My sister is expecting her first child in a couple of weeks (the due date is her birthday - what planning!) and I'd like to get her a couple of lullabye CDs. I already got her Jason Falkner's Bedtime With The Beatles when she first announced her pregnancy. That is a great disc. Even got myself a copy, as it's very relaxing. Anyway, can anyone give me some recommendations for good lullabye CDs? Thanks.

Well, not really lullabye, but essential kids listening...
Jerry Garcia & David Grisman - Not For Kids Only

Mmm, not a lullabye album, but Vashti Bunyan's Just Another Diamond Day is a soothing listen, for sure. Child-like folk from the 60s. In fact, the vocal melody for the third track ("Lily Pond") is the same as "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star."

When I read the title of this thread, Not for Kids Only sprung to my mind. My boy would be wailing, and once I started playing/singing Jenny Jenkins, he would fall asleep immediately! Even now when I play it, almost 1 1/2 years later, he starts smiling. I cannot recommend this disc enough, and to say it is essential is almost an understatement!

For general kids' music recommendations, check out this (very buried) thread:

http://www.dvdtalk.com/forum/showthr...hreadid=186919

As for lullaby CDs, I'd recommend...

"Lullabies" -- I don't remember the artists, but it's two singers (mother and daughter, I think), along with simple (or no) piano/violin accompaniment. They sing lullabies, of course, in a somewhat operatic style. They're pretty, though my favorites are the four or five instrumentals. We got our copy through the Metropolitan Museum of Art -- the CD has a copy of a Mary Cassatt painting of mother and child on the front.

Mae Robertson has a CD called "All Through The Night" Very lullaby-ey songs, though some are not lullabies, strictly speaking (Elvis' "Can't Help Falling In Love", for example).

Elizabeth Mitchell's 2 albums "You Are My Flower" and "You Are My Sunshine" are pretty calm folk-rock -- although we don't use it as a lullaby CD, the second half of "Sunshine" is really calm. (And they're just great CDs, period. Get 'em now.)

There's also a Naxos lullaby sampler with soothing orchestral selections. (Sorry, again the name escapes me. It's got a cartoon-y picture of a sleeping baby on the front.) Gotta be careful with classical "lullaby" selections because a lot of them also put pretty peppy songs on there.

Finally, there are some CDs by a label called something like "World Music for Little Ears." Their lullaby CD is pretty cool.

Hope this helps.

[Edited to list CD title.]

I don't know about for youngins, but I find the Norah Jones CD very relaxing.

you can't buy it or anything, but here's a mixtape request I did a few months ago. I got an e-mail from the guy who requested it saying that he loved the mix and found all the songs except the Iron and Wine one:

Songs I Can Listen to with my Three Month Old Son

requested by: deleted
compiled by: leah

01. Jimmy Buffett - "Captain and the Kid" (Havana Daydreamin')
02. White Stripes - "We're Going to be Friends" (White Blood Cells)
03. Iron and Wine-"Lion's Mane" (Creek Drank the Cradle)
04. Hem-"Sailor" (Rabbit Songs)
05. Beatles-"Across the Universe" (Let It Be)
06. Nickel Creek-"When You Come Back Down" (Nickel Creek)
07. Liz Phair-"Whip-Smart"
08. Maynard Ferguson-"McArthur Park" (Master of the Stratosphere)
09. Norah Jones-"The Long Day is Over" (Come Away with Me)
10. Peter Gabriel-"Washing of the Water" (Secret World Live)
11. Billy Joel-"Lullabye (Goodnight, My Angel)" (River of Dreams)
12. Ben Folds-"Still Fighting It" (Rockin' the Suburbs)
13. Will Smith-"Just the Two of Us" (Big Willie Style)
14. Dixie Chicks-"Godspeed (Sweet Dreams)" (Home)
15. Whiskeytown-"Paper Moon" (Pneumonia)
16. Wilco-"My Darling" (Summerteeth)

Thanks for all of the suggestions. For now, I made my sister a mix CD:

1) Nil Lara - "My First Child"
2) U2 - "The Sweetest Thing"
3) Harry Nilsson - "The Puppy Song"
4) Lyle Lovett & Randy Newman - "You've Got a Friend in Me"
5) Loudon Wainwright III - "Being a Dad"
6) Cat Stevens - "Father and Son"
7) Ben Folds - "Golden Slumbers"
8) Mandy Moore - "Moonshadow"
9) Wilco - "My Darling"
10) Cat Stevens - "Oh Very Young"
11) Jimmy Buffett - "The Captain and the Kid"
12) Roy Orbison - "Dream"
13) Sarah McLachlan - "Blackbird"
14) John Wesley Harding - "William and Nancy's Parting"
15) White Stripes - "We're Going To Be Friends"
16) Tom Waits - "Midnight Lullaby"
17) Israel Kamakawiwo'ole - "Somewhere Over the Rainbow/What a Wonderful World"
18) Elvis Presley - "Love Me Tender"
19) Frank Sinatra - "It's Not Easy Being Green"
20) Primal Scream - "Shine Like Stars"
21) Sparklehorse - "It's a Wonderful Life"
22) The Smiths - "Asleep"
23) Barenaked Ladies - "When You Dream"
24) Bing Crosby - "Tura Lura Lura"

since you asked this just came out last week



I Can Only Imagine: Lullabies for a Peaceful Rest amazon link

Linda Ronstadt made an album of pop songs sung as lullabies called Dedicated To the One I Love.

Anything by Nick Drake worked wonders on my daughter when she needed to sleep. Hazy Jane II is particularly effective.

two very eclectic collection of songs,

(printed out for future reference for my sister who is having her first child in February.)