Frequently Asked Questions
THE "CRAZY CAMPSONGS™" FAQ
WHAT IS "CRAZY CAMPSONGS™"?
"Crazy Campsongs™" is not just another songbook--it's a revolution--a whole new way of singing and performing songs. "Crazy Campsongs™" uses Tuneswapping™, our patent-pending method by which anybody can pick up a book of original new songs and perform them--even if they have no musical training whatsoever.
WHY DID YOU WRITE THIS BOOK?
These days, a lot of kids are turned off to singing, because--compared to playing videogames and surfing the Internet--singing is b-o-r-i-n-g. Meanwhile, a lot of the music that's spoonfed to kids in the schools these days is old, decidedly unhip and has nothing to do with society today. It's hard for kids today to relate to whaling songs or "I've Been Working on the Railroad." Who even works on the railroad anymore? "Crazy Campsongs™" tackles the tough issues facing today's youth, such as weirdos in the park, UFO invaders, pizza with anchovies, strange little brothers and disgusting school cafeteria food! By combining hip, new songs that kids (of all ages) love, and combining it with our Tuneswapping™ method, we've created the first book of original songs ever published than anybody can perform--without having to read music.
HOW DOES TUNESWAPPING™ WORK?
After years of research and analysis, we discovered a common rhythmic scansion used in about 35% of the music that been written over the past 400 years. Based on this common-mode scansion, we developed the (patent-pending) Universal Song Performance Method, which we refer to as Tuneswapping™. Simply superimpose any one of thousands of well-known melodies--(ranging from simple nursery rhymes to elaborate classical works) onto the new lyrics we've written. Essentially we've developed a lyrical system that works with songs you already know. If you know the tunes to songs such as "Mary had a Little Lamb," "Happy Birthday," "Deck the Halls," the "Jeopardy" show theme, "The Hokey Pokey," "Love Me Tender," "Purple Haze" and a zillion more songs, you can sing the "Crazy Campsongs™" lyrics.
DOES ANY SONG OR TUNE WORK?
No, because not all music is the same. For example, some songs, like "Old Macdonald had a Farm" have too many odd repeating sections--"with a quack quack here, and a quack quack there"--to work. With other songs, the stanzas may be too long or short, and in other cases, like The Beatle's "Yellow Submarine," the verses work fine, but the chorus doesn't exactly fit. So "Crazy Campsongs™" includes a list of over 100 common, familiar melodies to start with you off. There is an expanded list of songs on this website to choose from. With 42 songs in the book and thousands of existing melodies to pick from, "Crazy Campsongs™" never gets stale--it's a different book of music every time you pick it up!
AREN'T THESE SONGS JUST FOR SUMMER?
No! "Crazy Campsongs™" has all kinds of songs--schools songs, summer songs, holiday songs and more--there's something you can sing about all year long.
HOW OLD DO YOU HAVE TO BE TO ENJOY "CRAZY CAMPSONGS™"?
From our market research, we've found that without adult supervision, a smart 8-year-old can simply pick up the book, select a melody from the list of 100 suggested tunes in the book, and start singing. Younger kids can also read and perform the songs with assistance from older people, but the biggest benefit is had by older kids and adults who will delight in spending hours singing new lyric/melody combinations. Also, we feel that too many children's books are written down to kids, with overly-simplistic lyrics that are fine for pre-schoolers, but don't appeal to pre-teens, teens and adults. Some of the songs in "Crazy Campsongs™" include words or phrases such as "taxidermy," "rubberneckers," culinary," "tambourine," "school budgets" and "marmosets," and sometimes, these words are key to understanding the punch-line of a humorous song. In these cases, we challenge the readers to expand their vocabulary, which kids are eager to do--if presented properly.
THE ILLUSTRATIONS HAVE A FAMILIAR LOOK. WHO'S JACK DAVIS, ANYWAY?
One of America's most beloved and best-known illustrators, Jack Davis been doing professional illustration for 60 years, with (literally) thousands of credits, from his 50 years of work in "Mad" magazine, to the classic 50's horror comics (such as "Tales from the Crypt"), and zillions of advertising assignments, including record albums, movie posters, and covers for major magazines, like "TV Guide," "Time" and "Life." "Crazy Campsongs™" somehow turned out be his first children's book, but even at age 78, he's still churning out great stuff. In fact, in 2001, he edged out “Simpsons” creator Matt Groening for the coveted Reuben Award bestowed by the National Cartoonists Society.
I NEED A BUNCH OF COPIES FOR MY SCHOOL OR ORGANIZATION. WHAT SHOULD I DO?
Single copy sales are handled through independent booksellers and on the Internet, through sources such as www.amazon.com. If your local book, gift or toy store doesn't carry "Crazy Campsongs," have them contact us! For dealer inquiries bulk or group sales (including fundraisers for schools or civic organizations) contact us at: Jenpet Books, Box 2817, Alameda, CA 94501, or e-mail us at info@crazycampsongs.com.
