Search - Lisa Yves :: Jazz for Kids Everybody's Boppin

If Lisa Yves's Jazz for Kids (Everybody's Boppin') flies off shelves the way it ought to, any remaining jazz-circle hubbub over whether bebop lives will finally fizzle, for now and at least a generation to come. This unfortunately unjazzily titled record--the smooth-singing Massachusetts-based music teacher's debut--mixes up a batch of classics and originals--everything from Louis Prima's "Sing Sing Sing" and Duke Ellington's "In a Mellow Tone" to her "Counting to Ten," which imaginatively and impressively teaches kids to count to 10 in 5/4 time, and "Alphabet Scat," an ABCs-based scatting primer.But Yves, who also demonstrates her talents as producer and co-arranger here, isn't in possession of the only golden pipes on this 18-song, hourlong CD. Accompanying her on scats are a handful of students of various ages, a couple of whom step out as soloists (most notably Sarah Konowitz, whose rendition of the Neal Hefti-Stanley Styne tune "Cute" is a let's-hear-it-again gem). Sharp musicianship is especially evident on "The Dry Cleaner from Des Moines" and "Colors of the Blues," with sax, flute, bass, trumpet, and piano all handled with equal aplomb by a skilled group of studio musicians who sometimes soar, other times set a mood that's smoky, soulful, or subdued.Best of all, though, is Jazz for Kids's effectiveness as an unstuffy introduction to this sometimes complex musical world. Yves, in her clear-headed, swingy way, flings open the genre's doors and celebrates its heroes. A few run-throughs and future scatters will come away ready to step up to the sounds of Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Parker, Miles Davis, Ellington, and Louis Armstrong. After Yves's thoughtful, thorough introduction, they'll savor such icons all the more. --Tammy La Gorce