Music Has the Right to Children was the first commercially released album by Boards of Canada and probably their most well-known one. It has been called one of the greatest pieces of electronic music of its age and has introduced many to Boards of Canada. It was released 20 April 1998 in the United Kingdom and 20 August 1998 in the United States. It was later re-pressed in 2004.
The CD was jointly released by both Skam, BoC's original label, and Warp. Both labels were included on the credits and packaging. However, CDs ordered from Skam included a braille sticker reading "boardsofcanada".
"Our titles are always cryptic references which the listener might understand or might not. Some of them are personal, so the listener is unlikely to know what it refers to. Music Has the Right to Children is a statement of our intention to affect the audience using sound. The Color Of The Fire was a reference to a friend's psychedelic experience. Kaini Industries is a company that was set up in Canada ( by coincidence in the month Mike was born), to create employment for a settlement of Cree Indians. Olson is the surname of a family we know, and Smokes Quantity is the nickname of a friend of ours."