General Music

I am not sure what happened, if my internet cut off or what, but while in the middle of downloading this song internet explorer stoppped the download. Customer service was really nice and returned my money and I downloaded the song again with much ease. The song came out great and it definitely is one of Coldplay's best

When this song comes on my Mp3 player it makes me run faster. I think it's the violins.

Best Friend Calling Ringtones
Hey Hey Hey Calling You Ringtones
Your Name Text Alerts
Who's Calling You Ringtones

Viva La vida is the best song ever, the meaning of the song is deep.
I used this song for my social presentation, my group members loved the song.
The instrumental is off the hook.

I think this Grammy winning song is interesting and uniqe because it blends classical music with modern day music.Rock on Coldplay!!

It is a great song, it's just too bad they couldn't credit Joe Satriani for writing the Music like any decent artist would do. Oh well, that's why they have copyright laws. Someone else commented that they should have had Joe play on the track - BRILLIANT! Anyway, I hope Joe gets the credit he deserves and Coldplay trades in their Grammy for a poetry award.

This is great ! ! ! It's like THE BAND never stopped.I am going to stick my neck out and claim this as the best CD of the century , so far.
It is really, really good.
This is somewhat a bluesy americana work with a touch of THE BAND instrumentals,done in a foxy , cagey , jazzy format.
When Levon comes on a singing MOVE ALONG TRAIN I about melt.
One cut is STUFF YOU GOT TO WATCH was released in 1993 originally on JERHICO (THE BAND'S best cd,top ten best of the previous century) and on this work he throws a bluesy vocal performance that is about perfect.

There will never be anything more Americana than DIRT FARMER.It would be impossible to top that . . . but , believe it or not , the man has out done himself again.

I tried to get Jefferson Starship and Levon Helm to head up BAND AIDE, the concert to benefit "the Evicted" and homeless people due to Wall Street corruption.Maybe when they do the huge Ghosts of Woodstock festival in August-09 they could hit the road together with BAND-AIDE.
lets hope.[...](High Desert Gift)
You can also find me on facebook(Rick Beckner) and I am on ebay.Link that with 300182848968.
Levon is my "friend" on myspace, but he has no contact information.Can somebody please approach him about BAND-AIDE, The Concert to Benefit "The Evicted" . . .Done right , it could be bigger than FARM-AIDE.Maybe we can get WILLIE AND THE WHEEL to open the show.

As with all of the Band and previous Helm albums, this one has deep roots in southern, rock, folk-blues, Chicago blues, country, and gospel with a smattering of Dixieland when the horn section really gets its blood going. The title itself pays homage to Blues great Muddy Waters, who titled one of his albums "Electric Mud") and two of Muddy's songs are included here. While somewhat tamer and more polished than the tour shows (the Rambles), still Electric Dirt's overriding impression is the pure soul and fun of this music whether played as a traditional folk or rock and roll. Helm grew up playing rock and roll when rock and roll itself was being born and growing up. It's as much a part of him, and his music, as the Arkansas cotton fields where he grew up. Age and the travails of time have worked their way on Levon's voice - it's not the same liquid tone that one heard on "All La Glory" on the Band's "Stage Fright" album. But it's a soulful, "high lonesome" sound that you feel when you hear it.
The song selection is a broad mix, as if Levon pulled a list of favorites from his radio listening as a kid in the 50s and as lift the roof rock and roll drummer in the 60s. If you want to hear some old Band tunes thrown in, then check out the album listed below. But here on Electric Dirt, without any of The Band tunes, Levon's taste s great.

If you like Helm's music, you have to listen to the recording "FestivaLink presents Levon Helm Band MerleFest Ramble at MerleFest 4/26/08" It's as exciting as the shows, and deftly recorded, with the 11 piece band including vocalists, keyboards, 4-piece horn section, Larry Campbell Amy Helm . . . pretty much the same line up that was used for much of "Electric Dirt". Some of the great old The Band tunes are in the mix of country, soul, gospel, folk, and rock and roll, all wrapped up in one solid, tight, and versatile band.

