The Jellydots

THE JELLYDOTS began as the brainchild of Guitar Instructor and Singer/Songwriter Doug Snyder. Challenged by the reluctance of his younger students to learn the old standard folk tunes found in popular guitar method books, Snyder began teaching composition and co-writing songs with his kids (some of them were as young as seven). Doug and his pupils started writing the songs in March of 2002, and by October he released "Music is Cool,"a low-budget indie home recording full of songs about his cat, race cars, and cookies.

"Music is Cool" was initially used as a collection of fun guitar duets to teach his students how to play (and sometimes sing and play at the same time even). The songs are arranged on the CD in order of difficulty. A beginning guitar method book based on these songs is in the works. The catchy tunes and positive lyrics on this record began to stick in peoples' heads, CD players, and hearts. Soon, listeners began comparing The Jellydots to Simon and Garfunkel and Elliott Smith. In fact, Eric Shea from Listen.com had this to say about Doug's songs "Warm and earnest vocals sing over the skillful picking of a round-toned acoustic guitar. Snyder's folk music rests in the tradition of the The Graduate's soundtrack."

Doug eventually began performing songs from "Music is Cool" with his students at their recitals. As interest in the songs grew, he assembled an all-star lineup.