Rebecca Frezza and her accomplished Big Truck band mix a bright and breezy style with affirming, kids'-eye observations of life: train trips, "sidewalk chalk" efforts, caterpillar transformations, carnival fun, summer sun and winter snow.
Lynne Heffley - ©2008 Parents' Choice



All-Seasons CD
Don’t let spring pass without discovering Rebecca Frezza & Big Truck’s Special Kind of Day, a CD that takes listeners through all seasons with all kinds of music. Hibernating animals get the urge to “Come on Out” because “spring is in the air” in the sweetly rocking opening track. People get out of the house and on the train in “Clack-Ity-Clack.” Frezza’s band captures the varying speeds of train travel by using varying rhythms within the song. The album’s hidden treasure is “Butterfly,” a Sondheim-esque reflection on “a wiggling green critter crawling up a tree” who transforms into the soaring beauty of the title. If spring gets by you, seek out the summer joys of “Sidewalk Chalk,” a funky rhythmic round with some nice jazz flute work. That flute reappears in the “whirling and swirling and holding on tight” of a “Carnival Ride” marking the end of summer. “Spooky Dance” never mentions Halloween, but I guarantee Frezza will alter the way you say “spooky” forever. “Leaves are Falling” has a courtly old English feeling to it, then goes into an almost Latin riff with haunting violin backing up another winning round.
Kathy O’Connell is a contributing writer to MetroKids and host of the Peabody-award-winning Kids Corner, weekdays 7-8pm on WXPN 88.5 FM



With her seven piece band, Frezza offers her most mature sound yet. Intricate pop arrangements make her journey through the four seasons more than just plain fun.
Top Track “Spooky Dance”
Cookie Magazine June/July 2008



"Special Kind of Day", Rebecca's fourth album, and is a rousing work that shows what having an eight-piece band (yes, that's right...a kid's band with nine total members...a sort of kiddie Polyphonic Spree or, for my older readers, P-Funk) can do for you. Every artist has a story, but Rebecca's journey to the kiddie rock world is a rather interesting one. She has spent time as both a music teacher and as a "showbiz gypsy", as she puts it, in traveling productions of EVITA and A Chorus Line. Clearly no stranger to the stage it should come as no surprise that her live rock show is an energetic and splashy affair with dancing and theatrics.

"Special Kind of Day" opens with the pleasant sounds of birds chirping then quickly kicks into the terrific ode to the greatest season - Spring. "Come on Out", along with Justin Roberts' "I Chalk" from "Meltdown!", is one of the finest lead tracks on a kid's album I've heard in a long time and is timed perfectly with this new disc's April 8th release date...just in time for the ducks, squirrels and birds to begin appearing again in our backyards and, deep in the woods, bears to wake up from their long winter slumber.

Rebecca's voice is lovely. She shows off her technically-sound singing style all over "Special Kind of Day" but especially on the tracks such as "Sidewalk Chalk" and "Birthday Song". Many of the cuts feature some real-life white noise at the top which is really cool - not obnoxious like what Bright Eyes does on his records - and pretty unusual in the kid's genre.

"So Nice To Meet You", much like the title track of Brady Rymer's new effort, is screaming to be that all important first song during a live concert. It would shock me if this happy, salutory (yes, I know that is not a real word) tune is not the one Rebecca Frezza and Big Truck kick off their upcoming shows with.

Rebecca Frezza and Big Truck's "Special Kind of Day" has a clever, seasonal arc to it. As I mentioned, the disc starts with a springtime ode, then it moves through the seasons. Sidewalk chalkin' and carnival fun in the summer, spooky dancin' at Halloween, leaves fallin' in Autumn, ending with a snowy winter. Brilliant composition of a true album in a digital/singles world - I love it.

