Music for toddlers and parents?

Hi all,
thanks to all these recommendations, which will me make trying for weeks now. Actually, I was half joking about Mahler and ZZ Top. Mahler is, I think, indeed a bit heavvy, but my daughter loves ZZ Top - but my wife does not. We just started to listen to some Dan Zanes CDs- great music, I am amazed he is not more famous like Manu Chao. My taste is widespread already, so the child listens to Mozart, Neill Young, AC/DC, a lot of Beethoven, and jazz from Duke Ellington to Bud Powell. Still, most of the names all of you mentioned were new for me. Thanks a lot. the 'gon is indeed an amazing community.
Regards,
Florian Hassel

Kenny Loggins Songs From The Wood was a huge favorite of my girls as toddlers. Then we hit them very young with Elton John, The Boss, Beatles, JT, Eagles, Croce, Bread, America and anything heavy on melody or a repeating chorus. do do do, and you don' mess aroun' with Jim" de de de...

Now, at 8 and 11 they are musicologists of a sort and favor Greg Brown Steve Earle, Lyle Lovett, Mozart, Brahms and other more accessible classical. Kids pick up on music like riding a bike. Now, music is a focus, TV an afterthought and they are taking piano and Violin lessons. There is to substitute for an early start with music. I had the headphones on either side of my pregnant wife's growing stomach an hour or two a night several times a week from 6-9 months. Crazy? Maybe ;-)

Samuel -
Ahh, don't you mean Jethro Tull "Songs From the Wood"
I CANNOT picture Kenny Loggins performing that album! Ha!

I think he means some of the Loggins Winnie The Pooh stuff.

Laurie Berkner

Although, my 5 year old is really into Ryan Adams as well. About a year or so ago, I was out driving with him and I popped in Ryan Adam's "Gold". I can hear him singing along to "New York, New York". I didn't even know he knew the song, nevertheless the words. It's amazing what kids pick up (and then what they don't).

But that shouldn’t really surprise me. I can't tell you a damn thing about Maxwell's equations (even though I took 4 or 5 classes about them during undergrad) but I can still rock every lyric off of Run-DMC's self-titled release.

“Two years ago, a friend of mine,
Asked me to say some MC rhymes…”