Dean Jones - Napper's Delight

Napper's Delight is one of the best "kick your feet back and relax" albums you'll ever hear, which makes it a perfect choice for your little one's afternoon curfew.

Dean Jones has been a big presence in the Hudson Valley, NY, music scene for a long time. He's composed music for various television shows, and performed with Arm of the Sea Theatre, The Big Sky Ensemble and, for ten years, the critically-acclaimed kids' band Dog On Fleas.

Those familiar with Dog On Fleas' work will recognize lead Flea Dean Jones' playful, cosmic lyrics, tenderly sung by Jones and guest vocalists Elizabeth Mitchell; fellow Flea Debbie Lan; and Amy Poux, founder of Working Playground, Inc., and High Meadow Arts, Inc. In fact, Jones showcases an array of Hudson Valley talent, including the aforementioned voices, the pedal steel of Fooch Fischetti, and former fellow Flea David Levine's fiddle.

The slightest touches of electronica mixed with the sounds of mbiras (thumb pianos) and balafons (marimba-like instruments), especially on "Tiny Fishes", make the music on Napper's Delight both now and timeless. And listen to how Dean quietly and slyly works Steely Dan into the lyrics of "Sally Ann". "Wheelin' and Dealin'", cowritten with NYC's Emily Curtis, would be a lo-fi electrotrance hit on any college radio station, and the Elizabeth Mitchell-sung "Grow Little Flower" would fit in just nicely on Neil Young's Harvest Moon.

Other highlights include the 5/4 - 3/4 verse/chorus of the Vince Guaraldi-influenced "Needs", the mournful trombones of the call-and-response antebellum-sounding waltz "Filly and Dilly", and the uniquely Dean Jones lyrics of "Hush Little Baby". And dig these lines from "Hermit Crab": "Minnows swim in minnow school / Stand askance of tidal pool / Swim on swishy beaucoup fishies / Pesky little Pisces settle down nicely."

What's going on here is more than pretty little folk songs: The album as a whole is all about observing, understanding, and caring for your world, including the people around you. It's not enough to live in it, you have to be a part of it. Pretty heavy stuff for a naptime/lullaby album, but it's so brilliantly written and performed, everything is able to slowly sink in, like a sunset in July. Beautiful stuff.

Released September 25, 2007; Dean Jones