HEALTHY FOOD FOR THOUGHT: GOOD ENOUGH TO EAT
I appreciate that Healthy Food For Thought, an album with such a precise focus that could easily have become overpowering and preachy (especially at a hefty 120 minutes), takes a mixed bag approach to delivering it’s worthwhile message. The subtle, often humorous, nature of the poetry and spoken word, performed by notable kindie personalities Kathy O’Connell (XPN Kid’s Corner), Bill Childs (Spare the Rock, Spoil the Child), Uncle Rock, Helen Leicht (WXPN on-air talent), and Barney Saltzberg, among others, works in sweet harmony with the musical portion of the double CD – going together like roasted red pepper hummus and pita chips. The result is a surprisingly fun collection that, while it may not have your kids asking for celery sticks instead of Cheetos straightaway, may very well help enlighten youngsters about the importance of what we feed our bodies and our minds.
Best Moments: The Justin Roberts & Little Dave comedy bit conveys the humor of Roberts’ live concerts in a neat & tidy 2:45 skit about the crap in processed snack food and the goodness, but also the possible confusion, of eating fruit. I get the impression that much of the music included on Healthy Food for Thought is available elsewhere, on the artists older releases, but that doesn’t stop songs like Tom Chapin’s (fruit) punchy “Vitamin Si” from being immensely pleasing here. That one in particular had the Bear singing along during the 1st listen while eating a healthy strawberry yogurt (worth mentioning). Rapper Freddie Will pleads with the youth of American to “be careful what they put in your food” during “Future”, a quality hip-hop track that feels a little out of place. If the Peach Tree Singers can’t convince you to take your “Vitamins” with their jukebox-era poodle skirt pop, nothing will. All the Grover Silcox readings are outstanding, especially “I Sailed On A Potato Chip Ship”, and jazz man Oran Etkin’s “Unique Monique” is gorgeous.
Okay, Time To Wrap It Up With A Nice Little Bow: With it’s heart in the right place and a boatload of talented folks chipping in cuts all with the thought of inspiring families to make better food choices, it’s hard not to like Healthy Food For Thought. And while you might not turn to this double CD set on a regular basis, it sure does sound snappy while you & your kiddos prepare a mid-day snack of apple slices, grapes, hard pretzels, and carrot sticks.
*100% of the proceeds from the Healthy Food For Thought 2xCD are being donated to the New York Coalition for Healthy School Food.
Sample each of the 60 tracks (!) and download the album here.
*A copy of Healthy Food for Thought was provided to OWTK for review. The opinions above are true and unbiased, no arm-twisting took place in the review process.
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