Fresh picks and evergreen oldies

Meltdown

Justin Roberts

Carpet Square Records

CD: $15

Ages 4 and up www.justinroberts.org

Pop this one in the CD player and it won’t come out

in a hurry. In his fantastic new album, top-flight Chicago-based family pop artist Justin Roberts again meets every measure of what makes great kids’ music: well-honed lyrics fueled by flights of fancy and real-life growing up experiences (imaginary friends, needing eyeglasses, losing the training wheels, the length of a minute in adult time); juicy pop arrangements, stand-out vocals and sophisticated musical chops.

Murmel Murmel Munsch!

The Children’s Group/KOCH Entertainment

CD: $15.99

Ages 4 to 8

(800) 757-8372

www.childrensgroup.com

Lively doesn’t begin to

describe author-storyteller Robert Munsch (“Love You Forever”), whose kid-tickling, wild and wooly renditions

of 14 comic tales about naughty pigs, wacky braid blues,

embarrassing parents and the trials of staying clean (kids don’t jump in mud puddles, mud puddles jump on kids)

invite listeners’ giggly vocal participation. With comic sound effects and slick musical punctuation.

Quiet Time

Raffi

Rounder Records

CD: $11.99

Infants to age 6

(800) ROUNDER

www.rounder.com

With today’s crop of “alt-kid artists” turning out top-notch family music, yesterday’s musical pied pipers may seem old hat. The nice thing is, children’s music is evergreen, and so is the field’s first superstar, Raffi, whose “Down by the Bay” and “Baby Beluga” became preschool anthems. Raffi’s velvety baritone hasn’t changed, and neither has his warm and mellow delivery. Here he serves up 15 timeless, gentle “songs for a pause, a cuddle, or a nap,” including his beautiful, throat-tugging lullaby, “Blessed Be.”

Daddy A Go Go, Eat Every Bean and Pea on Your Plate

Boyd’s Tone Records

CD: $12; Ages 5 to 9

www.daddyagogo.com

Atlanta musician John Boydston is anything but mellow. He’s a rowdy rocker fueled by old-school punk and alt-rock influences. And a sense of humor: Just say the title out loud. Or, try “Pink Floyd Saves Hugh Manatee.” But Boydston, whose sons play instrumentals on a hard-bouncing “Blitzkrieg Bop” track (the Ramones song, with appropriately altered lyrics), is kid-savvy in other ways. His comic lyrics tweak everyday ups and downs (“Cryin’ in the Dugout,” “Irritation Man”) and contain a few pointed messages besides (“Hang Up and Drive”).

Make a Good Choice

Lou Del Bianco

CD: $10; Ages 5 to 10 www.FindLou.com

Lou Del Bianco deftly crafts stories and songs around

such character issues as

honesty, respect, peer pressure and responsibility. No heavy lessons here. Del Bianco is a terrific singer-musician with a deft touch, blending great tunes and comic lift with

a resonant view of life’s ups and downs from a kid’s point of view.

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-- Lynne Heffley