Charlie Faye & The Fanimals kick off this release with “7 Days Of Fun,” a song about the days of the week. The week in this case begins with Monday, not Sunday: “Monday, number one day/The first day back to school.” And is that a little nod to Paul McCartney when she sings “Thursday, Friday, we’re going to play/Like a band on the run”? As for Sunday, she sings, “Sunday I’ll stay in my pajamas.” Amen to that. I don’t own pajamas, but I appreciate the thought. Dana Starr Brunberg Sparling and Veronica Sue Brunberg Sparling join the Fayettes on vocals on this track, and Dana Starr Brunberg Sparling also plays flute. Jim Brunberg also adds some vocal work, and plays keys and percussion. This is a fun track, as its title promises, making the entire week sound like a party. It was written by Charlie Faye and Joe McDermott. That’s followed by “Milo Wears A Tutu,” written by Charlie Faye and Sara Hickman. As far as I know, kids have always played around with gender roles (since, largely, rules on gender roles are rather silly), but now this is finally becoming accepted by parents rather than greeted with horror or anger, and Charlie Faye celebrates this freedom with this song about a boy who wears a tutu when he wants to. “Well, I’ll wear a tutu if I want to/If I want to wear a tutu/Wear a tutu if I want to/If I want to wear a tutu/That’s what I’ll do.” It’s a good message for kids, and for adults, for that matter, for, as Charlie Faye sings here, even when Milo grows up, he on occasion likes to wear a tutu. And why not? Life is much too short to get all hung up on conforming to some arbitrary ideas of what constitutes “masculine” and “feminine.”
“Snack Time” is one that would be difficult to dislike. As far as I’m concerned, it is always snack time, though my girlfriend says I need to cool it, as my belly expands into the neighbors’ yard. On this one, Charlie Faye sings, “I’m snacking with my friends/Until the snack time ends/But no I never turned my back on snack/Snack time, snack time/Hey there, how about a piece of cheese?” Yes, please! I totally dig that work on keys. This music makes me happy, with the Fayettes, or rather Fanimals, singing “Snack time” at the beginning of a line, sort of like the way the vocalists sang “Batman” in the theme to the 1960s television show. This track also features a cute ending that has me laughing. This song was co-written by Suzanna Choffel, who also provides some vocal work. Dana Starr Brunberg Sparling and Veronica Sue Brunberg Sparling again join on vocals, and Jim Brunberg is on vocals, organ and percussion.
Remember when Heather Has Two Mommies and Daddy’s Roommate caused such a stir? People lost their minds about those books. I was living in Oregon in the early 1990s, and there was a group there whose main goal seemed to be the removal of those books from all libraries. I thought we had come a good distance since then, but of course we haven’t. Some people deliberately remain behind, and want to pull everyone else back, as evidenced by the current trend in places such as Florida to ban books like And Tango Makes Three. In “Me & My Family,” Charlie Faye celebrates different family configurations, opening with these lines: “This is me and my family/It’s Mama and Mommy and me.” And the lyrics are delivered with joy. Plus, this song features a delicious rhythm, so it is full of good cheer. “Everyone deserves a song,” she sings. Sure, except Ron DeSantis – he does not deserve a song. That’s followed by “Get Down.” Well, you know a song titled “Get Down” is going to be fun. This is a good dance song. “Get down, baby/Get down, down/Jump up, baby/Then turn around/Get down, baby/And jump up to get down/Jump up to get down.” And there is that “ah ah ah” bit, as in “Twist And Shout.” This track is a delight. Then Charlie Faye & The Fanimals give us “Cookie Tree.” Oh, why isn’t there such a thing as a cookie tree? I want to go camping in a forest of cookie trees, no need to pack any food. We’ll go in autumn, when the cookies fall from the branches to make things even easier. Anyway, this is another completely delightful number, with reggae elements and horns. Jim Brunberg plays trumpet, saxophone, keys, percussion, nose flute and xylophone. Brian Myers is on saxophone and piccolo. This one was written by Charlie Faye and Pete Thomas.
The disc’s final three tracks are about different animals (or Fanimals?). The first of these is “Armadillo,” written by Charlie Faye and Bill Demain. “If you get scared/Oh, I’ll be there/To help you cross the road/Armadillo.” This song takes place in Texas, which makes me think of the line from Ellis Paul’s “Snow In Austin,” “armadillos upside down.” Michael Ramos plays accordion on this track, and Barbara Nesbitt joins Akina Adderley on backing vocals. Then comes “Puppy In The Bath,” which also was written by Charlie Faye and Bill Demain. Something about this one reminds me of The Beatles’ “Maxwell’s Silver Hammer,” or perhaps something by Randy Newman or Harry Nilsson. It is another cheerful number, and even includes some whistling, courtesy of Jim Brunberg. And then we have “Octopus Getting Dressed,” its title providing us with a funny mental image before the song even starts. “One, two, three, four/I was into my sleeves, but I got more/Five, six, seven, eight/Now I’m dressed and feeling great.” And it isn’t just an octopus that gets dressed here, but also a spider and a child.
CD Track List
- 7 Days Of Fun
- Milo Wears A Tutu
- Snack Time
- Me & My Family
- Get Down
- Cookie Tree
- Armadillo
- Puppy In The Bath
- Octopus Getting Dressed
Charlie Faye & The Fanimals is scheduled to be released on July 21, 2023.
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