Dan Zanes in concert

Natalie and Graham and I shelled out actual dollars to see Dan Zanes at the McCarter theater today. The scruffy old guy put on a good show, there with his post-racial gender-balanced Spanish-speaking band, he is clearly the class of children's performers.

Graham had a good time, pounding on my arm with his fist to show excitement. Natalie liked some of the songs, though much of the time she suffered through non-recognition of the tunes. Mostly, however, she was too old for it. Not that the music itself does not appeal to her, it's just that she observed that the core demographic was 3-5 year olds, and therefore inferred that she was out of place.

Who, then is the Dan Zanes of kids like Natalie, the pre-Tweens? Who makes music that appeals to them but that parents can like too? Or is that a contradiction in terms, as the 7-9 set begins to mark out its own independence from the parents. Could it be the Beatles? Note to self, get Help! and Hard Day's Night from Netflix.