Let’s talk. I know you’re a fan of The Wiggles. Come on, don’t deny it! I know you get up and dance when they sing “Hot Potato,” or “Do the Monkey.” I know that you were just as excited as your kids were when you saw them in concert. And I know that you think that Jeff is cute.
I also know that you haven’t seen them on TV in a while. There’s a good reason for that: they weren’t on TV for a while. It seems that the decade-long agreement between The Wiggles and Disney Studios ended back in the spring. There’s no need to get upset, because Sam, Anthony, Murray, and Jeff have all returned with a new series in a regular time-slot.
Well, you may get a bit upset if you don’t have expanded, digital, super-absorbency cable or satellite. You see, The Wiggles have signed up with PBS, and are now appearing each morning on Sprout. In their own three hour block of programming, no less, titled Wiggly Waffle.
If you do get Sprout, this is good news about the Preschool Fab Four, who have performed together regularly for almost 20 years now. That’s more than many rock bands can say these days! During those two decades, they’ve focused their efforts on entertaining and educating kids and adults, alike. In addition, they seem to be very kind and genuine, both on and off the stage. Plus, none of them (allegedly) have split up with their wives in order go through late-term adolescence (*cough* Jon Gosselin *cough*).
Granted, there have been some rough patches, particularly in the last few years. After a long pattern of unfettered success, the band experienced an extended period of malaise. Instead of songs about fruit salad and dancing with Dorothy (or Captain Feathersword, or Wags, or the Big Red Car), they were suddenly singing about dough, and bricks, and dentists. They also became secondary characters on their own shows (especially their last, The Wiggles Show) and music videos, as the Wiggly Dancers, as well as characters like Wags and Dorothy took center stage.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0R02mS2ATbw
Things have changed somewhat since original member Greg Page left the band a few years ago, due to a chronic, non-life threatening illness. Once Wiggles’ trumpeter and occasional performer Sam Moran took his place as the Yellow Wiggle, the atmosphere changed. It’s hard to say if it was the new direction executive producer Paul Field took, or a mutual decision by the band members themselves, but each member of The Wiggles now had a meatier role when it came to singing and performing on the videos, than they had a few years before — they always had an equal role in their live performances.
One of those changes is the reduction of new songs written by the band members. Again, it may have been done on purpose, but the band is relying on musical updates of many genres of music, including nursery rhymes, and classic children’s songs. They’ve also taken a stab with a few pop music classics, such as “Love Train,” and “You Make Me Feel Like Dancing.” “Dancing” is actually performed by original singer Leo Sayer, who is accompanied by the multi-color quartet. To be honest, it’s actually catchier than the original.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bwy1x0-cZaI
The band’s newest venture, Wiggly Waffle, is unique in a few ways. First, instead of being syndicated as the other four incarnations have been, Waffle was produced solely for a North American network. Second, Wiggly Waffle isn’t a show so much as it is a series of segments that air in-between the network’s normal programming fare of Barney & Friends and Play With Me Sesame, among others. These segments feature 10 original songs (one for each day of the week), jokes, and clips from Wiggles music videos.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tIS9-8Pycws
While that may not be of interest to you, it will probably keep the attention of the young ‘uns who are willing to stay on one network to see their favorite Wiggle, or, in the case of my son, Captain Feathersword. And that’s what Sprout is counting on with the programming. That, and grabbing some of the Playhouse Disney market that were rightly pissed — the parents, not the kids — when The Wiggles left the network. If Sprout plays its red, blue, yellow, and purple cards right, The Wiggles could become their franchise player, and change the way other networks program their weekday mornings. If not, well, there’s always Wiggles’ DVDs, CDs, books, comics, and live performances to keep you and your kids going until the next time.
Clacked by Richard Keller 
on Aug 27, 2009 @ 12:00 EST5EDT
