Five Best Anika Moa Songs for Children

With the benefit for hindsight, New Zealand singer-songwriter Anika Moa was a curious choice to launch into the US market. Once a pretty young starlet, she’s now a tattooed, coarse-mouthed entertainer, who has branched into TV presenting and children’s music. Back at the turn of the 21st century, the tabloid coverage of her lesbian love life may have also dented her chances at mainstream success, but now it’s part of her unvarnished appeal.

Moa moved into making children’s music after having her own children; “I had to listen to the Wiggles for a year. Hot potato, hot potato. Hot potato, hot potato. I wanted to stab someone in the head.” While children’s music is often heavily synthetic and perky, Moa’s albums are simply presented, revolving around acoustic guitar and Moa’s larger than life personality. Moa’s part Maori, and her songs often feature Te Reo (the Maori language), so I’m not sure how well they translate into other cultures, but in New Zealand Moa is probably as well known for her childrens’ music as for her adult albums.

After another summer holiday, replete with Anika Moa car playlists, here are five of my favourite songs from her children’s albums:

Taniwha, Taniwha

‘Taniwha, Taniwha’ is a great encapsulation of Moa’s methods. It’s rooted in New Zealand culture – the Taniwha is a mythical Maori monster, while it’s also full of New Zealand slang. It’s driven by Moa’s personality, as her Taniwha is alternately friendly and hungry.

My Nana’s Farm

Ever get sick of seeing the same old cows, sheep, and pigs on farms? At least they won’t eat you….

Little Bird

I’ve generally opted for the memorable, up-tempo songs, but a strength of Moa’s childrens albums is how they balance upbeat children’s songs with more subdued songs that also appeal to adults. The words are simple, but this low key and pretty song would fit on her adult albums, and it’s a respite from sensory overload for grown ups.

Tahi, Rua, Toru, Wha

Speeding up each verse, until the song becomes impossibly fast, is a great gimmick for a children’s album. In case you don’t recognise the words in the title, they’re Maori for the numbers one to four.

The Nigh Nighs Song

An upbeat lullaby is an oxymoron, but Moa makes it work. The song’s most memorable for her astonishing range of baby noises – it’s extra fun to sing along to all the “wahs” and “wiwiwis”.

Do you wish that Moa would hurry up and release a third volume of children’s songs? Is there some other children’s music that you recommend?

Aphoristical
Aphoristical

Graham Fyfe is probably the only music blogger to appreciate Neil Diamond and Ariana Grande. Aphoristic Album Reviews features reviews and blog posts across a growing spectrum of popular music.

6 Comments

      • No worries, I am all about the niche blog posts, and I love fun and thoughtful kids music. Goodness knows I’ve heard enough kids music over the past 9 years to be well-acquainted with what’s awesome and what’s not. I will always give a thumbs-up for the awesome!

  1. I would have exposed my gang to this for sure. There is wealth of good kids music out there. We were lucky that we found more than enough to balance the Smurfs etc. Bottom line is the kids liked it. They still talk about it to day. You never seen a more adorning audience until you take your kids to ‘Mr Dress up’. Beatlemania like.

Leave a Reply

More from Aphoristic Album Reviews

Aphoristic Album Reviews is almost entirely written by one person.

Default image
Aphoristical View Profile
Graham Fyfe is probably the only music blogger to appreciate Neil Diamond and Ariana Grande. Aphoristic Album Reviews features reviews and blog posts across a growing spectrum of popular music.

Review Pages

Read about the discographies of musical acts from the 1960s to the present day. Browse this site's review archives or enjoy these random selections:

The Modern Lovers Jonathan Richman
1970s Miscellany

This page collects odds and ends from the 1970s: AC/DC | Aerosmith | Bread | The Carpenters | Eric Clapton | The Doobie Brothers | Roy Harper | Janis Joplin | John Lennon | The Modern Lovers | John […]
Ray LaMontagne Album Reviews

Ray LaMontagne worked in a shoe factory in Maine. One morning he was woken by his alarm at 4 am […]
Christian Contemporary Music

I don’t listen to much Christian music – most modern worship sounds like Joshua Tree-era U2 to me, while I […]
tricot Album Reviews

Math-rock band tricot formed in Kyoto in 2010, releasing their debut album in 2013. Tricot spent time as an all-female […]
Big Star Radio City
Big Star Album Reviews

Formed around former Box Tops lead singer Alex Chilton and Chris Bell, Big Star existed for a brief period of […]
New Order Album Reviews

Joy Division‘s lead vocalist Ian Curtis took his own life on the eve of the band’s first US tour. The […]

Blog Posts

I add new blog posts to this website every week. Browse the archives or enjoy these random selections:

Miranda Lambert Albums: Ranked from Worst to Best

Texan-born Miranda Lambert occupies her own zone somewhere between the current mainstream country and the more rootsy sounds of Americana. […]
10 Biggest Snubs from the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

If I were in charge, The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame would have capped membership years ago. There’d be […]
10 Best Yellow Magic Orchestra Songs

Harry Hosono recruited keyboardist Ryuichi Sakamoto and drummer Yukihiro Takahashi to record a quickie cover of the 1950s exotica tune […]
Fairport Convention Unhalfbricking
10 Best Fairport Convention Songs

Bassist Ashley Hutchings and rhythm guitarist Simon Nicol formed Fairport Convention in 1967. They named the band after Nicol’s father’s medical practice, […]
Jason Isbell Albums: Ranked from Worst to Best

If you’re an old man, shouting at the clouds about how modern music isn’t the same as it was in […]
Jessie Ware: Albums Ranked from Worst to Best

The UK’s most likeable pop star, Jessie Ware is charming whereas other mainstream acts leave me cold. She has a […]
%d