Share a Smile!
This high-energy, borderline-goofball family trio (mother, father, and daughter) can take a little getting used to, but for those with adventurous palates, the Pizzas just might live up to their self-imposed mandate to "fill the void between Barney and Britney."Share a Smile!, the group's first outing on the Epic Kids/Sony Wonder label, doles out a dozen finely crafted pop songs, some with gentle messages ("Don't Cry About Stuff"), some stickily sentimental ("Daddy"), and some overtly designed to counteract childhood obesity rates ("Clap Your Hands & Stomp Your Feet"). The common thread is an unyielding positivity--the mother, especially, has a bounce in her voice that lends an easygoing looseness to every melody and lyric, helped along by smooth production that betrays years of experience in the grown-up music biz (she and Pizza Dad met on the TV showStar Searchin the '90s and went on to write hits for the Olsen twins). IfShare a Smilelacks anything, it's earthiness: those who prefer roots music should stick with Elizabeth Mitchell and Dan Zanes. For everybody else, Laughing Pizza's arrival presents plenty of reasons to get giddy about passing the parmesan.--Tammy La Gorce