I met Bob McGrath

[MelissaY1]

So, Bob McGrath had a Christmas sing-along at Barnes & Noble in the town where I live. He made a few references to SS, and he actually performed "Keep Christmas With You", and "Sing." All of his other songs were his own material, not from SS. After the show, I got my CD signed by him, and met him. He is a very nice man. I told him how I've watched SS my whole life, and have always loved the show, and how it's so amazing that he's been there for all these years. I told him how I love the early days of the show way better, and he said that he does too. This was a night to remember.

Any pics?

 

[CoOKiE]

OMG i'm not THAT far... not like 15 minz away either but still.. wish i knew about it. well congrats.. u got me jealous lol

 

[CensoredAlso]

Yay, I got to go see Bob too! Thanks, ssetta, for letting me know, I had a really good time. Bob was very charming and friendly, all his songs were lovely. The little kids were singing and dancing, they were so excited to be there. At the end he sang "Keep Christmas with You", asking the kids "to really pay attention to the words." That song has always been important to me, it represents my era of Sesame Street. Tears actually started streaming down my face. I didn't plan it, it just happened. I don't think I've ever been moved in quite that way.

He then led a sing along to "Sing", which everyone joined in on. He mentioned that it was written by Joe Raposo.

Afterwards everyone got in line to get their CD signed. When it was my turn (Eeeee!), I thanked Bob for singing "Keep Christmas" and said it was one of my favorite songs. He pointed out that it was on his new CD, and I said I'd already heard a few tracks. He asked where and I explained about Muppet Central. He was very intrigued that his album was being heard here and said he might check it out sometime.

I had decided to bring my old record of "Sesame Street Christmas Sing-Along" with me and got up the nerve to ask Bob to sign it. The people behind me thought it was just adorable, lol. Bob was happy too, he said, "We used to have such a good time recording these!" I was thrilled because I used to listen to this album every Christmas when I was younger.

I also said I owned Christmas Eve on Sesame Street on DVD, and he called the special "one of the best projects we ever did."

Finally he announced that Sesame Street was going into its 39th Season (everyone gasped lol). He said, "So I guess it's kind of a permanent job!"

Overall, Bob was warm and funny and so friendly. I'm so grateful I got to meet him and that he was kind enough to sign my album.

 

[D'Snowth]

Wow, you guys are so lucky to get to meet Bob like that... that is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, you know, ONCE in a lifetime!

 

[CensoredAlso]

Thanks, D'Snowth! I'm glad I kept my eyes open and decided to take the chance. Another thing I recall is hearing the parents explain to their kids that Bob had just actually come down from Sesame Street to meet some new kids. They were all saying, "Ok, let's go meet Bob!" I thought that was very cute and really took me back to the Heyday of Sesame Street for me.

There was a song about Dinosaurs and all the kids got up to dance (the little boys proceeded to beat each other up, lol)! The store employees and parents kept having to remove the kids from the stage so they wouldn't fall and hurt themselves. Lol you can tell that being a parent is both a time of joy and stress, lol.

 

[Daffyfan4ever]

Hmmm. No wonder Bob hasn't shown up much this past season. He seems to be busy with a lot of things. I'll have to check out the website when I get a chance.

 

[theprawncracker]

WOW! Extremely jealous of the both of you! I would LOVE to meet Bob someday! He's one of my heros. That sounds like such a fantastic experience!

 

[CensoredAlso]

Well one thing I've learned over time is that you never know what can happen.

 

[Fragglemuppet]

Yes, it certainly does sound like quit a special experience, and I am so very jealous! That is so cool that he signed not only the CD, but also your old record Heralde! And talking to him about MC... wow!

 

[CensoredAlso]

Well I worried all day about whether or not it was a good idea to bring the album. Since sometimes at these signings, they don't want the guest star signing anything besides the merchandise. When I finally got on the line, I asked a very nice B&N employee, who answered, "Uh...I guess you'll have to ask Bob! It depends on how tired his fingers get!" Lol

But then I noticed someone else on line had the first ever Sesame Street record and had gotten it signed, so I figured it must be OK, lol. And as it turned out Bob was very understanding. It helped that it wasn't too crowded (but still well attended).

Let me see, he also mentioned Linda Bove in his introduction to "Keep Christmas with You." How she did the sign language version of the song in "Christmas Eve on Sesame Street." It's nice to see they really are friends in real life.

He was also clearly eager to promote "Christmas Eve on Sesame Street," which was great. I told them that when I saw it on TV as a kid, I figured that Santa must slide down the chimeny. And then I was pleasantly surprised to see one of the kids in the special agree with me! I think Bob thought that was cute. lol

What struck me the most about Bob's interaction with the kids was that he really expected them to listen and learn from what he was saying. When he asked the kids to "really pay attention to the words" of "Keep Christmas with You" some of the parents went "Heh, yeah right!" And I partially agree, kids often have trouble focusing, hehe. But I appreciate that he challenged and encouraged the kids to listen, rather than assume that they were "too young."