Free to Be ... You and Me was an album by Marlo Thomas and friends released in 1972 by Arista records.
Thomas decided to make the album when confronted by the fact that books and music at the time presented a very limited range of possibilities for what boys and girls could aspire to. She describes this motivation in the liner notes:
Making records is not my usual business, but this is not a business project. It's personal; as personal to me as my niece Dionne who started the whole thing. She wanted a bedtime story read to her, and I was saddened to find that all of her books did just that; put her and her mind to sleep. I started to look through stores and found, with few exceptions, shelf after shelf of books and records, for boys and girls, that charmingly dictated who and what they must be, colorfully directing new minds away from their own uniqueness
I wanted something for her next birthday, something to celebrate who she was and who she could be, all the possibilities and all the possible Dionnes. That's how it started, but it has, as you can see, turned out to involve a lot more than one doting aunt and one little girl. I found that many of my friends felt the same frustration for the children they loved, and happily donated their talents to this idea - an album of stories and songs to help girls and boys feel free to be who they are and who they want to be.
I hope you enjoy it. It was made with hope and love. So, Happy Birthday, Dionne. Blow out the candles and make a wish. Any wish.
Free to Be... became a classic. It sold 500,000 copies and inspired a companion book, which became a best seller, as well as an Emmy Award winning TV version. The songs and stories were catchy, fun, and wise. A generation grew up hearing that "It's all right to cry" and "mommies can be almost anything they want to be." The album is still popular, as the children who grew up with it introduce it to their children today.
The album was produced by Carole Hart, with music produced by Stephen Lawrence and Bruce Hart, stories and poems Directed by Alan Alda. Proceeds went to the Ms. Foundation for Women.
The tracks on the album are:
- Free To Be... You And Me
Music by Stephen Lawrence, Lyrics by Bruce Hart
Performed by The New Seekers
- Boy Meets Girl
Written by Carl Reiner and Peter Stone
Performed by Mel Brooks and Marlo Thomas
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Two new babies try to decide who's the boy and who's the girl:
"You, that's easy -- you're a boy."
... "Why, what do I look like?"
"You're bald."
- When We Grow Up
Music by Stephen Lawrence, Lyrics by Shelley Miller
Performed by Diana Ross
- Don't Dress Your Cat In An Apron
Performed by Billy De Wolfe
- Parents Are People
Music and Lyrics by Carol Hall
Performed by Harry Belafonte and Marlo Thomas
- Housework
Performed by Carol Channing
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Helping
Written by Shel Silverstein
Performed by Tom Smothers
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"...And some kind of help is the kind of help we all can do without."
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Ladies First
Performed by Marlo Thomas
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"I am a tender sweet young thing."
- Dudley Pippin And The Principal
Performed by Billy De Wolfe, Bobby Morse, and Marlo Thomas
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It's All Right To Cry
Music and Lyrics by Carol Hall
Performed by Rosey Grier
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"Crying gets the sad out of you."
- Sister And Brothers
Music by Stephen Lawrence, Lyrics by Bruce Hart
Performed by Sisters and Brothers
- My Dog Is A Plumber
Performed by Dick Cavett
- William's Doll
Music by Mary Rodgers, Lyrics by Sheldon Harnick
Performed by Alan Alda and Marlo Thomas
- Atalanta
Performed by Alan Alda and Marlo Thomas
- Grandma
Performed by Diana Sands
- Girl Land
Music by Mary Rodgers, Lyrics by Bruce Hart
Performed by Jack Cassidy and Shirley Jones
- Dudley Pippin And His No-Friend
Performed by Bobby Morse, and Marlo Thomas
- Glad To Have A Friend Like You
Music and Lyrics by Carol Hall
Performed by Marlo Thomas