Bill Harley
Encyclopedia
Bill Harley is a children's entertainer and storyteller
who has been called "the Mark Twain
of contemporary children's music" by Entertainment Weekly
. He uses a range of musical styles and appeals to children and adults with quirky, heart-filled lyrics. He received the Grammy Award
for Best Spoken Word Album For Children
(albums consisting of predominantly spoken word versus music or song) for his albums Blah Blah Blah: Stories About Clams, Swamp Monsters, Pirates & Dogs and Yes to Running! in 2007 and 2009, respectively.
In addition to children's music, he performs at storytelling festival
s around the country including appearances at the National Storytelling Festival
.
Harley has also published six books. These include: Sitting Down To Eat which was selected as an American Booksellers Association
Pick of the list; Sarah's Story a Storytelling World Award Winner; and The Amazing Flight of Darius Frobisher his first novel for elementary
students. He is currently working on another novel and has another picture book slated for publication.
On August 12, 2008, Harley released Yes to Running! Bill Harley Live on CD and DVD. It features ten songs recorded before an all-ages live audience at the University of Montana.
Harley currently lives in Seekonk, Massachusetts
.
Storytelling
Storytelling is the conveying of events in words, images and sounds, often by improvisation or embellishment. Stories or narratives have been shared in every culture as a means of entertainment, education, cultural preservation and in order to instill moral values...
who has been called "the Mark Twain
Mark Twain
Samuel Langhorne Clemens , better known by his pen name Mark Twain, was an American author and humorist...
of contemporary children's music" by Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
. He uses a range of musical styles and appeals to children and adults with quirky, heart-filled lyrics. He received the Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
for Best Spoken Word Album For Children
Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Album for Children
The Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Album for Children was an honor presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to recording artists for works containing quality "spoken word" performances aimed at children...
(albums consisting of predominantly spoken word versus music or song) for his albums Blah Blah Blah: Stories About Clams, Swamp Monsters, Pirates & Dogs and Yes to Running! in 2007 and 2009, respectively.
In addition to children's music, he performs at storytelling festival
Storytelling festival
A storytelling festival is often an annual event that features local, regional and/or nationally known oral storytellers. Each storyteller will have a scheduled amount of time to share a story with an audience...
s around the country including appearances at the National Storytelling Festival
National Storytelling Festival
The National Storytelling Festival is held the first full weekend of October in Jonesborough, Tennessee at the International Storytelling Center. The National Storytelling Festival was founded by Jimmy Neil Smith, a high school journalism teacher in 1973...
.
Harley has also published six books. These include: Sitting Down To Eat which was selected as an American Booksellers Association
American Booksellers Association
The American Booksellers Association is a non-profit industryassociation founded in 1900 that promotes independent bookstores in the United States and Canada. The ABA and its members support freedom of speech, literacy, and programs that encourage reading...
Pick of the list; Sarah's Story a Storytelling World Award Winner; and The Amazing Flight of Darius Frobisher his first novel for elementary
Elementary school
An elementary school or primary school is an institution where children receive the first stage of compulsory education known as elementary or primary education. Elementary school is the preferred term in some countries, particularly those in North America, where the terms grade school and grammar...
students. He is currently working on another novel and has another picture book slated for publication.
On August 12, 2008, Harley released Yes to Running! Bill Harley Live on CD and DVD. It features ten songs recorded before an all-ages live audience at the University of Montana.
Harley currently lives in Seekonk, Massachusetts
Seekonk, Massachusetts
Seekonk is a town in Bristol County, Massachusetts, United States, on the Massachusetts border. It was incorporated in 1812 from the western half of Rehoboth. The population was 13,722 at the 2010 census. Until 1862, the town of Seekonk also included what is now the City of East Providence, Rhode...
.
Nominations
- 1999 Grammy Award Best Spoken Word Album For Children; Weezie And The Moon Pies
- 2008 Grammy Award Best Musical Album for Children; I Wanna Play
- 2010 Grammy Award Best Spoken Word Album For Children; The Best Candy In The Whole World
Awards
- 2001 National Storytelling Network's Circle of Excellence Award
- 2006 Parents' Choice Gold Storytelling World Award; Joey, Chloe and the Swamp Monsters
- 2007 Grammy Award Best Spoken Word Album For Children - Blah Blah Blah: Stories About Clams, Swamp Monsters, Pirates & Dogs
- 2009 Grammy Award Best Spoken Word Album For Children - Yes to Running!
- 2009 Green Earth Book Award Children's Fiction - Night of the Spadefoot Toads
- 2010 Rhode Island Humanities Council Lifetime Achievement Award
"Rules of the Universe"
- It's always harder to put something back together than it is to take it apart.
- If you spend all your time cleaning your desk, you'll just have clean desk. That's not enough.
- Listen - you're missing something cool.
- All children should be given a ukelele when they're born.
- We're more alike than we are different.
- If you're older than two, and can't sing a song and tell a story, you're in trouble.
- Sometimes, a plate of spaghetti is the best thing in the world.