Radio Wayne

Album Review

Making a children’s album was a natural choice for Wayne Brady, whose knack for mimicry, thinking on his feet (literally), and strong, expressive voice made him a favorite on Whose Line Is It Anyway? And playing to the strengths of this man of a dozen personas, there's a radio concept here that allows him to play master of ceremonies, slipping in vocal asides and introductions to most of the songs. Despite boasting only average production and tame songwriting, Radio Wayne has a few highlights. The material includes an inspiring or cautionary song about nearly every subject common to children’s music (“Say Please,” “Wash Your Hands,” “You Are What You Eat”). Brady shines on a few nonsense songs — “The High-Low,” “The Music Song” — and channels a few musical greats (James Brown for "Say Please," P-Funk on "Reading Can Be Fun"), while the productions occasionally rise to meet his performance energy. One of the other highlights, both for performance and production, is an inspired cover of “Talk to the Animals” (originally from Dr. Doolittle), with most of the arrangements coming from animal noises.