Sing Fido Sing!
Sing Fido Sing!
Sing Fido Sing!
Sing Fido Sing!
Sing Fido Sing!
From Dolly Parton’s “Cracker Jack” and Carrie Underwood’s “The More Boys I Meet, the More I Love My Dog” to Patti Page’s “How Much Is That Doggie in the Window?”, our four-legged friends have given some of the musical greats inspiration to create music we have loved through the decades. And New Orleanians, especially Saints fans, are all too familiar with dog-themed songs having cheered loudly at numerous games to Baha Men’s “Who Let the Dogs Out.”
Now we can add another New Orleans’ musician to the ranking of artists who have created songs about Man’s Best Friend. Craig Cortello, or the “Canine Crooner” as he is affectionately known, is releasing a CD entitled Dog Tales on Oct. 1, 2022. There are twelve original tracks on the album that reflect his love for dogs and the impact they have on the lives of families and owners. Cortello describes the album as being inspired by Randy Newman’s You’ve Got a Friend in Me,” Vince Guaraldi’s Peanuts cartoons soundtrack recordings, and the famous Schoolhouse Rock animated musical vignettes. The songs may appeal to children, but this is not a kids’ album. They were composed with the aim of engaging listeners of all ages.
Before Dog Tales came about, Cortello composed the original song “New Orleans Is the One I Love,” which Romy Kaye sang for the studio version. This lovely number was also the title song of the musical cabaret of the same name, featuring Amy Alvarez on vocals, Patrick Mendelson as director, and Jim Walpole as music director. The song was also featured in the musical theater production of “Let’s Get Away from It All,” sung by Amy Alvarez, directed by Ricky Graham, and with music direction by Jefferson Turner.
Dog Tales started taking form in 2018, while Craig was relaxing on his porch with his rescue Sheltie Tara, who was 12 at the time. He thought about how she was getting up in age and composed “The Rainbow Bridge Will Take You Home.” He recorded this song and, with the help of his son, filmed a video which received a substantial amount of hits. In December 2020, Tara crossed the rainbow bridge and he adopted Enzo, a Border Collie Mix, following the new year. He then wrote the first new song of the album, “Angels with Four Paws and a Tail,” to describe all the emotions a person has when they get a new dog. Over the next six weeks, inspiration came and he wrote the album.
A sampling of the Dog Tales songs debuted at the Ozone Songwriters Festival on the Northshore in November 2021. Afterwards, Craig visited cooperating Animal Rescue Organizations LA SPCA, Zeus’ Rescues, and Northshore Humane Society with his son Michael Cortello in December of that year to capture photo and video content for use in music video of the album’s signature song “Go Adopt a Puppy.”
The album started taking form and recording began with some amazing local performers including Craig Klein on trombone (member of Bonerama, Storyville Stompers, and New Orleans Nightcrawlers who won a 2021 GRAMMY® for their album Atmosphere in the Regional Roots Music Album), Chris Guccione on drums/percussion (Master’s in Music Performance, Jazz Studies, Loyola University), Belinda Moody on upright bass (who’s toured extensively in Europe, Asia, and Australia), and Craig Cortello on vocals, guitars, pianos. Even Enzo added the barking dog part for the song “The Fourth of July and New Year’s Eve.” In addition to the musicians, many others helped with this album. Delvonte Smith, a talented young illustrator/animator who works for Terrance Osborne at his gallery on Magazine Street, created the cover artwork. Michael Cortello, a photographer and UL Lafayette film school graduate, donated his time to organize the rescue dog photo/video sessions and is working on the music video.
But the biggest beneficiaries of this album will be LA SPCA, Zeus’ Rescues, and Northshore Humane Society, who will be given copies of these albums to promote pet rescue and to sell for donations in which they keep all the proceeds. Go get a copy of Dog Tales and enjoy the music about all things, dogs especially, with your fur babies. For more information, go to CanineCrooner.com.
Now we can add another New Orleans’ musician to the ranking of artists who have created songs about Man’s Best Friend. Craig Cortello, or the “Canine Crooner” as he is affectionately known, is releasing a CD entitled Dog Tales on Oct. 1, 2022. There are twelve original tracks on the album that reflect his love for dogs and the impact they have on the lives of families and owners. Cortello describes the album as being inspired by Randy Newman’s You’ve Got a Friend in Me,” Vince Guaraldi’s Peanuts cartoons soundtrack recordings, and the famous Schoolhouse Rock animated musical vignettes. The songs may appeal to children, but this is not a kids’ album. They were composed with the aim of engaging listeners of all ages.
Before Dog Tales came about, Cortello composed the original song “New Orleans Is the One I Love,” which Romy Kaye sang for the studio version. This lovely number was also the title song of the musical cabaret of the same name, featuring Amy Alvarez on vocals, Patrick Mendelson as director, and Jim Walpole as music director. The song was also featured in the musical theater production of “Let’s Get Away from It All,” sung by Amy Alvarez, directed by Ricky Graham, and with music direction by Jefferson Turner.
Dog Tales started taking form in 2018, while Craig was relaxing on his porch with his rescue Sheltie Tara, who was 12 at the time. He thought about how she was getting up in age and composed “The Rainbow Bridge Will Take You Home.” He recorded this song and, with the help of his son, filmed a video which received a substantial amount of hits. In December 2020, Tara crossed the rainbow bridge and he adopted Enzo, a Border Collie Mix, following the new year. He then wrote the first new song of the album, “Angels with Four Paws and a Tail,” to describe all the emotions a person has when they get a new dog. Over the next six weeks, inspiration came and he wrote the album.
A sampling of the Dog Tales songs debuted at the Ozone Songwriters Festival on the Northshore in November 2021. Afterwards, Craig visited cooperating Animal Rescue Organizations LA SPCA, Zeus’ Rescues, and Northshore Humane Society with his son Michael Cortello in December of that year to capture photo and video content for use in music video of the album’s signature song “Go Adopt a Puppy.”
The album started taking form and recording began with some amazing local performers including Craig Klein on trombone (member of Bonerama, Storyville Stompers, and New Orleans Nightcrawlers who won a 2021 GRAMMY® for their album Atmosphere in the Regional Roots Music Album), Chris Guccione on drums/percussion (Master’s in Music Performance, Jazz Studies, Loyola University), Belinda Moody on upright bass (who’s toured extensively in Europe, Asia, and Australia), and Craig Cortello on vocals, guitars, pianos. Even Enzo added the barking dog part for the song “The Fourth of July and New Year’s Eve.” In addition to the musicians, many others helped with this album. Delvonte Smith, a talented young illustrator/animator who works for Terrance Osborne at his gallery on Magazine Street, created the cover artwork. Michael Cortello, a photographer and UL Lafayette film school graduate, donated his time to organize the rescue dog photo/video sessions and is working on the music video.
But the biggest beneficiaries of this album will be LA SPCA, Zeus’ Rescues, and Northshore Humane Society, who will be given copies of these albums to promote pet rescue and to sell for donations in which they keep all the proceeds. Go get a copy of Dog Tales and enjoy the music about all things, dogs especially, with your fur babies. For more information, go to CanineCrooner.com.
Tagged in Whisker Warriors in our Fall 2022 issue