40 Winks. We listen to it every night before bedtime and have done so since she was two months old. It always calms her down. As for connecting with the music, I can see and feel her respond to the soothing sounds. And I know she adores another one of Jessica Harper's CDs, Nora's Room, b/c my daughter kicks in delight whenever I put it on. It has entertained her through many car rides and kept her happy at home on countless afternoons. Although she is too young to understand the lyrics, she clearly enjoys the music. I highly, highly recommend both 40 Winks and Nora's Room to all parents.

Great for slowing down the tempo of the day.......2000-12-19

Love it! Our children request it at the end of the day. It is terrific for soothing a parent's mood as well as a child's. I often find myself singing the songs while going about my day. Extremely creative music - the kind I love exposing my children to. Clever. Delightful. Catchy. Dreamy. Sentimental. Top-Notch.

Not really for children.......2000-12-10

I'm a children's librarian, so I listen to and review a lot of children's music.

Jessica Harper has a rich, clear voice. She avoids that saccharine, cute quality that is so often foisted off on children. The songs she sings are a combination of soft jazz and folk. The lyrics are clever and intelligent.

However, Harper's music, in my professional experience, will impress the adult who buys it more than the child whom it is supposed to be for. Harper's music doesn't have the energy that appeals to children, and her subject matter doesn't connect with children. Her tapes and CDs don't get checked out of our library.

A parent who has an exceptional child might coach the child into enjoying this album, but most children will be much happier with something by artists who have a natural talent for connecting with children. Try something from Peter, Paul, and Mary or Tom Chapin, instead.

40 Winks
Average customer rating:
40 Winks

ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Children's Music | Styles | Music
ASIN: B000A2GGN8
Release Date: 2004-10-05

Music:

Music

Music