Sing, Sing, Sing: Lisa Loeb's Silly Sing-Along

When it comes to the genre of "family music," Grammy-nominated songstress Lisa Loeb is one of the divas. Her soft, whispery, right-on-pitch voice has won her fans with kids and with parents who need her merry but calming influence for those times when car rides get long and monotonous.

In her latest and third album/book for children, titled Lisa Loeb's Silly Sing-Along: The Disappointing Pancake and Other Zany Songs (Sterling, 2011),illustrated by Ryan O'Rourke, all the songs are meant to be silly, especially the title number, "The Disappointing Pancake."

"IT WAS HARDER THAN THE TABLE, SO I THOUGHT IT WAS MY PLATE.

I HIT IT WITH A HAMMER BUT IT DIDN'T EVEN BREAK!"

The strange circular object defies scientific analysis. Is it a Frisbee?

"I LOOKED THE WINDOW AND I SAW IT GLOW.

MAYBE IT'S THE MOON OR JUST A UFO."

More songs in this vein follow: "A Codibye Dose" (A Cold in My Nose), "Fried Ham," and "Chewing Gum" are modern compositions, some by Lisa herself, and some, such as "Found a Peanut" and "Sipping Cider (Through a Straw)" are traditional kid tunes from way back.

Loeb rounds out her songbook with an appendix which includes "Note on Songs" and some recipes, which include, of course, one for Un-Disappointing Pancakes.

No musical ability is needed, as you can pop the included CD in and let Lisa perform and teach the songs until they become singalong favorites. This one is fun for family singalongs, camping, summer day groups, and long car trips.

Loeb's previous albums for children include Catch the Moon [With CD], a potpourri of original tunes and traditional nursery songs, including "Twinkle, Twinkle" and "Big Rock Candy Mountain," and Camp Lisa, a collection of summer camp songs, many from yesteryear to please old and young.