Jack's Big Music Show is a children's television program shown on the Noggin television network. The show premiered on March 12, 2005.
The main characters are Jack, his best friend Mary, and his drum-playing dog Mel, all of whom are puppets. The show takes place in Jack's backyard clubhouse, and centers on the characters' love for music. Each episode runs without commercials for a duration of approximately 22 minutes. The characters often play music, and are sometimes accompanied by other puppets or human musicians. Each episode also features two music videos by children's musical artists.
According to Noggin's website:
- The mission of Jack’s Big Music Show is to expose and foster an appreciation of music. Music and musical instruments help children expand their universe and develop memory, language, literacy and reasoning skills as well as the cognitive, social and motor skills that are needed to excel in school. [1]
The show is produced by Spiffy Pictures -David Rudman, Todd Hannert, and Adam Rudman. David Rudman also stars as Jack. Rudman is a veteran of the long-running public TV children's show Sesame Street, playing such popular Muppets as Baby Bear, Cookie Monster and half of the Two-Headed Monster. Mary's Alice Dinnean and Mel's John Kennedy are also Sesame Street alums.
Guest musicians
Most episodes feature a music video by popular children's musician Laurie Berkner. The music videos are produced by SnapFilms in New York. Musician Cathy Richardson joins the characters in the clubhouse in multiple episodes, and also provides the voice of Jack's mother, who speaks off-camera with Jack at the beginning and end of every episode. In one episode, Chicago blues legend and guitarist Buddy Guy appears as the "King of Swing", Jack's favorite musician.
Additional musicians appearing on the show, either in videos or in appearances with the puppets, include:
- Yolanda Adams
- Guy Davis
- Dirty Sock Funtime Band
- Rebecca Frezza
- Anne Harris - appears as "Prudence", the music genie
- Hot Peas 'N Butter
- Elizabeth Mitchell & Lisa Loeb
- Jamia Simone Nash
- Jerry Lawson and the Talk of the Town
- Milkshake
- Music for Aardvarks & Other Mammals
- Cathy Richardson
- Sweet Honey in the Rock
Influences
The names Jack, Mary, Mel, and the "Schwartzman Quartet" are references to characters on The Jack Benny Show (Jack Benny, Mary Livingstone, Mel Blanc, and the Sportsmen Quartet). In an interview on www.nickjr.com [2], Rudman says that The Jack Benny Show was an influence on Jack's Big Music Show (along with The Little Rascals). Hannert says that the music is influenced by Chuck Berry and the whole history of Rock and Roll.