If you liked Dirt Farmer, but prefer the fuller sound of his live Rambles, then this is the album for you. More upbeat, and featuring more horns, this album sounds like the Ramble, but with better production than most of the recordings I have of the Ramble on the Road.

Larry Campbell's production and playing both sound great. Levon's voice is strong. Even after first listen some of the new songs are pretty catchy and the covers are almost perfectly done.

The "last gentleman" in the music business returns with an electric release, but for my money the best track is the harrowing "Golden Bird" which is stark, empty, haunting and just beautiful. Again, the best sangin" playin'
drummer working does it right. Five Stars of Gold.
Take Me to the Water: Immersion Baptism in Vintage Music and Photography 1890-1950

Jim Linderman "Dull Tool Dim Bulb"

One disc 46 minutes approximately. The sound is crisp yet warm,which suits Helm's songs and voice perfectly.
This album is a continuation of Helm's fine previous (Grammy winning) release "Dirt Farmer",yet it builds on that album's feel. This time out there are electric guitars that replace the previous albums overall acoustic sound. Yet "Electric Dirt" has that same lived in,down-home feel,due in large part to Helm's wonderful aching vocals. The arrangements by Larry Campbell are just right,making each track stand out yet all the tracks form a seamless whole. A combination of up-tempo tracks combine with slower tunes that show Helm's voice is comfortable with either one. His voice sounds most authentic on the slower tracks,which give the feeling of this music being much older than it is.
The band is made up of Helm's musician pals from his famous "barn" concerts in Woodstock,N.Y. This is important to someone with Helm's authentic musical credentials that go back many years to his most famous group,THE BAND. Helm's voice needs the sympathetic back-up from musicians who know his music intimately. Instrumentation ranges from guitars to fiddles to mandolins to accordions,with a touch of keyboards mixed in,along with the standard rhythm section. On four tracks there is a small horn section which helps flesh out the music.
The songs are a combination of the well known ("Tennessee Jed",made famous by the GRATEFUL DEAD,"Stuff You Gotta Watch" and "You Can't Lose What You Ain't Never Had",by Muddy Waters) to a song by Carter Stanley,and one tune by the great writer Randy Newman,among others. Together these songs blend together to make another inspired release by Helm. The vocals are helped along by his daughter Amy Helm and Teresa Williams,which give those tracks added feel and depth. But the tracks that feature Helm alone on vocals are the most riveting. There is so much feeling wrapped up in his voice that the words sometimes take a backseat to his arresting style.
This album is another example of "American" music,music that has it's roots in times past. The combination of good songs,good playing,and Helm's lived-in,seen-it-all,last chance voice is the real deal. Listeners who liked Helm's previous album,"Dirt Farmer",will find this album to be a fine companion to it.
If you haven't heard Levon Helm you're missing some real music played and sung by someone special. This album is refreshing,it's honest music played honestly. For that reason it stands out from most everything today. Do yourself a favor and pick this up.

We loved it! This was a very unexpected surprise! Darius Rucker was great on this CD. He has a great voice, strong, yet, mellow and smooth and the songs were a little different, very original, great! Just wish there were more than 12 tracks. A pleasure to listen to. We hope he does more country. Would buy this again!

At first when I heard Darius Rucker from Hootie & the Blow Fish was going country, I was a little afraid. I was thinking it was gonna be like Hootie but with a country label added to it. I'm glade I was wrong this is a country album. Just about every song on here is great. IMHO this is the best thing he did for his career.

charlie pride was the greatest blk country singer ever but like i said he was past tense !!!dariuus rucker makes chairlie pride look like an american idol reject lol!THIS CD IS A PERFECT 10 HES GONNA BE THE GREATEST SINGER OF ALL TIME AND HE WRITES GREAT SONGS THAT GIVE U CHILLS!!!THIS CD ID BETTER THEN SEX LOL

Darius Rucker is awesome as a country singer. His music is enjoyable for all ages. My girls and I love this CD..

Darius shows us he can sing anything and make it sound good. Loads of good music on this CD.

Snagged this for $4, when it was a Daily Deal over on the MP3 section and I still feel like a overpaid for this. You should not feel like you have to buy the whole album for congruity's sake. There's maybe 1 or 2 good songs and the rest comes off as filler. I loved Play ... this is no Play. I feel like Moby phoned this one in.

