ORANGE : Children at CHOC Join Duo in Song

They weren’t exactly MC Hammer but touring musicians Jim Newton and Paul Hill had their audience clapping enthusiastically Tuesday morning as they performed at Children’s Hospital of Orange County.

The duo tours the nation singing at children’s hospitals, and although most of their songs have an easy, folksy beat, they do perform one rap song.

“You can tell by looking at us we don’t know anything about rap, but the kids in the hospitals kept telling us they wanted a rap song,” Newton said.

So, it went like this:

Well, I went to the doctor the other day.

She said, you can’t leave now, you got to stay.

Gonna run a few tests, take an X-ray or three.

If it looks real good, then I might set you free.

More than 30 children, who watched two concerts in the oncology and hematology unit, had their own verse to sing:

“Doctor, doctor, I know you want to help, but sometimes it hurts.”

Most of the children singing along were only too familiar with doctors and medical tests. Many came to the concert rolling IVs alongside them.

The lyrics to the duo’s songs are based on research with children’s hospitals all over the country, Newton said. They are designed to boost the self-esteem of children and young people--particularly those with severe and chronic health problems--while capturing their imagination.

“It’s all music that helps kids feel better about themselves,” Newton said.

But the songs also appealed to the adults, particularly one song with the lyrics: “If I could, I would stop the pain from ever getting through. I would keep this world from ever hurting you.”

“There was not a dry eye in there. Every parent had tears in their eyes,” said Thea Calhoun, director of recreational therapy for CHOC.

“It’s tough for all the kids and parents because you actually experience the things they’re singing about,” said Anthony Boger of Santa Ana, who watched the concert with his 4-year-old son, Emmanuel, who has sickle cell anemia.

“It was great. It was really neat,” said Jack Probst of Riverside. “They have activities all the time, but the concerts like this are special for the kids.” His daughter, Brianne, 12, who was in the hospital for an infection, and his son Tyler, 10, clapped along throughout the concert. The children were also given cassette tapes and coloring books, courtesy of the James River Corp. and local Albertson’s markets.

Doug Leffin, a child life therapist with CHOC, said the hospital tries to attract as many entertainers as possible.

“It changes a child’s focus and helps him think about things that are happy,” Leffin said.

Newton said he began performing for children about 10 years ago after he was invited by a friend of a friend to sing at a children’s hospital in Ohio.

“I had such a powerful experience, particularly with one little boy who hadn’t responded to anything and was clapping along,” Newton said. “In other words, the kids captured me.”

Since then, he has traveled around the country through Celebration Shop Inc., a nonprofit corporation based in Texas.