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Thanks & Giving: All Year Long is a book and CD project for the benefit of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
Marlo Thomas has produced a thoughtful, exuberant volume for children and “the grown-ups in their lives.” An original collection from acclaimed writers, artists and performers, Thanks & Giving: All Year Long celebrates family, friendship, giving, thankfulness, and love (and doesn’t neglect stinginess, bullying, ingratitude, and temper tantrums) with stories, songs and poems.
The release of the book and accompanying (or vice versa) CD coincides with the first annual national “Thanks & Giving” campaign (November 26th through the holiday season). Proceeds from the campaign will benefit St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, which was founded by Ms. Thomas’s father, Danny Thomas, in 1962.
The Thanks & Giving CD, produced by Marlo Thomas and Chris Cerf, was released November 16th and features new recordings by Marlo Thomas, Sheryl Crow, Jimmy Buffett, Hilary Duff, Faith Hill, Billy Crystal, Jennifer Aniston, Robin Williams, Sarah Jessica Parker, Kermit the Frog, James Earl Jones, Wayne Brady, Rosie Perez, The Bacon Brothers, David Hyde Pierce, Uncle Kracker, Antonio Banderas, Amy Grant and John Hiatt (hear below).
The book version works as both cover-to-cover reading and for “one more story” excerpting, with vibrant child’s-eye paintings by Eric Carle. Included are Jon Scieszka and Lane Smith’s fable starring a mouse, a bird, and a sausage who learn all about sharing the hard way; Rosie Perez’s tale of a little girl confronted with a big decision; Kevin and Michael Bacon’s funky valentine to sibling rivalry and brotherly love; Ray Romano and giant burrito; and contributions from Maurice Sendak, Kate DiCamillo, Hilary Duff, Avi, Tom Chapin, Arthur creator Marc Brown, Matt Groening, Deepak Chopra, Tiger Woods, Donald Trump, Frankie Muniz, Walter Dean Myers, Paul Newman, Sumner Redstone, Jerry Pinkney, Whoopi Goldberg, Sonia Manzano, the Sesame Street Muppets, Julianne Moore, Ed Koren, Donald Trump, Wendy Wasserstein and Paul O. Zelinksky.
“I often wondered why we only think about thanks and giving one day a year,” says Ms. Thomas. “The truth is, we really thank and give each and every day. Once the people we asked to be involved started saying yes, we really knew we were onto something.”
Marlo Thomas graduated from the University of Southern California with a teaching degree and is the author of touchy-feely best-selling books Free to Be . . . You and Me, Free to Be . . . a Family, and The Right Words at the Right Time. She has won four Emmys, a Peabody, and has been inducted into the Broadcasting Hall of Fame. She rocked in That Girl, which she conceived (sans Donald), produced, and starred in as a very young woman.
And in case you doubt the veracity of any of these statements, you can check out ALL the tracks from the album yourself right here (in Windows Media):
1. All Kinds of People – Sheryl Crow
2. The Mouse, The Bird, and the Sausage – David Hyde Pierce
3. I Want It! – Uncle Kracker and Marlo Thomas
4. Teenie Meany – James Earl Jones, with Marlo Thomas
5. Attitude of Gratitude – Jimmy Buffett
6. A Different Aladdin – Billy Crystal
7. A Smile Connects Us – Kermit the Frog
8. The Thing About Generosity – Marlo Thomas
9. Unsung Heroes – Wayne Brady
10. Josie’s First Allowance Days – Rosie Perez
11. The Little Stuff – Marlo Thomas
12. The Nothingest Girl in the World – Sarah Jessica Parker
13. (I’ll Give) Anything But Up! – Hilary Duff
14. Point of View – Robin Williams
15. You Know My Brother (He’s So Heavy) – The Bacon Brothers
16. Cheesybreadville – Antonio Banderas
17. Snow, Aldo – Jennifer Aniston
18. Sing Me the Story of Your Day – Faith Hill
19. A Tale of Two Friends – Bert, Ernie, and Marlo Thomas
20. Thanks Someone – Amy Grant and John Hiatt