Wait For Me has the feel of a compilation of the mellower songs throughout Moby's career. For me, the highlights include the crying guitar in "A Shot in the Back of the Head" (which could have fit on Animal Rights), the desperate "Mistake" (which would have been a standout on Hotel), and choir-backed "A Seated Night," (which could have fit on I Like To Score or Play).

Though a pretty consistent album (I find many of his official releases to be a bit inconsistent in terms of album listening), it feels just a tad too long. For me, "Study War" (a poor imitation of Why Does My Heart Feel So Bad/One of These Mornings/etc.) hurts the flow of the album.

Next to Play the B-Sides and Hotel Ambient, I believe this will become my favorite Moby album.

I was one of those music fans who has given up on Moby years ago. Although I found Last Night to be pretty good, I still couldn't find myself to be head over heels like I was when I first heard Play at my local Tower Records.
The back story for Wait For Me sounds promising I have to admit. But it's overall a let down I have to admit. You'd think that Moby cooked up something really interesting after feeling inspired by David Lynch's words right? You'd think that since most of his mellow songs in the past were pretty brilliant that he'd make now an exceptional melancholic record right? Well I'd have to say wrong!
I find this record pretty much predictable. I'll admit that there are good songs on it but this is no Play. And what I mean by that is that this is no Play in the sense of how extraodinary that record was artistically on every level.
I guess like Andy Warhol once said that everybody's famous for 15 minutes. Perhaps Moby's 15 mins are up!

If your looking for good songs save your money. If you want to gel on someone trying real hard try to figure out what they want to tell with repeated little melodies?? This my friend, is the album for you!

I have all of Moby's previous albums, including his Voodoo Child stuff and I have to say I am disappointed with 'Wait for Me'. This album sounds like part 'Play' redux (with little of the energy/soul of that album) and sort of an attempt to follow the coattails of David Lynch's collaboration with Danger Mouse/Sparklehorse, 'Dark Night of the Soul'. The lyrical content seems intentionally down/depressing/dark, but the music is more of the same and more of the same, often annoyingly repetitive. The beats are slow, stale, and really the album gets monotonous in places. Moby seems to forget he's not DJ'ing at a club on this album and just lets samples and string parts go on way too long or repeat too many times.

Where Dark Night of the Soul is creative and inventive, with genuine songs 'Wait for Me' forges little new territory for Moby. The "gospel/soul singing samples over synth strings" schtick is OK, but there needs to be some change-up, some more attempt at song structure. And the one song that features Moby singing is atrocious. He never had the greatest voice, but he made do. This song just falls flat.

Incidentally, this is not the first time Moby has been inspired by David Lynch. He used 'Laura's Theme' from the Twin Peaks soundtrack on his successful track 'Go'. So, it is rather difficult for me to believe he has suddenly found Lynch interesting. It's more likely he wishes he had hitched a ride on the 'Dark Night of the Soul' train. (With apologies to Don Cornelius)

I like Moby's past music too much to give this one star, but I have to say, this one is a disappointment.

This disc taught me a lot about video display and is definitely worth the $10-$15 dollars. After running this I was able to notice a lot more low-light detail than before on several BD movies. I ended up having to turn off almost all of my XBR6's advanced features to get things to look "correct" but after I did I was much happier with the picture!

Get this disc to ensure that your Blu-Ray picture is top-notch.

Well I ordered this to help me set my 60" Samsung and it was more of a history lesson about TV signals and picture quality. The very few things that did give you the option to adjust you TV settings had no corresponding help guides to let you know if you were even doing correctly. Huge waste of money. I am paying Geek Squad to have a professional calibration tech come fix my tv. If you are a serious Videophile and have spent more than 2K on your Sound and TV system get it done correctly by a profession no DVD will help you.

A little to much information on the history of television, but the software does a good job on calibration and really improved my Samsung 58" Plasma picture. It took about 45 minutes but without the history lessons. If I need to calibrate a new TV it probably only takes about 15 minutes or less.

I would get the regular version vs. Blu-Ray. If you ever want to watch the DVD on another player or lap-top that's not Blu-Ray you're out of luck.

