Search - Blue Suede Shoes, Various Artists :: Blue Suede Shoes: Elvis Songs for Kids

It's been done before but never this adorably: Music for Little People's Blue Suede Shoes: Elvis Songs for Kids invokes the spirit of the King with 12 rockin' tunes, all belted with gusto by a gang of kids--some, by the sound of it, as young as age 6. Mostly they tackle the megahits. "Hound Dog," "Don't Be Cruel," and "Jailhouse Rock" all get covered--but if the song selection isn't much of a shocker, what is surprising is the soul some of these slick kiddie crooners deliver. Both "All Shook Up" and "Stuck on You" are powerhouses of the kind that send visions of swiveling little hips and painted-on sideburns swirling in your head. Other selections, such as "(Let Me Be Your) Teddy Bear" and "Baby, Let's Play House," are performed in a sweeter, cutesier style, but that's not to say they're weak by comparison. Nor do they contribute to a jumbled, uneven mix. Instead, the suit-yourself interpretations lend this album the feel of a junior talent show, the kind nobody wants to judge because every contestant deserves to be keeper of the crown. Grown-up Elvis enthusiasts with kids will be first in line to pick up a copy of Blue Suede Shoes (what better way to be sure their hero doesn't leave the building, at least for another generation?), but anybody of a mind to make music history a chapter in his or her child's education ought to check it out, too. That doesn't mean kids too young to swallow such a culturally significant discussion ought to be excluded, though. One spin of this thoroughly rollicking album and they're sure to do what comes naturally: Shake, rattle, and roll to a handful of songs that set the world on fire. --Tammy La Gorce