WHAT IS "CRAZY CAMPSONGS™"?
"Crazy Campsongs™" is not just another songbook--it's a revolution--a whole new way of singing and performing songs. "Crazy Campsongs™" uses Tuneswapping™, our patent-pending method by which anybody can pick up a book of original new songs and perform them--even if they have no musical training whatsoever.
WHY DID YOU WRITE THIS BOOK?
These days, a lot of kids are turned off to singing, because--compared to playing videogames and surfing the Internet--singing is b-o-r-i-n-g. Meanwhile, a lot of the music that's spoonfed to kids in the schools these days is old, decidedly unhip and has nothing to do with society today. It's hard for kids today to relate to whaling songs or "I've Been Working on the Railroad." Who even works on the railroad anymore? "Crazy Campsongs™" tackles the tough issues facing today's youth, such as weirdos in the park, UFO invaders, pizza with anchovies, strange little brothers and disgusting school cafeteria food! By combining hip, new songs that kids (of all ages) love, and combining it with our Tuneswapping™ method, we've created the first book of original songs ever published than anybody can perform--without having to read music.
HOW DOES TUNESWAPPING™ WORK?
After years of research and analysis, we discovered a common rhythmic scansion used in about 35% of the music that been written over the past 400 years. Based on this common-mode scansion, we developed the (patent-pending) Universal Song Performance Method, which we refer to as Tuneswapping™. Simply superimpose any one of thousands of well-known melodies--(ranging from simple nursery rhymes to elaborate classical works) onto the new lyrics we've written. Essentially we've developed a lyrical system that works with songs you already know. If you know the tunes to songs such as "Mary had a Little Lamb," "Happy Birthday," "Deck the Halls," the "Jeopardy" show theme, "The Hokey Pokey," "Love Me Tender," "Purple Haze" and a zillion more songs, you can sing the "Crazy Campsongs™" lyrics.
DOES ANY SONG OR TUNE WORK?
No, because not all music is the same. For example, some songs, like "Old Macdonald had a Farm" have too many odd repeating sections--"with a quack quack here, and a quack quack there"--to work. With other songs, the stanzas may be too long or short, and in other cases, like The Beatle's "Yellow Submarine," the verses work fine, but the chorus doesn't exactly fit. So "Crazy Campsongs™" includes a list of over 100 common, familiar melodies to start with you off. There is an expanded list of songs on this website to choose from. With 42 songs in the book and thousands of existing melodies to pick from, "Crazy Campsongs™" never gets stale--it's a different book of music every time you pick it up!
AREN'T THESE SONGS JUST FOR SUMMER?
No! "Crazy Campsongs™" has all kinds of songs--schools songs, summer songs, holiday songs and more--there's something you can sing about all year long.
HOW OLD DO YOU HAVE TO BE TO ENJOY "CRAZY CAMPSONGS™"?
From our market research, we've found that without adult supervision, a smart 8-year-old can simply pick up the book, select a melody from the list of 100 suggested tunes in the book, and start singing. Younger kids can also read and perform the songs with assistance from older people, but the biggest benefit is had by older kids and adults who will delight in spending hours singing new lyric/melody combinations. Also, we feel that too many children's books are written down to kids, with overly-simplistic lyrics that are fine for pre-schoolers, but don't appeal to pre-teens, teens and adults. Some of the songs in "Crazy Campsongs™" include words or phrases such as "taxidermy," "rubberneckers," culinary," "tambourine," "school budgets" and "marmosets," and sometimes, these words are key to understanding the punch-line of a humorous song. In these cases, we challenge the readers to expand their vocabulary, which kids are eager to do--if presented properly.
THE ILLUSTRATIONS HAVE A FAMILIAR LOOK. WHO'S JACK DAVIS, ANYWAY?
One of America's most beloved and best-known illustrators, Jack Davis been doing professional illustration for 60 years, with (literally) thousands of credits, from his 50 years of work in "Mad" magazine, to the classic 50's horror comics (such as "Tales from the Crypt"), and zillions of advertising assignments, including record albums, movie posters, and covers for major magazines, like "TV Guide," "Time" and "Life." "Crazy Campsongs™" somehow turned out be his first children's book, but even at age 78, he's still churning out great stuff. In fact, in 2001, he edged out “Simpsons” creator Matt Groening for the coveted Reuben Award bestowed by the National Cartoonists Society.
I NEED A BUNCH OF COPIES FOR MY SCHOOL OR ORGANIZATION. WHAT SHOULD I DO?
Single copy sales are handled through independent booksellers and on the Internet, through sources such as www.amazon.com. If your local book, gift or toy store doesn't carry "Crazy Campsongs," have them contact us! For dealer inquiries bulk or group sales (including fundraisers for schools or civic organizations) contact us at: Jenpet Books, Box 2817, Alameda, CA 94501, or e-mail us at info@crazycampsongs.com.
Crazy Campsongs™ is published by