The HD Basics disc is a great product.
I used it to calibrate my Mitsubishi HC4900 LCD Projector.
Everythig looks great now.

Just be careful when you purchase this as it is REGION LOCKED (not falsely but truly!). A totally puzzling decision given the interntational market.

I saw this movie with my 4 year son and he loved it. However it begin to get scary for him when thomas got lost and he started to get sad for him and began to hide his face. I taught he was going to cry and I reassured him that Thomas is going to be ok. My sons love thomas but I dont no if i would buy this movie just yet.

I purchased this DVD for my 3 year old grandson who really likes trains. He loved it! He actually sat down & watched this movie & enjoyed singing along with the songs. He also requested to watch it over & over again. I found it to be a great investment.

I rented this movie and my son has not stopped singing the songs yet!! I am going to have to buy it now. We love it!!

I have not yet watched this DVD but my 2 1/2 year old grandson likes Thomas and I'm told he really enjoys this one. It keeps his attention and it's a great babysitter.

I would have to agree this is the best Thomas yet. The animation (if you can call it that) and special effects are the best yet, the story is very strong, and the lessons it teaches is vital and important in today's world. The narrator also does a wonderful job. Though longer than the usual Thomas my 3 year old did not get bored and amazed me by sitting through the whole thing in rapt concentration.

The interesting thing about watching Cesar Millan in action is that -- like any true master -- he makes his art/science of dog psychology look so simple and easy!! In fact, the basic rules he talks about really ARE simple, because he has distilled a lifetime's worth of experience into them.

The depth of his understanding is phenomenal. Since his approach is so "low-key", you get glimpses of his encyclopedic knowledge of breeds, behaviors, health issues, etc., only occasionally, but that makes them all the more brilliant.

I've learned so much from Cesar in the past few years, just from watching episodes of "The Dog Whisperer", and have UN-learned much of what I thought I knew about dogs. If you want to improve your relationship with your dog, this 3-volume set is well worth your time.

I have had many dogs. Finally with our newest addition I bought this dvd prior to her arrival. I would have made so many mistakes. Cesar is a godsend and this dvd made training so easy this time. A must have.

I knew of Cesar's reputation and desperately needed some idea of how to manage a new puppy in our house. Although I didn't gain any tips about house training like I was hoping for I did apply Cesar's training methods by walking my puppy every day. She is a much better behaved animal, and I'm losing weight and gaining more energy. She is less than 6 months old now and can sit, lie down, beg, speak, stay, and waits until I've gone through the door before coming in behind me. We're still struggling with the house breaking issues but overall that is much better too. You owe it to yourself as well as your best friend to buy these discs, actually sit down and watch them with your family and friends, and try it out.

I have 2 wonderful dogs who are well trained as far as sit, stay, down, and come. I have a 1 year old terrier mix who is very fear aggressive. By using Cesar's techniques I have been able to slowly teach her to allow people in the house and with 6 kids worth of friends, that amounts to a big change. I have also been able to slowly teach her not to growl or bark at people we pass on the street when walking. I have not seen these videos as yet since I just ordered them today but am looking forward to their arrival. Although treat training works for basic commands, I believe that in most situations where one is dealing with an animal with bad or annoying behaviors, treats are just a distraction and do not address the root of the behavior. I want to thank Cesar for sharing his insights into the reasons for the behaviors and the best way for the dog to get through their issues. People can rationalize issues, dogs cannot. Let's stop treating our dogs like children and remember they are animals. Thank you Cesar for teaching us to let our dogs be animals!

This is a really fascinating DVD series by Cesar Millan. I had heard a lot about Cesar, however had never read his books or seen his TV show.

When I started watching the DVD's ... I couldn't stop and watched them all in one sitting!... it was amazing seeing how influential being the pack leader has on a dogs behavior.

You will really enjoy watching and learning how to have a well behaved pet!

Wish you the best!

Robert Avila

For his tenth studio album, Ben Harper has traded his normal backing band the Innocent Criminals for a new one the Relentless7, but make no doubt, White Lies for Dark Times still sounds like a Ben Harper album. What the Relentless7 adds can be heard most on the rock songs that sound bluesier and closer to a garage band, the three musicians come from Texas, sound than the more polished Innocent Criminal sound.

