Album Notes

HIDE AND SEEK
WINNER OF 2013 CREATIVE CHILD PREFERRED CHOICE AWARD

Hide and Seek begins with a country flavoured song entitled Porridge, a thinly veiled upbeat song about a consistent Bat Duo theme Elephant's Toenails, and is followed by another food song Mac and Cheese that eschews the positive aspects of eating Mac and Cheese at least 3 times a day! Another fun and an upbeat song entitled Shine On follows with a lesson on happiness and positivity. Step Back is about children learning independence. The beauty of having performed for 30 years is that most of our early fans are now "all-growed-up" and have kids of their own, and have shared their growing pains with us over the years.

Let's Move is a tribute to our First Lady, who has worked tirelessly to motivate young kids, to eat right and exercise. It is so great that she cares so deeply about the health of our children, and this song is simply an upbeat complement to her beliefs. Next up is the title track to the album, a fun and interactive game song that extols the virtues of parents, kids and grandparents playing games together. Hide and Seek is a must for everyone! 
A little fan of ours used to write to us and tell us how much he loved Bob the Builder. That was a while ago, but the idea cooked for some years after we had acted as the General Contractors on our new house (the building is a passion of ours), so we wrote The Builder as a nod and a tribute to all folks in the building trade. Pat your Hands is another interactive game song that in upbeat and very very catchy and fun, while the last song on Hide and Seek is about a subject near and dear to our hearts, writing. For 3 decades we have encouraged kids to write and it is wonderful how many have written to us over the years letting us know what they have done with their lives The Writer is a figurative round of applause to all the millions of little ones we have watched grow and promoted literacy too. HIDE AND SEEK is for all of you and your kids. We hope you enjoy it.
Special big thanks to all of our band members who worked so diligently on this new record. Mick Taylor your piano, dobro and resonator playing were "things of beauty." Pete Benbright our brilliant Bass player was amazing as always, and Terry a la Berry...thanks so much for your awesome performance on Curiosity

 

Reviews

 

STEVE PULLARA
The Musicianship, Vocals and Mastery of guitar on "Hide and Seek" is splendid.

 

The other day, I had the pleasure of receiving a new CD by the popular veteran children's artists "The Battersby Duo." Their new album is entitled "Hide and Seek." I think this is a great title for this collection. Why? It's because the tunes come forward and say" Hey, here I am?" as they hide and peek back at you from under their titles.
This recording is a fun journey into a prolific and eclectic mix of children's topics with excellent craftsmanship. You'll laugh and notice that throughout the CD, there are deliberate harmonies mixed in with their trademark of “pop-up humorous voices.” Those (cartoon-like) visits jump out in some songs to keep the loose feel of this whole collection. I always like to remember... “Yes, kids need to laugh and have fun.” 
There are 10 songs on this album and I am highlighting a few in this review. As your ears are entertained, you'll go from songs about "Porridge" (which is about eating elephant’s toenails, to a popular children's staple in a song called "Mac and Cheese." In the title piece, "Hide and Seek," we learn about the cleverness of hiding, in a game where someone is looking for you. We've all been there, and quite frankly we still do it with kids. "Shine On" is a positive affirming song while "Pat Your Hands" and "Let's Move" are very interactive. Don't listen to the latter two songs while driving though.... be sure keep your hands on the wheel! 
"The Builder" has lessons for life in its lyrics and the song "Curiosity" has a colourful Pink Floyd primer for those, less than 7 years of age. In the last song called "The Writer," the Battersby Duo encourages everybody to write down their thoughts to share with others as I just did in this review. 
The musicianship and mastery of guitar on this CD are as splendid as always, as is the interplay of their two voices. The album is crafty and mixed with a dose of good and healthy silliness for kids as it is also well paced. 
Enjoy Hide and Seek:......" its car worthy."
Steve Pullara GRAMMY Winning Produce "All About Bullies... Big And Small" Best Children's Album and two-time GRAMMY nominee

    The Times
A fun collection

Hide and Seek is a “Necessary and Fun Collection of Children's Songs” The Battersby Duo delivered precisely what the doctor ordered

    Songs for Teaching
Delightful

Hide and Seek is delightful -- super fun and whimsical.

    M Winwood
Another Battersby Duo winner

Featuring excellent musicianship, and creative and humorous lyrics, this is an outstanding album for the whole family

Judy Johnson. Director of FCC in Herndon Va
Wonderful Harmonies

Mr. Tim and Miss Laura have been perennial favourites at the Federal Children's Center for almost 20 years! We, adults, look forward to their wonderful harmonies while the children can't get enough of their silliness. Each visit is filled with wonder and smiles...thanks for the pleasure you bring our children!

