Inspiring Words: Dan Zanes
Showtime with this energetic musician gets kids moving and grooving.
A purple-suited, guitar-packin' ball of energy bounds on stage. His tornado-whipped gray hair waggles to the beat as he strums his first few chords. Suddenly, squeals erupt and sippy cups fly into the air. Moms and dads, boys and girls, it's Dan Zanes!
Zanes, of course, is the melody-making hero of the under-10 set. They can't resist dancing to his catchy, homespun tunes and smiling at his sunny spirit. Parents dig the songs' heartfelt honesty as a refreshing alternative to commercialized kids' pop. For Zanes, however, the music is really a joyful expression of his life. After the breakup of his 1980s band the Del Fuegos and the birth of his daughter Anna in 1994, he began playing in the homes of fellow parents in his Brooklyn, NY, neighborhood. "I was having more fun than ever before," says the 47-year-old. "I felt like I was good at getting people to sing together. One day [I decided] I'm going to make this my life."
Anna, now 13, backs her father in concert from time to time on the ukulele. Grown-up kids who've joined Zanes in the recording studio include star rockers Shery l Crow, Lou Reed, and Deborah Harry. Last month, Zanes released the CD ¡Nueva York!, a Spanish-language sonic feast featuring varied styles of Latin American music, including son jarocho and merengue.
Through it all, in concert or on CD, the uniting power of Zanes' music shines through — just as he planned. He even has a musician's tip for parents. "It's great to have a head full of songs," he says. "You can break one out whenever you need because we're always in situations where a song would be good to connect people."