Rebecaa Frezza and Big Truck's "Special Kind of Day" is a wonderfully written and well executed record from start to finish. The instrumentation and vocals are mixed perfectly. The flutes are up front and prominent when needed, the backup singer's harmonies are full-bodied and integrated very nicely. It's rare that this kind of technical detail gets mentioned in a review here but this disc is so perfect in that regard that I couldn't not give it precious space here on the digital pages of OWTK.
outwiththekids.blogspot.com



Rebecca Frezza and her band Big Truck's album, Special Kind of Day, is a CD the whole family can listen to and enjoy. Though the lyrics are more for children-the opening song, "Come On Out," celebrating the arrival of spring, addresses different animals as Mr. Hedgehog, Mr. Mouse and so on-older listeners can get caught up in the band's music, which employs a variety of instruments and is complex enough to capture the listener's interest. The album's 13 songs take you through the seasons of the year. As evidenced by the eighth track, "Birthday Song," special occasions also get covered on the album. Frezza is backed up by Dania Liberti and Fran Baltzer on vocals, Ivan Max on lead guitar, Kellen Harrison on bass guitar, Shawn Baltazor on drums and Beth Adelman on several instruments, including harmonica, djembe, tambourine, recorder, maracas, and also vocals. The cheerful music and lyrics are sure to make children and adults smile. The combination of pop/rock, country and jazz music styles, as well as a bit of world music on the CD, maintain interest in the music and increase breadth in music knowledge at the same time.
Jessica Chung - thecelebritycafe.com



The fourth children's music CD album by Rebecca Frezza and Big Truck, "Special Kind Of Day" offers thirteen brand new songs, each of which is attractively characterized by the unique vocal stylings of Rebecca Frezza, backed up by the singers and instrumentalists of Big Truck in unique pieces that alternate lively and complex orchestrations with songs of lovely simple styles. Superbly recorded, the individual numbers include Come on Out; Clack-Ity-Clack; Butterfly; So Nice to Meet You; Sidewalk Chalk; Summer Sunshine; Carnival Ride; Birthday Song; Spooky Dance; Leaves are Falling; Snow Day; Snow She Shuffle; and Magic. "Special Kind Of Day" offers a special kind of music that is thoroughly 'kid friendly' and a welcome, recommended addition to personal, family, school, and community library CD music collections for children.
Midwest Book Review



No Slumps Here
One of the things I enjoy most about kids' music is that discovery of something new - putting in a CD from someone I've never heard of before and being surprised. Sometimes the surprise is great, sometimes not so much. But because of how much I focus on the new, sometimes I don't pay enough attention to good second (or third or fourth or nth) records. This month, some great later CDs from some artists we've enjoyed for a long time.

Special Kind of Day: New Jersey-based mom/teacher/singer/dancer Rebecca Frezza has been making lively music for kids for longer than most, and, commendably, she's kept focused on what works for her and her Big Truck band, rather than chasing around after the newest trends. The result is maybe not what you'll play for your hipster cousin from Brooklyn (the prominent flute probably guarantees that, unless your hipster cousin is also a big Jethro Tull fan), but it's something your kids are going to demand in the carpool pretty often. Lyrically, Frezza hits the preschool and early elementary sweet spot with the fast-paced "Snow Day" (which would fit just fine on a lot of grownup radio formats) and the groove-filled "Spooky Dance." The CD also includes some acoustic numbers, including the nearly-perfect "Summer Sunshine," which has a slowly building energy that nicely evokes a lazy summer day, bookended with bits of "You Are My Sunshine."
Bill Childs - Little Rock Family



With a seven-piece band backing her, Rebecca Frezza gives a nicely varied album of catchy kids music. Most of the songs are folky and relaxing, like "Summer Sunshine," and there are some more up-tempo numbers like "Snow Day." The highlights are some of the more distinctive sounding tunes, such as the bouncy and flute-filled "Sidewalk Chalk" and the sneaky (and equally flute-filled) "Spooky Dance." Overall, this CD is great piece of children's listening material that also will appeal to adults.
Charlie Heller - New York Post



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