Humble Beans: Reimagining Nursery Rhymes for Children and Parents

“They’re really lovely songs, a lot of them. I just haven’t heard them in a lovely way before.” Upon commencing his role as an early years educator, singer-songwriter Ollie Thomas found the online selection of nursery rhymes unsatisfactory. Ollie described himself as “driven mad” by “twangy”, “nasty” and “relentlessly unpleasant versions” of these classic children’s songs. He envisioned recreating them with a focus on “longevity and playability” to benefit both teachers and parents who had endured poor quality versions. This vision led to the formation of Humble Beans. Ollie’s musical background originates in Oxford, where his band ute gained significant recognition, earning the title of BBC Introducing in Oxfordshire’s Act of the Year in 2010. He subsequently pursued a solo career under the name Salvation Bill, but it was after becoming a teacher and then a father that Ollie sought to address the challenge of nursery rhyme quality. “When my daughter was toddling around she was enjoying the guitar,” he clarified. “I was trying to play Chick Chick Chicken with her, but because I play in the same tuning as I used to play [in my bands], as it’s an open tuning it doesn’t sound traditional.” “The chords had their own character… it took on its own flavour. It ended up sounding idiosyncratic.” He enlisted Michael Chilcott, a school friend and former ute-bandmate, to play bass. Additionally, local illustrator and animator Sarah Hoyle, known for creating artwork for concert posters and album sleeves, joined the team. Among the initial inspirations for Humble Beans were Hook, Line and Singer, a book by musician and BBC presenter Cerys Matthews featuring nursery rhyme notations and historical details, and Imogen Heap’s The Happy Song, a composition created in collaboration with scientists to produce an ideal track for infants. Ollie’s journey parallels that of fellow Oxford-based musician Nick Cope, the Candyskins guitarist who discovered his primary vocation composing children’s songs, which ultimately led to his own CBeebies program. “We spoke about Nick a lot at the beginning,” Ollie stated. “When I show my daughter Nick Cope I don’t feel like I’m showing her bad telly, it’s enriching in some way.” “So much kids music is really rubbish,” Michael commented. “You end up playing music you want to listen to, and they don’t really like it, so it’s about finding a middle ground.” “Chick Chick Chicken got stuck in my head – not in a bad way – and the animation was really cool, and I realised there was something we could do with this.” He added, “From my perspective it was how can I muscle my way in?” Sarah expressed her desire for Humble Beans’ visual elements to depart “from those garish bright colours you see in a lot of kids’ videos.” She further explained, “Something that looked a little bit more handmade with textures,” and “More muted, more earthy.” She characterized the creative process as “really nice” and “organic.” “I really love the idea of getting kids excited about music… having these characters and making imaginary worlds. Bringing that into the teaching side would be really cool.” Humble Beans has developed lesson plans incorporating videos and animations, and is currently developing a live band component, aiming to broaden their initiative. Their album, We Are the Humble Beans, which was recently launched, features tracks such as Pop! Goes the Weasel, Incy Wincy Spider, and various other popular singalong tunes. “Everyone’s watching stuff on their phones and TV and using it to show things to their children,” Ollie observed. “Nursery rhymes are important. We can pass them on like folk music, through something appealing.” Information regarding BBC Oxfordshire is available on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram. Copyright for this content is held by BBC, 2024. All rights reserved. The BBC bears no responsibility for material found on external websites. Further details on the BBC’s policy regarding external links are accessible.