Playlist Rewind: Dream Jam Band

Francine (All Images Credit: Pamela Charles/Phillyist)

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Phillyist took Toddler-ist to World Cafe Live on Saturday morning to see his very first concert, the Dream Jam Band. The show was a little late (thirty minutes or more) getting started and the cause of said lateness will forever remain a mystery. Was it the band? Was it the venue? Was it both the band and the venue? Where the hell is that Tootsie Pop Owl when you need him? Regardless, all was forgotten when the doors opened and the band took the stage.

As we said before, the Dream Jam Band's newest album, Leave it in the Soup, has been at the top of Toddler-ist's playlist for a while. So, of course we weren't surprised at all when he clapped and danced his way through every last song. However, we were a bit (okay, a lot) surprised at just how much we enjoyed the show. Yes, that's right, we enjoyed a concert whose target audience is comprised of pint-sized humans who pledge their allegiance to a red furry monster that talks in the third-person. Judge if you must, but the Dream Jam Band put on a great show. Besides, who really wants to argue adult-skepticism with a toddler? It's just not worth the battle, my friends.

The music was witty, fun, and absolutely fantastic. The band played a good variety of songs from both of their albums and Toddler-ist was beyond thrilled to see part of his playlist come to life. Phillyist was pleasantly surprised at how different the band sounds live. Sure, they sound cute and upbeat on the CD, but they take on a whole new attitude when they walk on stage; we witnessed the adults "getting down" just as much as the kids.

Not only did the Dream Jam Band entertain us with their catalog of original songs, they also utilized the time between songs to teach our pint-sized friends a thing or two—teachers that sing and dance get undivided attention. The band discussed the instruments they were playing and how they make each song sound special and they even gave a brief history lesson on Mozart, all while the kids had no idea they were being taught anything. Apparently, teachers that sing and dance are also jedi-mind-specialists. Nice work. The band also illustrated beautiful examples of important social skills, like waiting your turn, overcoming shyness, managing a bad hair day, and having a party when you're feeling sad instead of pouting about it. It is obvious the members of Dream Jam Band love what they do and it shows. The audience, both young and old, thoroughly enjoyed them.

The Dream Jam Band delivered a great performance and they couldn't have picked a better venue for their show. The World Cafe Live is a fine establishment for a pint-sized concert, it's family-friendly, fun, relatively in-expensive, and they offer free parking. The venue itself provides a cozy un-intimidating atmosphere for the little people. It's not huge, but it's big enough that your kids will feel extra-special that you brought them to such a cool place. Plus, they still have more than enough room to dance, frolic, and unleash their inner air-guitarist. A decent-sized buffet was available for a nominal fee (we did not indulge) and they also serve drinks at the bar. The jury is still out on whether "real" drinks were available at that hour. Seriously, what more could you ask for?