'Free to Be . . .You and Me' By sown-r OCIETY is constantly doing ideological back- flips on the subject of male-female roles. When I was a child, I was encouraged to believe that I could be anything I was strong enough or smart enough to be. On the other hand, I was also told that any potential husband who sawsne bending over to drink straight from the cold water tap. -instead of using a glass, would immediately wonder whether I was the right girl for him. The new children's record, Free (Bell 1110), made by Mario Thomas and a number of ii- lustrious show biz pals, sweetly but persistently plinks out the happy mes- sage that biological sex need not determine careers, tastes, 'skills or personalities. Dick Cavettis dog is a plumber, but also enjoys messing around with a toy stove and little pots and pans. Marlo Thomas sings of a Jill and a Bill who celebrate their friendship, first by belting a cake together, then by going fishing. Alan Alda and Thom- as belt out a number about William wanting a doll (it's okay, his mandrna. explains . to his par- ents: it's practice for being a father). Rosey Grier croons softly that little boys have to cry too. "Free to Be . . . You and Me" slides along easily-with'L a mixture or poems, stories, 1 dialogues and songs. Most of these are fine, andof course, expertly 'rendered. The title song, written by Stephen Laurence and Bruce Hart and sung by the New "Seekers, has a bouncing folk-rock sound with a good boomy bass, and Laurence (with Shelly Miller) has also made a warm, pretty song that goes well with Diana Rossfs warm, pretty voice. It's called "When We Grow Up," and the refrain is: - Well I don't care if I'm pretty at all And I don't care if you never get tall I like what I look like and you're nice small We don't have to change at all. Another song, "Girl Land," sung by Shirley Jones and Jack Cassidy has a myster- . Alix Jenrv Marlo Thomas - happy message" rather sinister air - that contrasts interestingly with the sunniness of most of the other numbers. Against the sounds. of an eerie cal- liope, Cassidy cries out like a nightmarish carnival bark- er, "You" go in a mrl, and you never come out!" I . The longest cut is a new sexes-lib variation on the story of Atalanta and her famous race, and it's told in sure-winner fairy tale style. Children should 'like it, even if the ending is sur- prising compared with works by Perreault, the Brothers Grimm, or' Hans C. Ander- sen: and I think they'll love "Ladies First," 'delivered by Merle Thomas in a voice so deliciously smug that - just listening to the sound of it makes my palms itch. The lady in question, a curly, lacy, helpless chick. meets a highly satisfying end' when a group of hungry tigers de- cides that "ladies first" is fine with an am a tender sweet young thing.' 'Oh. Far out,' said the Tiger Chief.") Also, on the record there are enough catchy tunes and hearty rhymes -- like "Zachary Zugg took out the appeal to small children's love of predictable and patterns. "Free to Be . . . You and Me" has obviously been put . together with thoughty integ- . rity and skill. It's diverting, and I applaud its message. i I do feel, though. that on two counts, it may cause slight confusion. 'Those who made the record stress so clearly and so often that a person's-- sex should make ab- solutely no- difference as to how he/she conducts his/her life, that a child might I'm why we have two sexes at all. Yet, in the funny and sophisti- cated skit, "Boy Meets Girl." Mel Brooks and Mario Thom- as play a couple of newborn babies who are having an absurd Socratic dialogue in an effort to discover which sex each belongsto. It's not that they'd prefer being girls Ely: iifeur Eirucn Published: December 24, 1972 Copyright (C) The New York Times or boys. but they're wild to know. _Also in the cloying song, "Parents are People," when Marlo Thomas has finished singing, about all the things "mommies can be," Harry Belafonte says in that husky, knowing voice, "They can't be grandfathers . . -. or daddies . . ."_Why the hell not. one wonders. (Later she is equally firm on- the point that fathers can't be grandmothers or mothers.) at The monologue, "House- work" by Sheldon which Carol Channing coos expertly, may require paren- tal cinrification too. The poem. is cast in cozy of_ "The-Night Before Christmas." After tak- ing a good poke-at the. happy hornemakers of TV commer- cials--"That lady is srniling because she's an actress, and she's earning money . . Channing goes on to say.ern- phatically that all real peo- ple hate housework, -and the only way of making it bear- able is to have husband and wife share the' chores. Well, I think the together- ness bit is fine. (And why limit it to the adults in' the family?) Cleaning up.and-hos- down are necessary proc- esses. in many jobs as well as in life-that is, if we're not going to drown in our own detritus. The skit, unin- tentionally, I'm sure, "do- means those who accept the ciean-up chores witlrout'fuss,' and 'makes those who "take pleasurein such chores sound like real-suckers. Overly conscientious carp- ing. maybe. Especially con- sidering the high quality of this record. The creators and couldn't men- tion all of'them--deserve the gratitude of liberated par- ents. _The children will be i too 'busy enjoying -themselves to say thank-you to anyone.