For children - and adults of a certain age
Peter Durward Harris | Leicester England | 11/29/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I remember listening to Children's hour on BBC radio in the fifties (introduced by Uncle Mac with his catch-phrase Hello children everywhere) and the music played on that programme is the basis of this set, although some songs of more recent vintage are included. I'm sure they would have been played on Children's hour if they'd been available at the time.
Among my favorite tracks are Right said Fred (a very funny song), Runaway train (though I'd have preferred Michael Holliday's cover to Vernon Dalhart's original), Ernie, Lily the pink, Ballad of Davy Crockett, Bring me sunshine, Nellie the elephant, Farmers in the den, Big rock candy mountain and Teddy bears' picnic.
There are some songs here that I regard as truly dreadful, but this is to be expected in a compilation of this nature. I'm sure you don't like everything here either but maybe your dislikes are different from mine. I'm glad they didn't include Long-haired lover from Liverpool (Little Jimmy Osmond) or Mother of mine (Neil Reid) but I was dismayed to find There's no-one quite like Grandma (St Winifred's school choir) included.
But I won't dwell on the tracks I dislike - with sixty tracks, most of them very enjoyable, this is great value for money. It will provide great entertainment for children, or for adults remembering their childhood. Among adults, it is likely to have particular appeal to those (like me) who remember Uncle Mac and his Children's hour."