That influence can be heard of the drums and fuzz first single Shimmer & Shine and the album opener Number with No Name which is a slide guitar from down on the bayou that takes a pit stop in Seattle. The spacey yet raw Up to You Now is reminiscent of something off of Mirror ball which famously saw Neil Young replaced for the album Pearl Jam with Crazy Horse. Lay There & Hate Me features an opening piano groove and bassline that borders on disco with some "ooh's" that could have been lifted from a Rolling Stones record yet mix together perfectly. While Why Must You Always Dress in Black sounds like something from the Jimi Hendrix catalogue. Keep it Together (So I Can Fall Apart) starts out that way until it breaks down into kind of jam band type groove.

The slower songs sound more like vintage Harper for better or worse. Skin Thin sounds like it has appeared already on his previous nine albums with just a changed lyric or two. On the flip side of the coin is Fly One Time that just builds and builds with a driving groove to the point where Ben's voice starts to crack. Hopefully the rejuvenation from the Relentless7 keeps Ben Harper putting out listenable music for another ten albums.

I remember years ago, back when Ben had released another of his signature wildly eclectic albums, "Diamonds on the Inside", Ben was asked in an interview if he ever considered making a full on rock album. At the time he seemed to be placating the interviewer and said he might do so as a new challenge compared to his natural eclectic leanings. I thought "whatever, that's not his style." Well, never say never. Ben has continued to evolve as an artist and now we have his first true ROCK record. Ben seems to be following the exact opposite of most artists progression who typically put out some straight up rock records when they're young, full of fire but not sophisticated songwriters and only later starting to explore and incorporate other genre's and styles of music. Ben, on the other hand, started out as a great songwriter mastering songs in all genre's of folk,rock,reggae,blues,funk,jazz,soul and gospel...whew! White Lies for Dark Times is a GREAT ROCK RECORD. It's got the raw looseness of young band just starting out, and in a way it is since he's now rocking with a new group, Relentess 7. I love the Innocent Criminals (his previous band), but the IC's are such seasoned and sophisticated players, I don't think they could have quite pulled off an album this raw and fresh. I look forward to hearing more of Ben and the IC's, but for now, this is hitting the spot for great summer rock tunes you can blast with the windows down!! Although, its a focused rock record there's still a healthy mix of funk, folk and soul, introspection and fist pumping anthems. Ben's slide guitar sounds stellar as always and although guitarist Jason Mozersky may pale in comparison, particularly on solos, he has an interesting less is more style that works well with Ben's riffs and solos. Most impressive is the rhythm section of drummer Jordan Richardson and Jesse Ingalls. They can really lay it down and "Boots Like These" has the kind of drumming and rhythm that recalls Zeppellin's "Four Sticks." IMO, Harper is continuing to ride a creative and commercial high since "Diamonds on the Inside." Harper has never made the same album twice and I can't wait to see what he does next either with Relentless 7, the Innocent Criminals or whoever. In the meantime, get this album and have a blast rockin' out to what Ben Harper's doing now, because it changes like the weather.

As usual, Ben Harper has created one of the best releases of the year. This offering is more rockin' than Ben's recent efforts and most of the songs are excellent. Even though the songs rock, there are simply some beautiful moments on this release, both sonically and lyrically. There are probably more lead, slide and weissenborn guitar solos here than on any of Ben's recent releases, and they are very well played. This CD has a few mellower tunes as well, typical of Ben's albums. His "back-up band" on this release, the "Relentless 7," had contributed to a few of the more upbeat songs on "Both Sides of the Gun," and they are in fine form here. But in the end, its Ben's album, and he really shines. I suspect for many fans, this will be a favorite, along with "Fight For Your Mind."

Finding a good old straightforward rock n roll album isn't as easy as you'd think these days. For better or worse, the genre of rock has proliferated in many directions. On this album, Ben Harper seems to have his finger on the pulse of big 70s blues-rock, and for me that is a refreshing thing. Sure Ben is tapping into sounds from decades ago and simply melding them together, which isn't really anything new. But he does so with heart and conviction, which isn't something you always find in some of the other areas of modern rock. Ben really is following his own muse here and it's a lot of fun to hear how it plays out.

