Chicago Kids Play & Sing Hoagy --

An illustrated book and music CD of children's songs by legendary composer Hoagy Carmichael and reinvented here by Bucky Halker and friends.

Chicago Tribune: “Chicago Kids Play & Sing Hoagy,” is, well, a flat-out delight." (Rick Kogan, 2020)

The recording spotlights the charming and talented vocal work of Chicago children ages 4-18 on all fifteen tracks. Children also appear as instrumentalists on nearly all the tracks - acoustic guitars, taiko drums, jarana, piano, electric bass and guitar, Japanese flute, and mandolin.

Older Chicago “kidz” (ages 19-70) bring their own instrumental artistry to the recording, all well-known veterans of Chicago’s jazz, folk, rock, bluegrass, world, and ethnic music scenes. Such prominent players as Dan DeLorenzo (upright bass), Andy Brown (guitar), Carlos Mejia (Guatemalan marimba), Don Stiernberg (mandolin), Art Davis (triumpet), Eric Schneider (saxophone), Brian Wilke (pedal steel guitar), Steve Gibons (violin), Joe Camarillo (drums), Steve Doyle (electric bass), John Abbey (upright bass), Gerald Dowd (drums), Russ Philips (trombone), and Kioto Aoki (taiko drums), brought their skills to this collaborative effort. Bucky joins in on nearly all the tracks as well, performing on acoustic and electric guitars, percussion, and harmonica.

Beautiful original illustrations for the book were done for each song lyric by Mark Anderson with graphic design by Cathie Van Wert. The project was awarded Best Work of Juvenile Fiction by the Great Lakes Graphic Association in 2020. The book is printed with zero V.O.C. digital HD printing inks on responsibly-harvested papers, by a printing company that is 100% solar & wind powered in the United States.

This unique combination of expertise yields a powerful tribute to Hoagy Carmichael and the creative talent of Chicago kids of all ages!

Chicago Kids Play and Sing Hoagy was produced by Bucky Halker, Toni Halker, and John Abbey. The music was recorded at Kingsize Sound Lab in Chicago and engineered by John Abbey.

Partial funding for this project was generously provided by the Illinois Arts Council Agency, the Farny R. Wurlitzer Foundation, the City of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE).