TOM FREUND AND FRIENDS: Hug Trees

Tom Freund and Friends

Hug Trees

© 2007 Tom freund (634479591235)

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Kids music for the whole family, from the James Brown style grooves of "Freezedance" to the Woody Guthriesque "Bakin a Cake" sing-song.

tracks

1 Hug Trees
2 Bakin' A Cake
3 Rock 'N Roll History
4 Seashells
5 Bump Bump Bump
6 Apple From The Tree
7 Party In The Yard
8 I Walk The Dog
9 FREEZEDANCE
10 The Cat Came Back
11 Go To Sleep

notes

Please go to www.myspace.com/hugtreesmusic to hear the first 5 tracks!

What comes in 11 parts and features a dog, cat, lion, apple tree, frogs and a cake?

Give up?

The answer is "Hug Trees", the new album from Venice-based singer-songwriter Tom Freund. On Hug Trees Tom brings his jazzy and rootsy vibe over to the kids' music side for the first time.

"I've been writing and making music for a long time. Becoming a father just added a beautiful new layer to the whole experience for me," says Freund. "On Hug Trees, my daughter Delilah is my co-producer, my audience, my muse. We created these songs together over the last couple of years. It was very natural to just go ahead and make a record."

The music bar was kept high on the new set as the younger generation was only part of the focus. "I've come to know full well that whatever my daughter is listening to or watching, my wife Francie and I are going to get a steady diet of. I tried to keep that in mind when making Hug Trees, to live up to both standards. I wanted it to be fun for kids and yet remain sonically pleasing to parents on the 40th listen in the car."

The theme of Hug Trees is for kids to get outside and enjoy nature with a nod to Freund's new home Venice Beach. Whether gathering sea shells, walking the dog or hugging a tree, Freund urges kids to get outside and keep it moving. " My wish is for our kids to have an eco-friendly community for generations to come. The beauty of music is that it is a means to tap into nature's energy in a fun and meaningful way. " To help spread the word, the NY-raised singer rounded together a bevy of great musicians. Hug Trees features instruments ranging from ukulele and mandolin to stand up bass and slide guitar. Michael Jerome (Richard Thompson) and Richie Hayward (Little Feet) share drum duties, Eric Heywood (Ray Lamontagne) plays pedal steel and even a member of Canned Heat, Stanley "the Baron" Behrens plays saxophone. Guest singers on Hug Trees include the ever-amazing Victoria Williams who adds her beautiful voice and childlike playfulness to "Seashells". Rising star Brett Dennen pulls double duty by penning and singing on the rowdy "Party in the Yard". The lovely and talented Abra Moore brightens up "Apple From The Tree."

"I hope people enjoy the album as much as we enjoyed making it," says Freund. "Who knows, I might have found a day job I love after all these years."

Over the years Freund's "adult" albums have recieved such accolades as:

"Every year the mounting landfill of new releases that threatens to bury the working music journalists yields a few unexpected gems, and Tom Freund is one of them."
- THE NEW YORK TIMES

"Freund clearly delights in enigma. His vocals could go from laconic to impassioned without such obvious trickery as cranking up the volume. His lyrics are full of curveballs."
- WASHINGTON POST

"Journeyman Freund is soundtrack ready. He made an album that is all at once addictive, stylistically diverse and honest to the core."
-MSNBC

"If Tom Petty and Nick Drake had a love child."
- BLOGCRITICS.COM


WWW.HUGTREES.ORG
WWW.MYSPACE.COM/HUGTREESMUSIC

reviews

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  • The 33-minute album will appeal mostly to listeners ages 3 through
    author: zooglobble

