Daddy A Go Go was one of the earliest bands to champion the modern kids rock movement, exposing a new generation to music besides the soundtracks to children's television. Since 1998, John Boydston has been rocking and rolling for kids and adults alike. John took a minute to talk to us about Daddy A Go Go and their plans for the future.

SXSW: How did you come up with Daddy A Go Go?

JOHN: It kind of just happened. Accidentally on purpose I guess. I was a TV news producer turned stay-at-home dad and was happy doing that. I never had a burning desire to make kids records, never thought of it until the day I started doing it.

We always had music in the house – but it was always their music, Barney, Disney Songs, Sesame Street, and I was OK with that. Was it killing me? Yes, but only on the inside. But hey, happy kids equals happy dad. One day they must have heard a CD I had playing in the minivan when I picked them up at school or something, I think it was A Hard Day’s Night and bam, that’s all they wanted after that. Overnight we went from cheesy kids stuff to real music.

So that was cool, and I wondered why no one was making kid-specific rock and roll records, (at least no one I was aware of, and this was around 1996). I started fooling around putting songs together on a little 4 track I had, got the hang of it to where I could pretend I knew what I was doing, upgraded the recording gear and just did it. I sort of knew a drummer here in Atlanta named Walt Brewer – (we had a bunch of mutual friends) and he got involved and he was good and suddenly we sounded like we knew what were doing, sort of. All my records have just been me and Walt or me and another drummer for the most part.

SXSW: When did you start getting your kids involved?

JOHN: From the gitgo – they did all the kids singing and even some percussion. Then when my nine-year-old started playing the guitar – he got good fast, and would do some strumming and even some drumming on various tracks. (My song “Nana Nana Boo Boo" became a riff that developed when Max and I were jamming on in the studio one day. But don’t tell him – kids understand royalties these days).

But it wasn’t until SXSW offered us a showcase in 2007 did I realize I needed a band fast, and why can’t my my kids do it? Max was already a good guitar player at 12, Jake played bass, and we had a family friend who had played drums for years. The Daddy A Go Go band was born. They grew up on the songs and we started rehearsing. It was the start of a great family experience, playing live together. Since then we’ve done 3 SX’s and an ACL. (Now my oldest is starting at the University of Texas in the fall. I wonder where in the heck he learned what a cool place Austin is)? We’ve also done shows in Atlanta, and even Athens, GA about a year ago.

SXSW: Use them (the kids) as test subjects?

JOHN: I’ve always used them as a defacto focus group, yes. I would do mixes of songs and bring them along on that day’s carpool drive and notice what they and other kids in the carpool would react to, or laugh at, etc, and I would keep the stuff that got thumbs up. I got a ton of song ideas just listening to the kids in the carpool talk and have fun. And the time I spent in school was good for ideas too. I can’t think of a song I have done for a Daddy A Go Go CD that didn’t come from a real life family or kid experience somehow. Hopefully everyone else can hear themselves in there somewhere.

SXSW: How do you balance your musical career and your family?

JOHN: They quickly merged into one, which was great. I was never going to tour – cause I was really all alone anyway, and my job was taking care of the kids and the dogs, and the household, and it sounded like a lot of heavy lifting anyway. I feel very uniquely fortunate to have been able to merge these two things – making rockin’ kids records while raising my two sons. I thank my wife Cory for the chance to do all that.

SXSW: As your kids have gotten older, have you started catering your sound to their taste in music?

JOHN: I have but I think it was subconscious in a way. When I go back and listen to a song like “For Those About To Walk (We Salute You)” (from DAGG’s 5th CD, Eat Every Bean and Pea on Your Plate) the guitars sound very heavy to me.
And, that was about the time my kids started attending Camp Jam every summer, and they kind of re-introduced me to bands I grew up with like Led Zepplin, that they were just hearing about. That was about the time I decided to do a Ramones cover, (Blitzkrieg Bop), and even the Spinal Tap cover (Listen to the Flower People). But in general, as my kids got older I realized I could crank up the guitars and not offend anyone. One of my favorite reviews was by a writer who noticed I wasn’t afraid to rock out and that I was one of the few to recognize rock is part of a kids’ DNA these days, and I thought ‘YEAH, what he said’.

SXSW: What's next for Daddy A Go Go?

JOHN: I’m remixing my first couple of CD’s for re-release this year or next. My 1st CD Cool Songs for Cool Kids and my 2nd Monkey In The Middle got me on the kids music map – both were named to Amazon.com’s Top 10 Best Kids CD’s of the Year List (1999 and 2000 respectively) and "Monkey" won my first Parents Choice Award. But for me it’s ‘Daddy A Go Go the early years,’ I think they need a little sonic tweak. But after that, I’m not sure. Obviously my kids are too old to keep inspiring me with ideas for kids songs, so I may have said everything I have to say about the world of kids. For now at least. The beauty of this is, and I can write and record new songs when the inspiration hits, and if that’s on a Granddaddy A Go Go record some day then, that could happen too, who knows? I want to continue doing shows with my kids while I can – I think they are still inspiring me for that.