White Lies For Dark Times marks change in direction for Ben Harper. Gone are The Innocent Criminals with Relentless7 in their place. The changes that result from this are great, but that is by no means a knock on The Innocent Criminals (see my review of Lifeline for further discussion). However, Ben Harper is a versatile musician, and he has shown that he can deliver in multiple styles with White Lies For Dark Times being the most recent evidence.

Relentless7 is a three piece backing for Harper, and their sound has a much more electric emphasis than Lifeline. White Lies For Dark Times also has a darker sound, and Harper is nowhere near as upbeat. Harper's lyrics carry a sense of desperation and angst as shown by "There's nowhere to run/I've got no one to tell/My face has become a mask/And I'm not wearing it well" from "Number With No Name" or "Arms that hold you close/Are the arms that hold you back/While your world is under attack" from "Up To You Now". Other examples come from "Lay There & Hate Me" "I feel like an underpaid concubine/Who's overstayed her welcome" and "The Word Suicide" "The word suicide is irresponsible/Still you offer me a gun". It is clear that Harper is expressing a harsher reality than he did on Lifeline.

The change in lyrics is balanced with the change in sound from Relentless7. Jason Mozersky is a very good guitarist, and his use of distortion, fuzz, and "wah wah" pedals gives the instrumentation an edge that matches the lyrics of the songs. Harper's vocal delivery is also different. The first time I listened to the CD, the third verse of "Up To You Now" stuck with me as all the instruments are silent while he earnestly delivers the following lines in his upper register "There's no sound louder than war/And we don't have tomorrow any more". This has a striking effect because the technique is not overused. "Shimmer & Shine" is one of the faster paced songs, and it almost has a punk feel to it (but it's not quite *that* fast). It's about as upbeat as this CD gets, but things come back down quickly on "Lay There & Hate Me". It is a deliberate mix of R&B and rock, and Harper seems to have a lot of venom in his delivery. One other song worth specific mention is "Keep It Together (So I Can Fall Apart)" is a nod to the sound of Jimmie Hendrix without being a cliche. Mozersky does a great job of conjuring up the image without coming off as a wannabe - no easy feat! Jesse Ingalls on bass and Jordan Richardson on drums provide a steady foundation for all of the songs.

Overall, White Lies For Dark Times is a bold change in direction for Ben Harper, but it would be hard to imagine a better result. The most important thing that it shares with Lifeline is that there is not a bad song on the entire CD. If you are hoping for the logical successor to Lifeline, you are likely to be disappointed. However, I would encourage all Ben Harper fans to give this a try because it is great stuff!

Download this: Shimmer & Shine

High enthusiasm and great statistics helping the viewer realize the power and majesty of "Our God" . Would be a great kick off for a teen or adult retreat

I didn't think Louie's Indescribile talk could be better, but this one is! You realize how God has laid out his plan in all of creation from the starry sky to our cell structure! A Must See!

Watching this made me cry when I started to grasp how infinite God is. We showed it for a whole church and we were all amazed and astounded. It brings you so close to God as you see how BIG He is and how much He loves us. All this through what He made.

What an awesome presentation! It starts off scientific, just to let you know how much God loves us (the world). Then he goes to the miracle of us, and yes, you are a miracle! I carry a golf ball around now just to remind me of this moment.

anyone who is interested in science vs the Bible needs to see this video. clear presentation, accurately supported information and exciting video make this a must see.How Great Is Our God (DVD+CD)

I was very disappointed after the rave reviews.
Our baby was not interested at all in this DVD. She prefers NOGIN.
Also the DVD was very short - a mere 20 mins and somehow tedious for the child.
Sincerely
jm in SF CA

This video focuses on colors. As it goes through each color, it shows beautiful, vivid images that represent each color. These images captivated the attention of my 1.5-year-old.

The choice of language tracks is a very nice feature. We watched it in Spanish and it plays in full, immersion Spanish.

This DVD is a good choice looking for something that is entertaining and educational for their child, offering the extra bonus of foreign language immersion.

