Anyone who has seen a clip of an Imagination Movers music video or concert probably experienced a fleeting idea that there was something a lot deeper — and cooler — going on than just delivering another dose of Disney eye and ear candy for kids.

You would be right.

According to Imagination Movers Co-Founder Scott Durbin — who recently chatted with The Newtown Bee ahead of the group’s return matinee appearance planned for Sunday, March 13, at noon at Edmond Town Hall — despite the fact that the group’s lineage can be traced back to well before they became a Disney branded entity, a lot of folks still think the group was formed around, or even by that global entertainment institution.

“I think the biggest confusion that exists around Imagination Movers is that somehow we were created by Disney as a response to the Wiggles fame, which is the furthest thing from the truth,” Durbin said of the group’s Australian counterparts. “Essentially, we wanted to do the PBS route because we knew we’d end up owning more of our own material — our intellectual property. We came to Disney fully formed. We’re celebrating our 20th year this year, so we were already getting national exposure by the time we got to Disney.”

Durbin and his Emmy-winning Movers partners and longtime friends Rich Collins, Dave Poche, and Scott “Smitty” Smith were all musically inclined friends whose families hung out together in New Orleans. Durbin, a teacher at the time, recalled how he and his bandmates would stand around the grill at weekend barbecues and kids parties talking about putting together some kind of band that would inspire children to think deep and get creative.

“We would talk, and we all had a common experience around music. But as a teacher, I was noticing this lack of creativity,” Durbin said. “We agreed that there had to be something better than kids sitting around regurgitating dialogue from SpongeBob [SquarePants] episodes. So we decided to try and create a local, live action kids show that was music based. I think the idea that sparked Imagination Movers was the four of us creating music for the body and the brain.”

A Big PBS Break

Durbin brought the idea to the New Orleans Public Broadcasting System (PBS) affiliate, and it was well-received, except there was no budget to make it happen. So Durbin and his friends agreed to self-produce music videos, which were immediately embraced at their local PBS station and subsequently syndicated across the state.

They also performed live every chance they could get, and did really creative things to get their original music heard, such as cold calling children’s hospitals and offering their material free so it could be played for the kids on the wards.

Their package of original PBS videos along with the three albums of self-produced Imagination Movers material — which were already selling and getting significant traction on kids satellite radio channels — represented the earliest exposure the group enjoyed after they were hastily signed and packaged on the Disney Channel before the popular, fully formed program that followed.

“We were super dedicated to what we believed, and we realized we had everything together, so when Disney said we want to do a TV show, we told them we already had the concept. So 80% of what you see on that show was fully formed before Disney ever touched it,” Durbin said.

The Movers’ co-founder grew up in a household and with a dad who loved Western Swing music, so his first instrument was the violin.

“I think my dad had early hopes of me developing into the next Asleep at the Wheel, when I just wanted to rock out,” he recalled laughing. “And it was just a natural progression to go to the mandolin, which has the same string configuration. From there I learned banjo, and I’m also known as the ‘king of the one-handed keyboard.’ But Smitty and Rich are multi-instrumentalists, and Dave handles bass. When we hit the road, we also bring out our tour drummer Kyle [Melancon] who came from a national touring band called Dash Riprock.”

Continued Popularity

Since parting ways with Disney, the group has remained very energized as a result of their continued popularity and fan base.

“Right now, six of our 10 most popular streaming songs represent material we released post-Disney,” he said. “But we’re still under the onus that most people assume Disney owns all our material.”

Durbin added that he and his core bandmates also benefited from being mentored early on by a good entertainment lawyer who helped them avoid the many pitfalls creative musicians get sucked into when they become a marketable product. And unlike so many good bands that have split up over the “business” of show business, the members of Imagination Movers decided that all four core founders would share all the writing credits.

While Imagination Movers did take part in a number of tours where they played large theaters and arenas with huge sets and staging, Durbin, Collins, Poche, and Smith are really looking forward to a somewhat stripped-down show they will be bringing back to Newtown — the band performed at 45 Main Street in July 2019 and was quickly rebooked for a return engagement before the COVID-19 pandemic created three postponements — because it gives them a chance to get off the stage and out into the audience where they can get really up close and personal with fans.

“We’ll still have a lot of our most popular props, but we’ll really be engaging in the interactive element,” Durbin said. “I think sometimes that interactivity in many ways more than compensates for the bells and whistles of an arena show. Getting a high-five from ‘Mover Save’ I think is a lot cooler than seeing all the special effects and sets up on stage. As we’ve grown, I think that intimacy and connection make it much more worthwhile. I seldom see the four of us on stage at the same time in these smaller shows.”

Going back to his violin lessons, and his teaching roots, Durbin admits that in the end, it’s still all about inspiring imagination.

“We are musicians, so bad notes and creating what you are hearing is intended to be a model for kids that says, ‘Hey, you can be a musician, too.’ This is what it looks like, and this really is how much fun it can be,” Durbin said. “It all comes down to creating a situation where we’re all enjoying each other’s company together.”

Tickets from the original May 2020 return engagement date, or the October 2020 and October 2021 postponements, will all be honored this month. A few tickets are still available for March 13, and can be purchased at edmondtownhall.org/event/imagination-movers-concert-2

Tickets are $30-$45 each and parents should note that any child ages 2 and above who is unable to sit on the lap of an adult is required to have a ticket.