Blogcritics The critical lens on today's culture & entertainment
Sing A-Long Beatlesongs is advertised as a fun way for parents to share their love of The Beatles’s songs with their children. it mixes very old cartoons with Beatle lyrics, presented with the familiar bouncing ball sing-along technique.
Unfortunately, the concept does not really work for children, in my opinion. My grandchildren, for instance, could not understand why the cartoons had nothing to do with the lyrics. For younger children, some of the cartoon subject matter is quite dark and possibly a bit frightening, as well.
As for the music, Bobby Cowsill, who some years ago was a member of the family singing group, The Cowsills, does a pretty good job singing the songs, but why not just play the actual Beatles albums for your children? Generations of children have learned to love the group that way, after all.
But there might be an audience for this DVD among adults, particularly those who already love the Beatles. It could be a lot of fun at a party, especially with alcohol involved. Grownups might be amused by the incongruity of the cartoon and lyric combinations, and enjoy the times when a scene and a lyric actuallly seem to fit for a moment. They could have fun singing along to the lyrics, too. With people in a proper mood to be silly, I can see this CD being a big party hit.
So, even though this is supposed to be a kids’ video, I do not recommend it for that purpose. For certain adults and their friends, it might be worth checking out.
By the way, the bonus footage of The Beatles on the DVD is very poor quality, taken from old movie news reels. It is mildly interesting, but there is much more interesting and better quality footage of the group available on DVD and online.
