This Old Band

Counting and silly sounds merge in this boisterous Wild West riff on "This Old Man." Set on the range, Wissinger's (Gone Fishing) song counts down from 10 to one while nine scruffy cowboys and one stylish cowgirl play makeshift instruments (jug, washtub, cowbell) that make tongue-twisting noises. As the cowboys take their turns in the spotlight, the verses reference objects and animals germane to the remote setting, which readers can spot in the background: "Number eight/ Plays click click./ Eight plays click click with a stick./ With a tick tick boodle pick,/ Play a mustang song./ This old band plays all day long." Loveridge, the illustrator of David Lubar's Looniverse series, offers loopy, borderline garish caricatures full of long-limbed, mustachioed cowpokes singing, dancing, and playing their instruments amid the dusty plains, scrubby underbrush, mountains, and mesas of the west. A rowdy sing-along that may inspire kids' own musical improvisations. Ages 3%E2%80%936. Author's agent: Michelle Humphrey, Martha Kaplan Agency. Illustrator's agent: Justin Rucker, Shannon Associates. (June)