Michelle Shocked gets juvenile

Even after seeing her doing a decent job opening for Roky Erickson (!) last March, I'd kind of written of Ms. Shocked after an impressive, inventive debut, way back in the mid '80's. Now she's embarked on an ambitious trio of releases including a break-up album, a Latin album and a kiddie record. While you have to admire her spirit, these things usually have a way of sounding better on paper than on your stereo or MP3 player. But as even more of a surprise, her kiddie record Got No Strings is a small delight, even more amazing considering that she's chosen a bunch of Disney songs (and does better than the old tribute Stay Awake). "Got No Strings," "Give A Little Whistle" and "Wish Upon A Star" (all from Pinocchio) and "To Be A Cat" (aka "Everybody Wants To Be A Cat," a great song from the Aristocats) are all done in a quiet, easy swing vibe that you could not only play for the little ones but you could also listen to yourself and enjoy. Dan Zanes has already taken the kiddie route for a while and done something with it but Shocked sounds like such a natural here that she might want to consider her own Saturday morning cable show.