Norman Foote

Norman Foote entered the world bearing the full name Norman Mervyn Barrington Foote and cultivated a humorous outlook during childhood that later defined his songwriting approach. That perspective remains a signature element across his recordings, where he presents a child’s vantage point on everyday life while delivering good-natured yet incisive commentary on topics ranging from environmental pollution to maternal cuisine.

At twenty he departed his native Canada to earn a living as a street performer across Australia and New Zealand. While performing with a traveling theater company in New South Wales, he cultivated interests in puppetry and physical comedy, which he soon merged with his musical performances for young audiences.

Among fellow children’s entertainers he earned recognition for his songwriting ability; after returning to Canada he began composing original material for kids at a steady pace. One of the earliest artists recruited for Walt Disney Records’ short-lived Music Box imprint, he issued two albums on the label—Foote Prints and If the Shoe Fits—that highlighted his knack for crafting light, memorable tracks, among them “Dinosaur and the Progress of Man” and “Little Armadillos,” a number describing microscopic parasites living on nasal hair. Those releases garnered multiple honors, such as a Juno nomination, a Parents’ Choice Gold Award, and recognition from the National Association of Parenting Publications of America.

In 1995 Foote affiliated with Fred Penner’s Oak Street Music and delivered his fourth collection, Shake a Leg, whose song titles—including “Smelly Feet” and “Able the Table”—confirmed that his irreverent edge remained intact. Two years later he released Pictures on the Fridge through Oak Street/Sony Music.