 

    Barry Strutt
The Duo's Back--I'll have another double Mac and Cheese

Maybe it's because I was really hungry when I started listening to this wonderful new offering from The Battersby Duo or maybe its because I was just hungry from some good music that anyone not too old to be a kid can delight it that a gobbled this new album down in one sitting. Porridge and Make and Cheese make you realize that after that feast you'd better get up move. Let's Move. How great is it that our First Lady gets a nod for her tireless efforts in making our kids get back to basics! Physical exercise! Love it. Bob the Builder is reason enough to require an immediate download and Hide and Seek says it all in just a few words.
My favourite tune was Step Back --perfectly conceived and executed with a theme we all remember and hopefully will never forget. Thanks to these great music makers for doing it right--once again!! You won't be disappointed so get thee to a website and download it today.
Barry R. Strutt formerly "Merlin" of "Mystic Merlin" on Capitol Records

Chris Tomlinson
HIDE AND SEEK.The New CD by THE BATTERSBY DUO A REVIEW

 

“It is hard to impress me when I listen to music for children. I’m the father of 3 young kids, 2 girls and a boy, all under 8 years of age. When I received a copy of Hide and Seek, by The Battersby Duo in the mail 2 weeks ago, I stuck it in the corner amongst 40 or so other albums I was being asked to review. I’m a single father and my days are extremely busy, hence the pile of “things to do.” 
Finally, after I’d put the kids to bed a few nights ago I had time to listen. I picked up Hide and Seek, as it was the first one in the pile. My initial reaction looking at the cover was “who’re these people?” but seeing as I had it in my hand I stuck the CD in the player, and gave it a chance. I’m really glad I did. Right from the very first song, their musicianship jumped out at me, as did their fun humour, and clever lyrics
The first song is called Porridge, a tune with a recurring Battersby Duo theme (something I learned later) Elephant’s Toenails. The song is upbeat and hilarious using a country 4/4flavor. The Battersby Duo band is very good and very experienced. Tim and Laura wrote all 10 songs on the CD. It ran for about 34 minutes and every song was clever, intelligent and totally kid-friendly. There are so many stand-out songs that I loved, that will hopefully become classics, (I wish I had more space to review every song!). Let’s Move (to the beat) is a song that pays tribute to Michelle Obama, that most children will want to dance to (mine did, and it is a fun dance tune), while Step Back is a beautiful ballad that speaks of parental love and teenage angst. My favourite song on Hide and Seek was a song about NASA’s recent Journey to Mars and the historic landing of the rover Curiosity. It’s a totally ethereal song, which was used by NASA recently in a video. Tim’s guitar work reminds me of Dave Gilmour of Pink Floyd fame, and Laura’s vocals are haunting and beautiful. Of note, The Battersby Duo had Terry a la Berry, the drummer for The Arlo Guthrie Band since 1985, to play the drums on Curiosity. His contribution was the final icing on the birthday cake. Is it a kid’s song? Maybe; maybe not; but every child should learn from listening to Curiosity. Older kids will love it. Other songs of note are: Mac and Cheese (love that comfort food) Hide and Seek (an interactive and extremely playful game song) and The Builder (a song that gives a nod to carpenters, electricians and plumbers, and everyone who works in the trades. After all they have kids too!) . Enrich your kid’s worlds with a digital download of Hide and Seek 
Hide and Seek is one of the best Children’s Albums that I’ve ever heard. It has heart and soul, it’s intelligently written, and clearly, The Battersby Duo care very deeply about children. I would encourage all parents and teachers to pick up a copy ofHide and Seek, and play it to every kid in the neighbourhood. I’m glad I did, and I’m glad I resisted the temptation to place Hide and Seek at the bottom of the pile.”
Chris Tomlinson is a part-time reviewer and blogger, a single parent of 3 kids, and a professor of English Literature at Cambridge University.

 

School Library Journal
Another excellent album

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Tim and Laura Battersby, who have been in music business for almost 30 years, present 10 original songs in country, bluegrass, and rock musical styles. The Grammy-nominated duo and their musician friends make beautiful music with their vocals and a variety of musical instruments, including guitar, bass, fiddle, piano, resonator, dobro, and drums. “Porridge” boasts such nasty ingredients as kale and elephant’s toenails. “Mac and Cheese” is much preferred to snail pie. “Let’s Move” and “Pat Your Hands” encourage listeners to move along with the song lyrics. “Hide and Seek” emphasizes the fun of the game. Enjoying the sunshine is the topic of “Shine On.” Parents are encouraged to “Step Back” and allow children to find their own way. Inspired by Bob the Builder, “The Builder” loves constructing houses. “Curiosity” celebrates the Mars Rover mission. And “The Writer” plans to use imagination and dreams to write books. Another excellent album from this musical team.–Beverly Wrigglesworth, San Antonio Public Library, TX