Baby Einstein DVD "Discovering Shapes" was such a hit with my grandchildren I purchased the Baby Einstein "Baby Van Gogh" In this DVD Vincent Van Goat, a blue artist goat puppet paints a Van Gogh masterpiece to represent each color. The children love the puppets, the music and the pace of the story as it presented. The length of the film is also timed just perfect for little ones and it keeps their attention during the whole film. I highly recommend this series, Baby Einstein to all parents and grandparents!

My son is absolutely in love with this dvd. He will watch it on repeat play for hours. I even got interested in it. Lots of really cool pictures and music and colors. I can put this dvd on the tv and his eyes will be glued to the tv until i turn it off. I am very very happy with this purchase.

There have been a lot of reviews written about all of the video products designed for infants to pre-school age children; some good and some bad. Since so many have been posted I was going to forgo writing a review of the product, even though I normally do write up something for all the products I purchases online, because I know that product reviews help me when deciding to purchase a product online.

However, after reading a review that rated these products low based on statistical and case studies done by the AAP (American Academy of Pediatrics) or the APA (American Physiological Association) I changed my mind and decided to pen my two cents.

Before I get into why I feel information like that should not be so carelessly thrown around, I would fist like to say that parents should use their own common sense and judgment when purchasing and using any products for their children. In most cases this will produce the best results for your child, and I would trust the judgment, and the experience, of parents that have successfully raised several children over that of person who holds a Doctorate or PhD; especially considering, from my own experience, that the time required to get those heavy weight educations is time not spent raising children.

I could explain the common fallacies behind the validity of data collected from statistical surveys of relatively small numbers, or putting to much weight to premises based solely on authority, but most educated people today understand these basic critical thinking skills, even though they may not know the jargon. Instead I will take a couple of the "statistical studies" that were quoted, not cited though, and apply them to my own observation of my son while watching these videos.

The first statistical example I saw posted, without proper citation and reference needed to check it, was this: that the brainwave activity of children was recorded to be lower while watching TV then it is when sleeping. I will skip over the fact that the age of the children were not noted, nor was the specific television content they were watching. I will also refrain from a monologue concerning higher than usual brainwave activity being normal during certain phases of the sleep cycle. What I do know is that when my son watches one of these videos his level of excitement is amazing. He tries to dance, play with his toys, yells, sings, and basically is having a great time. Unfortunately, I do not own my own EEG, nor would it be possible to attach all the electrodes to the skull without strapping him down, so I can not positively refute that claim; however, I think I made my point.

The second AAP study I saw referred to, again not referenced, stated that a child has a 10% chance of developing ADD for every hour they watch television. This person also stated that five hours of television a day would result in a 50% chance of developing ADD. I will skip over the fact that ADD is one of the highest misdiagnosed psychological disorders in children, but I can imagine if I asked our pediatrician to start our son on Riddlin because we plan on allowing him to watch Baby E. for four hours a day what he would say. Besides thinking we were nuts he might suggest we seek psychological treatment. These studies show correlation in data and the cause and effect involved is the problems being researched, however; common sense tells us that allowing our child to watch television for 10 hours in a single day will not automatically give them ADD or any other psychosis. These studies are for research purposes to help physicians understand certain disorders; they are not intended to be used as strict parenting guidelines. If you are concerned about how much television is too much, then ask your child's healthcare provider. Although, I think most parents know what is too much, and allowing these videos to keep them entertained for a few hours a day is most likely more beneficial overall; parents have to be able to get a break now and then and if they don't then stress can become a problem for the whole family.

I personally think these videos, all of the ones developed for this age group, are both educational and a great help to parents, but what I think does not matter. Parents and their children will decide if they are right for themselves, and setting a child down to watch these videos for a few hours a day does not make anyone a bad parent. They will be a great asset for some families, and for others they may not have a place. If unsure about them, buy one and try it; if it works out then great, and if it does not then don't purchase more.

The main point I wanted to make, trust your own judgment and don't over analyze what is right for your child. Most importantly, do not feel guilty about using these videos when unknown strangers start waving psychological statistics at you and claiming bad parenting techniques; most likely that person does not have children. ;-)