From Timmy Sutton:- Vocals, guitars, electric, slide whistle, percussion, bass, etc. Most of the 15 songs were recorded at No Parking Studio in Rosendale, New York and co-produced by Dog On Fleas band leader Dean Jones. I
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From Timmy Sutton:- Vocals, guitars, electric, slide whistle, percussion, bass, etc.
Most of the 15 songs were recorded at No Parking Studio in Rosendale, New York and co-produced by Dog On Fleas band leader Dean Jones. I am so proud of this album! I feel like you can hear how much fun we had recording it. These 15 songs are written for families to enjoy. I recently listened to the whole thing on a trip to Philly and it was then I realized we accomplished our mission. This is our Dark Side of the Moon! An album that can be played all the way through. An album that takes you on a journey. An album that inspires kids to use their imagination and to run in the woods. An album that reminds adults to run faster than their kids in the woods. To race to the top of the hill and then stare at the clouds, but then the dad has to run back down and into the house to grab the boom box, because they want to listen to our new album again…on top of the hill. So what’s this album all about?…Hmmmm
1. Bill- This is a story about a rock that slides up a hill. Usually, you only hear about rock slides going down the hill…well not this rock. Bill is different.
2. High 5 Your Shadow- One day, Timmy saw his son high five his own shadow on a door. We thought, hey why don’t we try it and well it just took off!
3. How to Eat a Cloud- It’s a song about eating clouds. Enough said.
4. Upside Down- Have you ever sat on a chair with your feet in the air? Well, you should. This song wonders out loud what it would be like if the whole world was upside down.
5. Champion of the Universe- This is a story about a boy who wants to be a Mexican wrestler, but his head is too big for a mask. That is, until he finds the right one.
6. Pretend Your Hand's a Puppet – This song will help you learn how to use your hand like a puppet and it will also teach you how to sing like Chewbacca. It’s got it all.
7. Where Do Monsters Go? Where do monsters go when it's not Halloween? We did some research and now we know where they go. Soon, you will know too.
8. Little Dude – This one is a song written for Timmy’s son. It’s all about the places he can go and things he can be when he grows up. I wonder when we will grow up?
9. Guitar Pickin' Chicken- It’s an epic tale about a chicken who sings and plays guitar. What else is there?
10. Sailing- This is part two of “The Log” from our first record. It features the rabbit from that song on a whole new adventure. We rhymed a word with octopus in this song…yup we did
11. Space Kid and Banana- This song was inspired by the costumes that Timmy and Matty wore at Timmy’s wedding. We will explain later. What it’s about is the adventures of Space Kid and Banana and their quest to rid the universe of garbage.
12. Who Needs A Toy?- You don’t really need to buy a toy when you have things like sticks, cardboard boxes, etc.
13. Breakfast- Breakfast is our favorite meal and this song is all about that. Yes, a song about our favorite meal, which is…yup, breakfast
14. Backyard Camping (w/ Dog On Fleas)
From Dean Jones: Bass, keyboards, vocals, trombone, producer, etc.
Doing the Backyard Camping Song was tremendously fun, Dog on Fleas and Ratboy Jr. together at last. I think we played variations of that song for a couple of hours, and improvised a lot of ridiculous words and things. The final product includes pieces from 2 different takes and is vastly shorter than what we really played. We were really laughing too much at our own jokes to keep most of it in. The parts that are left are hopefully mildly funny to others, while still bringing the band members to tears remembering our other jokes.
15. E's Lullaby- A simple lullaby written for Timmy’s son, Elliott. He now sings the song himself and it’s so dang cute!
From Matty Senzatimore: - Drums, vocals, keys, bass, guitar, piano, glockenspiel, percussion, etc.
Recording Champions Of The Universe was a lot of hard work, but also a ton of fun. It's not easy for 3 guys to stand around making chicken sounds and not start laughing. If laughter is the best medicine, we will never get sick again.
I am very happy we were able to use a wide variety of instruments on the record. From trombones to tambourines to guitars to glockenspiels, this album has it all.
We have grown a lot in the 2 years since our first album and I am very proud of how far we have come. As a musician, you always strive for each record to be better than the last and I feel like we accomplished that with Champions Of The Universe.
More From Dean Jones:
Overall it was a truly creative and wild time. It was great bouncing ideas off each other, and of course, making chicken sounds and singing some of the more outlandish vocal parts altogether. A nice bonus for me was getting reunited with Shane Kirsch, who I've played with in numerous bands and situations. Together we make up the "Talcum Powder Horns".
