Where in the world…

I used to love to watch Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego on PBS. The geography information on this long-running kids’ game show was great, but the big attraction for me was the matchless a capella singing by Rockapella. I attended many of their concerts over the years, and so have my children (they even attended 2 concerts before they were born). The show’s theme song, written by Sean Altman (formerly Rockapella’s lead singer) and David Yazbek, is deservedly well known.

I never dreamed that I might actually someday be Carmen Sandiego, even if only for a few minutes. Shortly before Christmas, producer Paul Jury called me on his way from Los Angeles to visit his family for the holidays, and asked me to lend my voice to a short animation for Panda Smash Productions. You can see the result at their website.

Rockapella has evolved considerably since those days. Scott Leonard and Jeff Thacher (Jeff joined the group when Carmen was in its last year) are the only singers from the Carmen days who are still with the group. Altman still performs in New York and elsewhere, as does Elliott Kerman. Barry Carl continues to sing and perform solo and also does a lot of voice-over. It has been years since I attended one of their concerts, and my Rockapella baseball shirt autographed by Barry, Sean, Scott, Elliott and Jeff is full of holes, but I still love the guys and still listen to their music (their Rockin’ Morning for Folgers Coffee is a great way to wake the family on school days). It was such fun to do this project with Panda Smash and to be associated, even if peripherally and unbeknownst to Rockapella, with this great group of songsters. Thanks Paul!

p.s. apologies to my public for Carmen's questionable language. Glad it got bleeped out :)

The MCMlets in their Rockapella heyday
(picture signed by all the guys! Rumor has it that Barry Carl
kept a copy of this picture in his dressing room on the Carmen set for years.)