David Gibb: ‘Children are the most honest audience a musician can play to’

Two questions we’ve often pondered whilst watching the fun family music-led shows that regularly feature as part of our Imagine Children’s Festival at the Southbank Centre. Luckily, we’re in a position to find out, so why ponder when we can ask someone like David Gibb.

A musician, theatre maker and author, Gibb has been working with children and families for over a decade. He’s released six albums specifically for families, and his music has been played on radio stations throughout the world, as well as being performed on a huge number of stages of all sizes.

In February Gibb joins us at our Imagine Children’s Festival, along with his specially assembled Big Band, to perform a ‘first gig’ for your littlest music fans. So ahead of this we took the opportunity to ask him not only the questions above, but also how many instruments he has, and what’s the weirdest thing to happen to him on stage.

 

Hi David, how’re you? 

I'm really good, thank you. I'm really busy at the moment, working on a new theatre show, and also working on new songs for my next album, so things are really good. 

 

Did you always want to be a musician?

I think when I was younger, I didn't really realise that you could make a living out of being a musician. It felt like you either had to be a pop star, or it was something you did as a hobby. but I always loved music, and it was always a big part of my life. When I got to the age of about 19 or 20, I suddenly realised that it was something you could do as a career, even if that meant finding different ways to use your music, like in workshops or in community settings. I'm really lucky now that I get to write songs and make music for all sorts of occasions, whether that's for a theatre show for my own band performing live, or for things like podcasts and videos online. It's really exciting to have such a range of projects to work on. 

 

What’s your earliest musical memory? And was music a big part of your own childhood?

My earliest musical memory is probably when my parents got me my first keyboard, which was a Yamaha keyboard made in 1986. It had what's called a voice sampler on it, which meant that you could speak into this microphone and then play your voice back on the keyboard, it was the coolest thing I'd ever seen and I've still got it today. I've used it on lots of my records. Music was a big part of my childhood and there was lots of dancing and singing in my house, my dad played the flute, and my mum played the piano. They always really encouraged me in my musical pursuits. And I think sometimes, though they might have been a bit worried about what kind of career outlook I'd have as a musician, they still drove me to gigs, they brought me my first guitar and supported me in everything I did.

 

How many instruments do you own? And do you have a favourite?

I think I probably have too many instruments to list. I've certainly got about seven or eight guitars, I have a ukulele and a banjo. I've got three pianos, lots and lots of keyboards and lots of percussion instruments too. My favourite instrument is probably either my piano which I play almost every day and always makes me feel better, or my Taylor guitar, which my dad bought for me when I was 19 – a long time ago now, but it’s still the guitar I use every day.   

What led you to start creating music for children?

I’d always been interested in things like kids movies, books and television, but I suppose my career in children's music really started when I was playing on the English folk music scene. Quite often I would be booked for a folk festival and they would ask if I could run a workshop for families and children. In the evening when we had our first concert, I would notice that the front row would be full of all these children and families that had turned up to my workshop who wanted to hear my music. So I thought to myself, maybe I could make an album for families. That album was called Letters Through Your Door and it came out in 2014. Families seemed to really enjoy it, and were delighted to have something that parents could enjoy as much as their kids. Ever since then I've been busy making the kind of music I think families deserve.

 

What makes a good children’s song?

I think the things that make a really good song for adults are exactly the same things that can make a really good song for children. Things like relatable lyrics, or maybe a really catchy chorus, and of course great production. I think there's a misconception that children's music has to be a certain kind of sound. Some of the best songs for families I've heard are wildly different in terms of genre, tempo, rhythm, and feel, but they all have that special something that connects with and elicits an emotional response for the listener. Whether that's wanting to dance, to laugh or to cry, that's what all good music should do regardless of whether it's made for families.

 

What’s your favourite song of your own to sing? 

So, I recently released an album called Pedal Onwards, which is all about my dad. Sadly, he's no longer with us, but he loved bikes and cycling, both of which were a huge part of my childhood. The album is all about love and loss and grief and joy and families. Whenever I play the songs, I feel like my dad is close to me and I love sharing my stories about him with audiences. So those are my favourite songs to play at the moment.  

 

And what’s your favourite song by someone else to perform, and to listen to?

Well, that's a really hard question to answer, but a song that I've always loved and that I still enjoy playing and singing on the piano is called ‘This Boy’ by The Beatles. It's very simple, and a bit cheesy and very 1960s, but I love it, and it's really fun to play and sing.

 

What’s the best thing about performing music for children?

Children are the most honest audience that a musician can ever play to. If they don't like something, they won't be polite and pretend, they'll get up and go to their mum and dad and ask for a snack, or they'll run around, or sometimes they'll just walk out the room. It means that you have to do your very best every single time. This is really good for a musician and a songwriter, because it pushes you and challenges you.  

Have you had any funny or unusual things happen when you’ve been performing?

Well I'm really lucky in that sometimes fans will bring me things they've made like pictures or badges or posters. But I have to say one of the weirdest things I was ever given was when I sang a song about a worm on stage, and a small boy came up, and he brought me a live worm. And for some reason, I held my hand out and took it and then suddenly realised that I was stuck on stage with a worm that I had no idea what to do with! It was a very weird moment.

 

And lastly, what advice would you give to anyone who wants to be a musician when they grow up?

My advice is the advice I give to anyone whenever they ask me this question. Listen to music. Listen to all the music you can find, even if it's music you don't like or you're not sure about. Just listen and give it a try. It's so important. And I guarantee you will find something that you love that you never thought would be your thing. All the best musicians and songwriters in any genre whether it be metal, hip hop, or dance, will love music from every other genre. And these days it's so easy to discover amazing new music from all over the world.