Kids World by Evan Belize

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In Evan's words:

Well, I'd like to say this: Sometimes I heard my grandparents say, "Things don't come easy." These songs are based upon my true childhood story, my life as a kid. My kid life wasn't always easy, but at times it was wonderful. Every one of these songs has a story to it. My own story. And I enjoy every minute of it. These songs make the little kid inside of me jump with joy. He loves them! I know my grandmother would love this CD. My neighbor loves it. My nephews and friends love it -- every song on it. My mother says my sisters and my sisters' babies are singing along with it back where I was born, in Belize. I'm so glad to hear that. That was my dream, to make kids happy everywhere, even after they are sad, sad, sad.

1. CARIBBEAN KID -- I wouldn't mind living it over again. It wasn't that bad, when I think about it now. The little bad that did happen brought out the best in me. It keeps me going strong. I like to brag though, in my lyrics ( especially when, along the way I meet some people who tell me they wish they were raised up in the Caribbean.) Thinking back on my childhood keeps reminding me to go back home, and I do now and then, and I can't wait to take my new son. But I must say, the Caribbean has changed. I like the old time days, my days. Those are the days I am singing about. Sit back and you will feel the good old days in this song.

2. GRANDMA-- What can I say about this song? There is nothing else I can say. What you hear, that's it. I turned to my own experience with my grandmother, which was a happy experience for me. I hope you enjoy listening to it.

3. CAN'T WAIT TO SLEEP -- I did have a wonderful dream like this in my sleep as a kid, many, many times. But it's mixed with a waking dream. I express myself more in a story book I wrote once, KIDSWORLD DREAMWORLD . I may do a second printing sometime. But you can feel it in the song too. The song KIDSWORLD DREAMWORLD goes along with CAN'T WAIT TO SLEEP. You'll see when you hear it.

4.TAKE ME TO AFRICA-- Discovering as a kid, Through stories, that there was a place called Africa, Knowing there were elephants, tigers, lions, jaguars, giraffes and those Masai People, I had no doubt in my mind that I was one of them. And, as a kid, I simply wanted to go back home.

5. LET'S DANCE -- Well, when I do my solo performances I play my guitar, and I simply tie a ribbon with some beads around my ankles. That is my shaker. I stamp my feet, and my shaker sings. So this has become a theme song for my shaker.

6.GOING TO THE ZOO -- The first time I went to the zoo, it was a Mexican zoo and circus in one. My Grandpa took me. That's a childhood memory that stands out for me. I was so happy to see all the animals. What you hear in this song is a reflection of that feeling.

7. YOKA LOVE-- We had two dogs. The other one was Niju. Yoka passed away during the time I was writing. And, the inspiration hit me that I should write a song about him. Well it wasn't a surprise, because we knew he was getting old. I did a recording with his voice earlier; he used to have a way, how he growled at me. But, I couldn't find that recording. Then I realized Niju might not be around too long herself. She was very old too. And the thought came to me that I should record Niju and let her play the part for Yoka. So, yes, you're hearing the voice of Niju, even though the song is about Yoka. You know how I got Niju to bark? I told her we were going for a walk. She always barked if I told her that. Soon after, Niju died too. We miss them a lot. They were very good watch dogs. If you open the KIDSWORLD insert, you will find pictures of Yoka and Niju inside.

8. MOMMY HAVING A BABY-- The thought of writing this song came to me when my baby's mother said to me, one morning, "I'm pregnant."As I saw her grow more and more, the inspiration came to me to write about a little boy and his father. The role that I'm playing as the little boy in the song has to do with the time when I was growing up. The little boy asks his parents so many questions. In those days we weren't allowed to question our parents. And I still feel that way; I don't like too many questions. I didn't want to know if the baby would be a boy or a girl. I like surprise, if it is a good thing. Well, she thought the baby was a girl. But, when the time came, surprise, surprise-- it was a boy! And we named him Shambay.

9. BREADCRUMBS -- Don't we all like to feed ducks with our stale bread? Well, I enjoy that a lot, doing it here, in America. That's one oportunity I didn't have as a kid in the Caribbean. And if I like it now, I surely would have liked it then. And I've already introduced my new son to it. So lets just feed those ducks --keep them alive!

10. RAIN DE COME-- This is a very educational song. As a kid, it taught me what I should say, and what I shouldn't say. There were a couple of kids who got spanked because of this song. I also had to polish up these lyrics. Originally it was a rhyme taught by kids, from kids to kids, secretly, quietly in school. The lyrics were, "Rain de Come, Breeze de blow, Chicken Butty out de door'" (Because you could see the chicken's butty, you know, when the wind blew the feathers.) Well, we used to say that rhyme every time it started to rain. This was way back in the 60's. But now I turned it into a song, and added all those other animals. But each time I say it, it has to do with their "butty out de door."

11. KIDWORLD DREAMWORLD -- This song goes together with Can't Wait to Sleep. They're like a movie, part one and part II. Living the high life of a kid -- Fantasize!!!

12. TELLING LIES ON ME -- Wow! I don't even want to quite go there. I'll say it's a very true song. And I tried very hard to polish up the lyrics. Because I don't want to influence a kid to be bad. The song speaks for itself.

13. CHILDREN CHILDREN -- This is a lesson from my dear grandfather Elias, about bad company, and what you hear in the lyrics, is a little of what he taught me. It helped me; it is like a prayer. So I share it with you.

14. ONE LIFE TO LIVE -- That inspiration came to me when my older son's mother called me from California. She wanted me to talk to him because he was being rude. The song is made up of the words that I told him. Well, one night I called him, and I played the song for him. He said he loved it.

15. CHILDREN' FUTURE --As a kid I did a lot of swimming, and playing in the rain, in the Caribbean. That's certainly true. And that was all I needed to make me feel happy. Apart from food, water, etc. And I remember that up to this day. And that's how I still keep it. I mean, drug free. Unless I'm sick. I'm not trying to convert nobody. It's a personal song, for me, but I'd like to share it with you all. (By the way, yes, there is a Baron Bliss grave. And, it's the lighthouse in Belize City that directs the ships to come into the harbor.)

Baron Bliss was a rich Englishman. He was from my grandmother's mother's time, the time of old colonial rule. I heard a lot of good things about him. I was told that he donated the Belize Library for kids. I did one of my early performances there. The place was used to perform for the governor. He donated a lot of money for the city back then. At the end of his life he was in a wheelchair. Now, when I was a kid in the 60s I met another man who was named after him, Baron. And he was in that same wheelchair, that someone donated to him.

16. GIVE THANKS-- I wanted to write a very positive song. I think it's very important to be positive. I believe our kids are exposed to so many things at an early age. There are a lot of songs out there that are just out to make money. And music can be very influencial. I'm not trying to make the top ten with my lyrics. I have kids myself.

17. SPACE SHIP CONVERSATION -- It's my state of mind. I like science and technology, when it's for a good purpose. I can feel going into space is nothing new. It might not appear physically to me now. But it appears in my imagination. It's just one of those things. Let's just travel together.

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