Do you remember in the olden days when everyone used to learn to play the recorder at school? My dad, who claimed he could play the spoons – he couldn’t – used to tell me and my sister and brother to go and practise ours up the top of the garden. If we wanted to play him something we’d learnt he’s say, ‘Only if it’s Over the Hills and Far Away!
Well, the days of universal recorder lessons are gone and now, ukuleles are increasingly becoming the instrument of choice for children beginning their musical journey. You can see why. They’re portable, easy to play, fun to sing along to and, because they’re easier on the ear than the recorder, they might even have been allowed (upstairs with the door closed) in our house.
My Musical Book of Fables
To support youngsters in their ukulele learning and to offer a musical experience that all the family can enjoy – no more banishment to the garden shed – talented musician, producer and ukulele teacher Gemma Cullingford (aka ‘one half of Norwich queens of post-punk dark disco Sink Ya Teeth‘ and currently one half of DJ duo Hazy Cosmic Jive) is publishing My Musical Book of Fables – a multisensory story book, featuring some of her songs for children, and illustrated by me.
I first met Gemma a couple of years ago in Norwich through a mutual friend and we bonded over a shared a love of Baron Bigod cheese, beer and dogs (Gemma’s dog Dunston got on well with Jack). This is our second collaboration. The first was a beer can I designed for Iron Pier Brewery, to celebrate the launch of Gemma’s EP (with Luke Wright) FOMO.
Our latest venture, My Musical Book of Fables features four traditional children’s stories retold in catchy songs, composed played and sung by Gemma. The project started when teachers in a school where Gemma taught ukulele, asked if she could write a uke-friendly song about The Three Little Pigs, to help them tie children’s music learning into the rest of the curriculum.
‘I did it and they loved it!’ Gemma says, ‘And that encouraged me to ask what they were doing the next term – it was The Gingerbread Man – and so then I went on to write another three songs and I’ve been using them to teach the ukulele. The children love them and I thought it would be really nice if they could be available in a book and Duncan’s style seemed to suit them perfectly.’
My Musical Book of Fables takes traditional stories and looks at them from all angles – music, art, story telling and moral values. It’s a physical book that can be enjoyed on its own, but it also comes with songs (on a CD and online) that children can dance, sing and play along to.
When we planned it, we wanted to create something that was entertaining for the whole family but also educational and I think we’ve achieved that. Gemma’s songs use repetition and rhyme, along with spoken word (Gemma’s partner Mark is the voice of the wolf). They feature harmony, melody, different instrumentation and sound effects, designed to appeal to children of all ages – you don’t need to be able to read the words – while also being friendly on the grown-ups’ ears! All four songs come with basic chords so that budding ukulele players can play along.
Here’s a tiny taster from The Hare and the Tortoise.
The songs she’s composed for the book reflect Gemma’s eclectic musical taste. They’re written for children but they’re still really ‘Gemma’ and as you listen to the songs you might catch hints of Little Eva’s Loco-motion, the Shangri-Las, Queen and maybe even a touch of Del Boy.
‘I wanted children to feel safe and nurtured by the songs,’ Gemma explains. ‘But at the same time, I didn’t want to patronise them in any way. I wanted them to get hear what I consider to be good music, but not in the old fashioned sense, but just to like the kind of music that I’ve grown up with. So The Three Little Pigs, for example, has got a little bit of an electronic vibe to it. ‘
I’ve done over 30 illustrations for the book. Pretty typically for me, they’re really detailed, so they offer lots of opportunities for discussion and interaction between children and adults. I’ve made sure there’s lots to discover on every page through shape, colour texture and images. There’s a cast of fun characters and lots of other quirky details to spot (look out for the ladybirds. ants, hedgehogs, snails and worms and more), along with visual jokes (of course!) which I hope will appeal to adults and children, trigger their imaginations and keep them immersed in the stories. I’ve made a colouring sheet that will be included with the book too.
Pre-order
The book costs £9.99 plus £4 postage and packing. If you’d like a copy of our book, you can pre-order it today using this bandcamp link. Books will be dispatched at the end of November 2024, so you’ll get them in good time for Christmas.
You will receive:
- A copy of the book
- A CD containing four songs: The Little Red Hen, The Hare and the Tortoise, The Three Little Pigs and The Gingerbread Man
- A link to the songs online, including basic chords for each song so you can play along, and
- A colouring sheet of a new scene not featured in the book.
More about Gemma