    Zooglobble Kids and family music news and reviews - Kids music worth sharing. « March 2008 | Main APRIL 18, 2008 Review in Brief: Hug Trees - Tom Freund and Friends Southern California-based singer-songwriter Tom Freund released Hug Trees in late 2007, and I'm sort of surprised it's gone under everyone's radar (including mine) until just recently. In many ways, the album, inspired by his preschool-aged daughter, is a typical "kids' music" CD -- it's got a "freeze dance" song, there's a rendition of "The Cat Came Back," there's a song about baking a cake. But there's a relaxed and playful attitude to the whole affair that makes it more compelling than you would think from the description above. Take "Freezedance," for example, which has a very funky '70s sound (Freund mentions James Brown as a particular inspiration for the track) and doesn't just involve Freund occasionally yelling "Freeze!" but also has him encouraging listeners to emulate animals and throwing out musical adlibs. "The Cat Came Back" is an admittedly hard song to screw up, but I quite liked his mellow approach on the song. "Party in the Yard" was actually written by Brett Dennen (who appears on this and one other track), and it's a soulful, funky tune (think Jack Johnson) about playing outside. (If you get a bit of a Ben Harper vibe, too, well, Freund's played with him quite a bit.) Freund's roots-rock vibe on some tracks ("Hug Trees" or "Bump Bump Bump") will remind listeners of Brady Rymer, while on the closing "Go To Sleep (Fais Do-Do)" or "Seashells" (the former with Abra Moore, the latter with Victoria Williams), Freund sounds a little bit like a West Coast Elizabeth Mitchell. (And on "I Walk the Dog," Freund just sounds like a tired guy who knows how important it is to walk your dog, if you've got one.) The 33-minute album will appeal mostly to listeners ages 3 through 6. You can hear four tracks at the album's Myspace page, or hear selections from more tracks at its CDBaby page. The biggest strength of Hug Trees is its overall vibe, which turns what might have been a collection of typical kids songs into a fun little disk, something beyond ordinary. Fans of Brady Rymer or Elizabeth Mitchell I think will respond well to the musicianship and playfulness from Freund and friends here. Recommended.

  • Kids music worth sharing.
    author: zooglobble

    Zooglobble Kids and family music news and reviews - Kids music worth sharing. « March 2008 | Main APRIL 18, 2008 Review in Brief: Hug Trees - Tom Freund and Friends Southern California-based singer-songwriter Tom Freund released Hug Trees in late 2007, and I'm sort of surprised it's gone under everyone's radar (including mine) until just recently. In many ways, the album, inspired by his preschool-aged daughter, is a typical "kids' music" CD -- it's got a "freeze dance" song, there's a rendition of "The Cat Came Back," there's a song about baking a cake. But there's a relaxed and playful attitude to the whole affair that makes it more compelling than you would think from the description above. Take "Freezedance," for example, which has a very funky '70s sound (Freund mentions James Brown as a particular inspiration for the track) and doesn't just involve Freund occasionally yelling "Freeze!" but also has him encouraging listeners to emulate animals and throwing out musical adlibs. "The Cat Came Back" is an admittedly hard song to screw up, but I quite liked his mellow approach on the song. "Party in the Yard" was actually written by Brett Dennen (who appears on this and one other track), and it's a soulful, funky tune (think Jack Johnson) about playing outside. (If you get a bit of a Ben Harper vibe, too, well, Freund's played with him quite a bit.) Freund's roots-rock vibe on some tracks ("Hug Trees" or "Bump Bump Bump") will remind listeners of Brady Rymer, while on the closing "Go To Sleep (Fais Do-Do)" or "Seashells" (the former with Abra Moore, the latter with Victoria Williams), Freund sounds a little bit like a West Coast Elizabeth Mitchell. (And on "I Walk the Dog," Freund just sounds like a tired guy who knows how important it is to walk your dog, if you've got one.) The 33-minute album will appeal mostly to listeners ages 3 through 6. You can hear four tracks at the album's Myspace page, or hear selections from more tracks at its CDBaby page. The biggest strength of Hug Trees is its overall vibe, which turns what might have been a collection of typical kids songs into a fun little disk, something beyond ordinary. Fans of Brady Rymer or Elizabeth Mitchell I think will respond well to the musicianship and playfulness from Freund and friends here. Recommended.

  • As a teacher of "Art Discovery"
    author: carol gronner

    YAY FOR HUG TREES! As a teacher of "Art Discovery" to kids in Venice ... I can say with pure JOY that HUG TREES is one of their absolute favorites ... it always gets the room moving - in a good way! I'm getting ready to go to Australia in a couple hours and I'm gonna rock those kids too! Hug Eucalyptus Trees! THANK YOU! LOVE YOU! XOXO!

  • baby got bounce
    author: chaz obrien

    I gave this to every one of my nieces and nephews for xmas. One brother has twins who are autistic. Needless to say there are lots of things they listen to over and over and over again ;) He has called me four times since xmas to say thanks and how much he likes listening to it. And the kids love it also!

  • dance dance dance
    author: renee stahl

    we listen to this cd almost everyday .. as soon as we put it on our toddler stands up to boogie on down with us..

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