About.com Rating

Brady Rymer's seventh album of family music is flavored with old school Rock & Roll, as several of the tunes echo the organic sounds of the 1950s and 1960s, and that catch phrase is mentioned and alluded to many times in the lyrics of the tunes on Just Say Hi! Zydeco, gospel, and Americana influences can be heard as well, creating a tasty musical melting pot of joyful and thoughtful songs.

The Artist

Brady Rymer has been writing and performing family music for almost 15 years, releasing his kids' music debut Good Morning Gus in 2000. Since then, Rymer has recorded six more albums for families, including the GRAMMY-nominated Here Comes Brady Rymer and The Little Band That Could in 2008 and a collection of songs dedicated to children on the autism spectrum, 2011's Love Me for Who I Am.

Rymer began his musical career as vocalist and bass player in From Good Homes, a band from New Jersey who made a name for themselves during the 1990s. After the group disbanded in 1999, members worked on individual projects until they reunited in 2009, deciding to perform once a year since then. For more information on Rymer's grownup band, check out the official From Good Homes website.

The Music of Just Say Hi!

Just Say Hi! kicks off with the title tune, beginning like an old Stevie Wonder song, then settling into a slinky Sly and The Family Stone groove, encouraging everyone to gather the courage to make new friends.

 Then the band tell listeners to "Get This Party Started" via a tune Southside Johnny and The Asbury Jukes might have played on the boardwalk if they performed Kindie Rock shows, complete with musical breakdown and sax solo. Americana music rings out as the "Ice Cream Girl" comes rolling down the street, while "Dance 'til I Drop" features some Cajun-spiced Rock & Roll that'll keep 'em out of their seats. The spoken-word/sung "Pet Song (We Thank You)," not to be confused with The Beach Boys' 1966 song "Pet Sounds," sounds like a mix of Archie Bell and The Drells' "Tighten Up" and Frank Zappa's "I'm the Slime," as various pets thank their keepers for taking care of them with undying devotion. "I Spin" is a great 3/4-time Americana tune that celebrates the revolution of time and objects, decorated by accordion and mandolin.

More Music from Just Say Hi!

"Red Piano Rag" is exactly what it sounds like, a ragtime recollection of learning the ivories with Grandma while she shared stories. Rymer then celebrates "My Home" musically with a hand-jivey New Orleans street march as he describes beloved childhood memories. With a lyrical nod to The Rolling Stones, Rymer and Band are "Gettin' My Ya Ya's Out" with an electrified country-meets-rockabilly stomper that celebrates lettin' it all hang out at the end of a properly-behaved day. A load of Kindie Rock friends join Rymer on "Tomorrow's People," including Elizabeth Mitchell and Daniel Littleton (You Are My Flower), Drew Holloway and Jack Forman (Recess Monkey), and Laurie Berkner and Susie Lampert (The Laurie Berkner Band). The song features a laid back reggae beat and, coincidentally, a title similar to Ziggy Marley and The Melody Makers' 1988 top 40 tune "Tomorrow People," as well as a chorus that sounds similar to Green Day's "Boulevard of Broken Dreams." Just Say Hi! comes to a rowdy and rockin' end with "Light of Love," a song Bruce Springsteen would've been proud to have written, as the band meld the sounds of Irish pub bands, "This Little Light of Mine," African American gospel, and Harold Dorman's "Mountain of Love." A great concert-ending sing along!

The Verdict

Brady Rymer and friends keep it real and rockin' on Just Say Hi!, combining kids' favorite pastimes, lots of movement and dancing, and grownups' childhood memories to create a rootsy Rock & Roll album for ages 0 to 100. Another highly-recommended release by Brady Rymer and The Little Band That Could! And check out the nifty album art work by Katie Gastley of Idlewild Co.!

Released June 17, 2014; Bumblin' Bee Records

Track Listing

1. "Just Say Hi!"
2. "Get This Party Started"
3. "Ice Cream Girl"
4. "Dance 'til I Drop"
5. "Pet Song (We Thank You)"
6. "I Spin"
7. "Red Piano Rag"
8. "My Home"
9. "Gettin' My Ya Ya's Out"
10. "Tomorrow's People"
11. "Light of Love"