Cathy Fink & Marcy Marxer: Bon Appetit! Musical Food Fun

25 April 2003 | Washington Post

by Mike Joyce

Cathy Fink and Marcy Marxer have won numerous awards for writing, producing and recording albums for kids that are both entertaining and educational. "Bon Appetit! Musical Food Fun," the local duo's latest release, is no different in that respect, but it also has something else going for it: plenty of nutritional value.

In fact, a lot of parents are likely to regard "Bon Appetit!" as a helpful and tuneful dietary supplement for their young kids, who in turn are likely to find themselves singing along to "Breakfast Power," a catchy, jazz-flavored ditty about the need to "feed your body, feed your brain" in the morning, or to "Big Strong Muscles," which finds keyboardist Tommy Lepson working out on organ and a children's chorus from University Park Elementary School eagerly chiming in. Even harder to resist is "Germs," a cautionary chang featuring guest vocalist Tom Paxton, and "Hula Hoop," a big-band-like soiree that serves as the album's hip-swaying, finger-snapping, leg-stretching interlude.

True to form, the duo and their many guests offer a big spread of musical treats, enriched by folk, jazz, blues and Caribbean ingredients and garnished with kid-fed harmonies and the myriad of sounds that Fink and Marxer extract from guitar, banjo, bouzouki, pennywhistle and other instruments. All the while, the duo cleverly underscores the importance of good health and self-respect, compassion and laughter.