Amazon.com reviews for
"Schoolhouse Rock!" (1973) More at IMDbPro »

Schoolhouse Rock! - Grammar Rock (vhs):

Amazon.com video review: There are two types of Schoolhouse Rock fans. Type A: those who--inspired in the '70s and '80s by "Conjunction Junction" and "Interjections!"--went on to become grammar gurus, copyeditors, and computational linguists. And type B: those who--less inspired by grammar than by catchy refrains--can still sing lines that today sound less than P.C.:

Though Geraldine played hard to get (uh huh),
Geraldo knew he'd woo her yet.
He showed his affection,
Despite her objection,
And Geraldine hollered some interjections!

(Geraldo, if you'll recall, is a goat.) No matter. Both kinds of fans will enjoy revisiting these Saturday-morning shorts--and hopefully this video will find its way into classrooms, to boot. Clever teachers who grew up on this stuff will know how to make Schoolhouse Rock fans (ideally of type A) out of the next generation, too. --Erik Macki

Schoolhouse Rock! - America Rock (vhs):

Amazon.com video review: Once upon a time kids learned many of their school lessons in the three-minute episodes of Schoolhouse Rock. These educational cartoons came on during the commercial breaks of the less-than-edifying Saturday morning fare in the 1970s, and despite their healthy content, kids stayed glued to the screen to sing along to the somewhat psychedelic cartoons. Countless children hummed their way through social studies. The Preamble to the Constitution is much easier to remember when it's set to music. And everyone who saw the cartoon remembers how a bill becomes a law ("Oh, I'm just a bill, a lonely old bill, sitting here on Capitol Hill"). These and eight other shorts make up America Rock, a 30-minute program that will stir patriotism and teach kids a bit of history. Whether you're an adult who remembers fondly his Schoolhouse Rock days or a parent trying to help a child with school, this selection will have you singing that "knowledge is power." A bonus cartoon of "My Hero Zero," performed by the Lemonheads, is included at the end. --Jenny Brown

Schoolhouse Rock! - Multiplication Rock (vhs):

Amazon.com video review: From 1973 to 1985, a generation of kids watching Saturday morning television learned the function of conjunctions and the preamble to the U.S. Constitution with the help of an animated series called Schoolhouse Rock! The brainchild of executives at McCaffrey and McCall Advertising, the three-minute segments combined whimsical cartoons with catchy music (rock was only one of the styles) to help kids learn seemingly dry topics as easily as they could learn popular songs. Multiplication Rock tackles the multiplication tables, covering numbers 0 through 12 (but not 1 or 10), and chances are few people who grew up watching can multiply by 3 or 5 without hearing the familiar voice of composer-singer Bob Dorough. Other underlying talent included jazz drummer Grady Tate ("I Got Six," "Naughty Number Nine") and jazz pianist Blossom Dearie ("Figure Eight"), who contributed vocals. (Subsequent installments would feature many other jazz musicians and songs written by jazz pianist-composer Dave Frishberg and future Broadway composer Lynn Ahrens, who at the time was a fledgling secretary for McCaffrey and McCall.) Years later, the series was considered so hip that now-grown-up rock stars rerecorded the songs, and Multiplication Rock includes a music video of "Electricity, Electricity" by Goodness. --David Horiuchi

Schoolhouse Rock! - Science Rock (vhs):

Amazon.com video review: Science is an important but complex subject that often seems overwhelming to kids. Science Rock takes a nontraditional approach to this subject, entertaining kids with upbeat music that features lyrics absolutely packed with information. Simple, accurate descriptions of the human body's digestive, circulatory, central nervous, and skeletal systems, along with explanations of energy sources, the solar system, and gravity provide the thematic material for eight rock- and blues-inspired songs that kids find immediately appealing. Especially effective are the description of the central nervous system in "A Telegraph Line" and the discussion of nonrenewable energy sources in "The Energy Blues." Science Rock is a 1995 addition to the multi-Emmy Award winning Schoolhouse Rock! series. It preserves the feel and intent of the original series while offering up-to-date information about modern science. Each 30-minute video in this 25th anniversary collection contains a bonus music video featuring current rock stars singing favorite Schoolhouse Rock! songs--in this case, Better Than Ezra's rendition of "Conjunction Junction." --Tami Horiuchi

Schoolhouse Rock! - Money Rock (vhs):

Amazon.com video review: The world of finance bewilders many adults, so it's not surprising that kids often find it incomprehensible. Money Rock tackles subjects like budgeting, taxes, interest, and the stock market with simple definitions, fun animation, and lots of catchy music. The country-inspired "Dollars and Sense" explores the concept of interest with respect to saving and borrowing, "$7.50 Once a Week" teaches money management, and the bluesy "Where the Money Goes" covers living expenses and how to control them. A vaudeville act featuring "Tax Man Max" looks at government spending, then "Walkin' on Wall Street" takes a jazzy glimpse of the stock market. The historical development of bartering and its modern applications supply the thematic material of "This for That," a hungry dinosaur in "Tyrannosaurus Debt" personifies our national debt, and the complicated process initiated by the simple writing of a check is broken down in "The Check's in the Mail." If all this sounds potentially dry, even mind-numbing, recall how the potentially dull subject of grammar sprang to life with similar treatment in Grammar Rock. Rest assured that this 1998 addition to the multi-Emmy Award winning Schoolhouse Rock! series is both informative and exciting. --Tami Horiuchi