Ralph's World tour takes the kids to rock venues

Ralph's World may be a kid's first experience with rock and roll, and namesake Ralph Covert might be the first act to give the kiddies a taste of real rock venues.

Ralph's World is set to kick off a tour in February that will hit eight House of Blues venues all over the US, as well as historic rock palaces like the Fillmore in San Francisco. The outing marks the first time a children's-music artist has canvassed House of Blues venues across the country, according to a press release. The shows, which take place in the morning hours, are listed below.

Covert is keeping the momentum going following his October CD/DVD release, "Welcome to Ralph's World," which includes songs from his previous six albums, one new composition and six new videos.

Ralph's World's 2005 offering, "Green Gorilla, Monster and Me!," was nominated for a Grammy Award in the Best Musical Album for Children category.

The LA Times called Covert's music "lyrically and melodically inventive rock 'n' roll--comic and poignant, too--crafted to appeal to little and big ears."

The musician, who resides in the Disney family, makes it a point to write songs that parents can rock to with their kids.

Covert was formerly a rocker in the traditional sense, and still plays with his Chicago-based indie-rock band, The Bad Examples, for the over-21 crowd.

After the birth of his daughter, he started making rock music with innocent lyrics, and the rest is history.

This holiday season, an original play by Covert and G. Riley Mills is being presented at Chicago's Apollo Theatre. "A Nutcracker Christmas" is a children's musical version of "The Nutcracker" that features original music and a modernized story line with comedic twists, swordfights and some boisterous dance numbers. Details about that and other events can be found at the Ralph's World website.