RUMFORD – Children’s singer/songwriter Rick Charette performed at the Rumford Public Library on Friday as part of the Picnic in the Park series.
The performance garnered a large and exuberant crowd, made even more so by the appearance of Charette in his trademark Converse high tops and Hawaiian shirt. The longtime performer kept the energy high by inviting children and parents alike to join in singing and dancing to his songs. Charette also read “I Love Mud,” the book version of his popular song.
The Maine native has been writing and performing children’s songs for more than two decades. After earning degrees in English and music education at the University of Southern Maine, Charette said he realized he could “make songs from the stories in my head.”
He told the Rumford audience that his first song, “Bubble Gum,” “popped into my head while walking down Congress Street in Portland.” Many song inspirations have come from Charette’s own family.
The idea for “I Love Mud,” one of Charette’s most well-known songs, developed one rainy day when he found his 12-year-old son “doing the backstroke in a mud puddle.”
Rumford Public Library’s Picnic in the Park continues from noon to 1 p.m. Friday with Alicia Farmer and Kim Fuller presenting “Fantastic Dreams.”
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