Eddie Coker
Encyclopedia
Dallas, Texas
Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
, who has recently relocated to Manitou Springs, Colorado
Manitou Springs, Colorado
The city of Manitou Springs is a Home Rule Municipality located in El Paso County, Colorado, United States. The population was 4,980 at the 2000 census.Students are served by Manitou Springs School District 14 and Manitou Springs High School....
.
Coker grew up in Highland Park, Texas
Highland Park, Texas
Highland Park is a town in central Dallas County, Texas, United States. The population was 8,842 at the 2000 census. Located between the Dallas North Tollway and U.S. Route 75 , four miles north of downtown Dallas....
, attended Highland Park High School
Highland Park High School (University Park, Texas)
Highland Park High School is located in University Park, Texas.Highland Park is a part of the Highland Park Independent School District. It serves all of the city of University Park, most of the town of Highland Park, and portions of Dallas.-History:...
, and earned a degree in music from Southern Methodist University
Southern Methodist University
Southern Methodist University is a private university in Dallas, Texas, United States. Founded in 1911 by the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, SMU operates campuses in Dallas, Plano, and Taos, New Mexico. SMU is owned by the South Central Jurisdiction of the United Methodist Church...
. Originally an opera
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
singer, Coker has been writing, recording, and performing children's music since 1989. Coker's songs draw on a wide range of rock and popular influences ranging from The B-52's
The B-52's
The B-52's are an American rock band, formed in Athens, Georgia in 1976. The original line-up consisted of Fred Schneider , Kate Pierson , Cindy Wilson , Ricky Wilson , and Keith Strickland . Following Ricky Wilson's death in 1985 Strickland switched to guitar...
and Queen
Queen (band)
Queen are a British rock band formed in London in 1971, originally consisting of Freddie Mercury , Brian May , John Deacon , and Roger Taylor...
to classical music. His songs and performances also feature fanciful and quirky characters such as Fred, a "purple red-truck-driving duck", and Regina, a musician-turned-construction-worker octopus.
Coker has composed music for Barney & Friends
Barney & Friends
Barney and Friends, also referred to by HiT Entertainment as Barney the Friendly Dinosaur, is an independent children's television show produced in the United States, aimed at children from ages 1-8...
, Chuck E. Cheese's
Chuck E. Cheese's
Chuck E. Cheese's is a chain of family entertainment centers. Chuck E...
, and Borders Books, and was the host of the Saturday-morning show "The Weird, Wild World of Eddie Coker" on Radio Disney
Radio Disney
Radio Disney is a radio network based in Burbank, California and headquartered out of the Disney Channel headquarters on West Alameda Ave., from where it has been based since November 2008. Prior to that, the network was based in Dallas, Texas...
. He typically performs over 200 concerts a year; fellow Texas musician Sara Hickman
Sara Hickman
Sara Hickman is a rock/folk/pop/children's music singer, songwriter, and artist.-Biography:Hickman was born in Jacksonville, North Carolina. She grew up in Houston, Texas, where she attended the High School for the Performing and Visual Arts as a vocal major. In 1986, she graduated from the...
described him as "the James Brown
James Brown
James Joseph Brown was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and recording artist. He is the originator of Funk and is recognized as a major figure in the 20th century popular music for both his vocals and dancing. He has been referred to as "The Godfather of Soul," "Mr...
of children's music... The hardest-working man in kids' show business."
Discography
- The Happy One (1992)
- Say Hello (1994)
- Welcome to the Island (1995)
- What's Cooking? (1996)
- Schnorgel & Berg (1998)
- E.C. on CD (compilation) (1998)
- Wow! (compilation) (1998)
- Hmmm.... (compilation) (1998)
- Save Our Planet (compilation) (2000)
- Seven Songs (compilation) (2002)
Videos
- Sock Lobster
- Take A Walk on the Child Side
- The Bright Side of the Moon
- Kids for Character
- Choices Count