Established in 1999 as an off-shoot of Putumayo World Music, Putumayo Kids offers children a vibrant introduction to a world of music and donates money to a wide range of child-friendly charities such as Terre des Hommes, Oxfam and the Axé Project.
There are two main series in the Kids collection: Dreamland and Playground. The former compiles soft melodic tunes, while the latter blends upbeat songs for moving and dancing.
The Putumayo Playground cds come in colourful cardboard covers that feature children dancing and making music. Kid-friendly and informative booklets are included with the disks. They contain descriptions of the featured country and biographies of the artists. They also provide context for and translations of the songs as well as English phonetic renderings of foreign words.
Brazilian Playground
Released in 2007, Brazilian Playground is a lively compilation of bossa nova, forro and samba. Its liner notes are written in Portuguese, Spanish, French and English, and photos from Carnival in Recife, Pernambuco are included to help listeners experience that event. The featured singers hail from throughout Brazil and include samba singer Nei Lopes, and singer / politician Gilberto Gil.
The Brazilian songs featured include the popular "Tum Tum Tum," a song that explains how the singer's heart beats when she sees her "number one love," and "Morena," a round that encourages a dark-skinned girl to "step and step and twirl [...] hold your skirt and whirl." "Coco Sacudido" (Shaken Coconut) is a lively maxixe dance tune that will get children moving. "Marinheiro So" (Lonely Sailor) is a song that features children singing in call and response style with singer Moska.
French Playground
French Playground was released in 2005. The liner notes include the French lyrics for all of the songs and a line-by-line English translation. Although it contains songs from Canada, Haiti and Mauritius, it has a distinctive "French from France" feel. It features the Eiffle Tower on the cover and is comprised primarily of songs and artists from France.
The French bias is established from the first track, "Chatouiller le Ciel Avec Toi" (Tickle the Sky With You), and many of the songs, including "Clic-Clac Oh C'est Beau" (Click! Oh, This is Beautiful) sound like they were taken from the soundtrack of a 1940's war movie. Others, like "Bonjour, Bonjour" (Hello, Hello) and "Croque" (Bite) are more modern and world influenced, but still distinctly French. French subjects, such as Paris in "Lutece" (Lutetia), and Bibendum in "Monsieur Bibendum" (Mister Bibendum), also give weight to France.
Latin Playground
Released in 2002, Latin Playground travels to Colombia, Mexico, Brazil, Puerto Rico, Ecuador, Cuba, Uruguay, Venezuela and the USA. It includes salsa, samba, boss nova, mariachi and cumbia music, and provides a bilingual Spanish-English introduction to Latin America and the songs featured on the disk. The song descriptions are clearly divided into sections: About the Country, About the Artist, About the Song and About the Music.
The featured songs are well-known uplifting and spirited melodies. The cd opens with Cuba's most popular song - "Guantanamera" - and moves on to Colombia's "La Arana Picua" (The Picua Spider) and "Mardi Gras Mamba," which is featured on Putumayo World Playground. If the songs themselves are not known, their lively rhythms certainly are.
Conclusion
Brazil Playground, French Playground and Latin Playground by Putumayo Kids are fun-filled disks that will get children and their parents dancing around to music from a wide range of cultures. The diverse styles are colourful and ideal for dancing. The liner notes are informative and enhance the listening experience. The disks, suggested activities and supplimentary materials can be found on Putumayo's website.
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