I only recently became introduced to this wonderful children's group, The Wiggles, via musical shorts shown in between programs during Playhouse Disney on the Disney Channel. Previously they showed short little skits or stories (mini-movies) in between programs and all of a sudden it changed...

There on the screen were these four overly happy australians, fully grown men jumping around singing and having a grand old time. My son, stopped what he was doing (playing with megabloks) turned up and was mesmerized. Over the next week or so my husband and I watched as Alexander became entranced by these guys in so many ways. Meanwhile my husband and I didn't quite know what to make of it. Were these guys akin to Barney, or were they cool? I was a bit concerned because The Wiggles are on Lyrick Studio which is the same label as Barney.

So, I turned to my dear Australian friend, Matt via latenite AOL instant messenger. Ok, it was latenite for me but for him it was just getting to be dinner time. I asked Matt about The Wiggles and if it was true that they are #1 in Kids Entertainment in Australia and he confirmed that this was indeed correct. He then proceeded to make some serious fun of me for listening to these guys (but thats another story he's a bachelor so....)

Time to bring The Wiggles to our home Full Time
Matt offered to get me some Wiggles merchandise but due to technical differences between the US and Down Under I had to pass. Instead, I purchased 2 video tapes from Amazon.com because I had a credit with them, I chose Wiggle Time and Yummy, Yummy because they featured some of the songs I recognized right off the bat from Playhouse Disney. Of the two, Wiggle Time is our favorite.

The Wiggles: Wiggle Time Track Listing
1. Get Ready to Wiggle
2. Here Comes a Bear
3. Captain Feathersword
4. Uncle Noah's Ark
5. Ponies
6. Dorothy the Dinosaur
7. Whenever I Hear This Music
8. Henry the Octopus
9. Rock-A-Bye Your Bear
10. I Love it When it Rains
11. Quack Quack
12. Marching Along
13. Dorothy's Birthday Party
14. Wave to Wags the Dog
15. Five Little Ducks
16. Dorothy - Would you Like to Dance?
17. Medley

The Wiggles: Wiggle Time Cast of Characters

Wiggle Time features The Wiggles and some friends. The Wiggles are Greg, Jeff, Murray, and Anthony. Yep, The Wiggles are a Boy Band... or perhaps better tagged A Man Band they are :

The Wiggles

Greg :He's the lead vocalist and wears a bright yellow long sleeved T-shirt, or skivvy as they call it. Greg is tall, with dark brown hair and is the magician of the group.
Anthony: is a smiley young man with dirty blond hair he is always in a bright blue skivvy. In addition to vocals, he also plays the drums or the guitar on occasion. If a song is about food, you'll bet that Anthony is involved.
Murray: in a red skivvy, is tall slender with lighter brown hair. He plays the guitar and does vocals.
Jeff: wears the purple skivvy and is a slender Asian gentleman who makes some crazy faces. He sings along with the rest of the Wiggles and also plays the keyboard.

Friends of the Wiggles join The Wiggles crew in a couple of skits and songs on Wiggle Time

Captain Feathersword: a friendly happy pirate that tickles everyone with his feather (instead of a sword).
Dorothy The Dinosaur: a giant green dinosaur who's favorite bite to eat is roses.
Henry The Octopus: a giant purple octopus who wears red plaid pants and black patent leather shoes on all 8 of his tentacles
Wags The Dog: a larger than life brown furry puppy with a happy tail and a healthy appetite.
Other Friends: Young children, boys and girls of all ages including dancers.

Wiggle Time
This VHS tape contains 16 songs and 40 minutes of entertainment not including the previews and advertisements after the tape which was as equally entertaining and add a good 10 minutes of viewing and music pleasure. According to the label it is marketed for ages 1 through 8, but I think its probably more enjoyed by the younger part of that age grouping.

Wiggle Time is high energy, from the intro piece of challenging kids to Get Ready to Wiggle to the finale which is a Medley of Wiggles tunes this "movie" is guaranteed to entertain young children. After all, these are 4 grown men, with fun australian accents making crazy faces, singing silly songs, and dancing and "wiggling" about. They are all in bright bright colors and their stage is baby blue with clouds which gives them the appearance of floating through the air.

In between each of the songs is small skit. One favorite features Captain Feathersword who is tickling all The Wiggles with his bright purple feather plume (sword). Its so silly, that it even makes ME giggle.

Favorite Songs
Here Comes a Bear is one of the songs we first heard on the Disney Channel but is also on Wiggle Time. The song is about a bear, snake, wombat and a kangaroo who come visiting. There are motions that go along with each of the different animals such as crawling, paws up in the air, jumping, stomping, slithering, etc. The guys all do the motions a bit differently and its really funny to watch. Especially-- Anthony when he's jumping like a kangaroo. Its hard to believe these are grown men and they look like they are having way too much fun.

Dorothy the Dinosaur was one that I was a bit worried about when I saw the name of the song and the picture of Dorothy. Because The Wiggles are on Lyrick which is also where Barney is, I thought it was going to be all downhill from here. As it turned out, Dorothy is nothing like Barney at all and is quite charming. Dorothy likes to dine on ROSES and when she eats them it makes a fun sound Rump-ump-a-chump..Rump-ump-a-chump. The song is quite repetitive and is all about the silly sound of chomping up some roses for lunch.

Ponies is a quick little tune sung by The Wiggles with the addition of some dancers (young girls) from the Sydney school of dance. Its about swishing tails and galloping hooves as they go home to Farmer Brown.

Each of these songs and the other tracks are only about a minute or two in length so they will hold the attention of a young audience. The enthusiasm of The Wiggles, their friends and the small children featured on the tape will have your child up smiling and wiggling in no time at all.

Overall
If you are looking for something different, fun, and musical for your child (ages 1-8) check out The Wiggles, and Wiggle Time. "Wiggle Time" has become a daily occurence in our home and might just become one in yours as well. In fact, my son and I like this VHS tape so much that I just purchased a copy of it and sent it to my sister, for her children to enjoy as well. Warning, these songs get in your head. You'll know you are hooked when you are humming them in the grocery store for all to hear. I swear that these guys are addictive!

____________________________________________________
My Wiggles Reviews

Wiggle Time
Yummy Yummy
Wake Up Jeff
Dance Party
Wiggly, Wiggly Christmas
Yule Be Wiggling
Wiggly, Wiggly World
Toot Toot!
Wiggly Play Time
Hoop Dee Doo Its a Wiggly Party!
Wiggly Safari or Wiggly Safari on CD
The Wiggles Magical Adventure - A Wiggly Movie
Wiggle Bay

For "Everything you need to know about The Wiggles" Read: The Wiggles 101



Visit The Wiggles website:
http://www.thewiggles.com



Recommended:
Yes

Viewing Format: VHS
Video Occasion: Better than Watching TV
Suitability For Children: Suitable for Children up to Age 4