The Butterfly Children
Encyclopedia
The Butterfly Children is the title of a series of children's books created by husband and wife team, Pat
and Angela Mills
. The books were published during the 1990s by Peter Haddock Ltd. In 1990, a musical based on the characters was staged featuring songs written by Martin Lee
, Paul Curtis
and David Kane. A corrosponding album was recorded in 1992 by pop group Brotherhood of Man
.
. Some of the later books were written by other writers such as Greta Landen and Elisabeth Sackett. The stories concerned a group of elf-like figures called the Butterfly Children who performed good deeds within a forest. Other characters included the overseeing birds; D.C. and Jack the Lad and the villainous Moth Gang.
A number of books were produced such as Ice and Lullabies, The Big Race, Shrieks and Showers, "Summer Sleep", "Whizzing Through the Woods" and Finders Keepers.
teamed up with established songwriter Paul Curtis
and the unknown David Kane to write a musical based on the books and the characters. Together they composed The Butterfly Children musical. Some of the songs were named after the books such as "Finders Keepers" and "The Big Race", while the characters of D.C. and Jack the Lad also had song written about them. The show was intended, like the books, for children and the songs, while essentially pop, had a range of styles including rap, rock 'n' roll and country and western.
The musical had its world premiere at the Mitchell Theatre in Glasgow
, to open the 1990 Glasgow City of Culture and ran for a month and was performed by the Mitchell Theatre for Youth. Just three months later, the show transferred to the larger Kings Theatre in Glasgow and ran for two weeks. The show transferred in late 1992 to London
's West End
for a limited period but has not been performed since.
in 1992 - of which one of the composers, Martin Lee was a member. The album was released on cassette tape only and was never commercially released. The cassette was available to buy at the shows however. Some of the songs were later included on audio book versions of The Butterfly Children books. The album cover describes the content as "A sparkling pop musical". The group's name doesn't appear on the cover of the album, although the credits on the inside sleeve name the singers as: Martin Lee, Sandra Stevens
, Nicky Stevens
and Lee Sheriden
(Brotherhood of Man). The group, who had achieved much success in the 1970s as a pop outfit, here tackled the songs' varying styles such as rap on "Jack the Lad", gospel on "Finders Keepers", Country and Western on "Piece Patrol" and rock on "Wings" as well as a spoken-word song, "The Moth Ball Spoof". Among the 19 tracks, the lion's share of the lead vocals went to Martin Lee, although all the group's members received at least one lead, while other songs were group efforts or joint vocals by Sandra and Nicky.
This was the first album by the group since 1983's Lightning Flash
, although they had recorded some songs a year previously with Dutch producer Eddy Ouwens, which went unreleased. Today, the album remains officially unreleased, although a number of tracks are currently available on YouTube
.
Side Two
Pat Mills
Pat Mills, nicknamed 'the godfather of British comics', is a comics writer and editor who, along with John Wagner, revitalised British boys comics in the 1970s, and has remained a leading light in British comics ever since....
and Angela Mills
Angela Kincaid
Angela Kincaid, formerly known by her married name of Angela Mills, is a children's book illustrator best known for The Butterfly Children series of picture books. With her then husband, Pat Mills, she created the Celtic comics character Sláine for 2000 AD.-External links:*...
. The books were published during the 1990s by Peter Haddock Ltd. In 1990, a musical based on the characters was staged featuring songs written by Martin Lee
Martin Lee (singer)
Martin Lee is a singer-songwriter, best known as a member of the British pop group Brotherhood of Man.- Early career :...
, Paul Curtis
Paul Curtis (musician)
Paul Michael Curtis is an English singer, songwriter, record producer from London, who holds the record for the most number of songs to make the finals of the A Song for Europe contest, the BBC's annual competition to choose the UK entry to the Eurovision Song Contest, competing with 22 separate...
and David Kane. A corrosponding album was recorded in 1992 by pop group Brotherhood of Man
Brotherhood of Man
Brotherhood of Man are a British pop group who achieved success in the 1970s, most notably by winning the 1976 Eurovision Song Contest with "Save Your Kisses for Me"....
.
Books
The books were short picture books, illustrated by Angela Mills and written by her and her then husband Pat MillsPat Mills
Pat Mills, nicknamed 'the godfather of British comics', is a comics writer and editor who, along with John Wagner, revitalised British boys comics in the 1970s, and has remained a leading light in British comics ever since....
. Some of the later books were written by other writers such as Greta Landen and Elisabeth Sackett. The stories concerned a group of elf-like figures called the Butterfly Children who performed good deeds within a forest. Other characters included the overseeing birds; D.C. and Jack the Lad and the villainous Moth Gang.
A number of books were produced such as Ice and Lullabies, The Big Race, Shrieks and Showers, "Summer Sleep", "Whizzing Through the Woods" and Finders Keepers.
Musical
In 1990, Martin LeeMartin Lee (singer)
Martin Lee is a singer-songwriter, best known as a member of the British pop group Brotherhood of Man.- Early career :...
teamed up with established songwriter Paul Curtis
Paul Curtis (musician)
Paul Michael Curtis is an English singer, songwriter, record producer from London, who holds the record for the most number of songs to make the finals of the A Song for Europe contest, the BBC's annual competition to choose the UK entry to the Eurovision Song Contest, competing with 22 separate...
and the unknown David Kane to write a musical based on the books and the characters. Together they composed The Butterfly Children musical. Some of the songs were named after the books such as "Finders Keepers" and "The Big Race", while the characters of D.C. and Jack the Lad also had song written about them. The show was intended, like the books, for children and the songs, while essentially pop, had a range of styles including rap, rock 'n' roll and country and western.
The musical had its world premiere at the Mitchell Theatre in Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
, to open the 1990 Glasgow City of Culture and ran for a month and was performed by the Mitchell Theatre for Youth. Just three months later, the show transferred to the larger Kings Theatre in Glasgow and ran for two weeks. The show transferred in late 1992 to London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
's West End
West End theatre
West End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's 'Theatreland', the West End. Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking...
for a limited period but has not been performed since.
Album
The songs from the musical were recorded by pop group Brotherhood of ManBrotherhood of Man
Brotherhood of Man are a British pop group who achieved success in the 1970s, most notably by winning the 1976 Eurovision Song Contest with "Save Your Kisses for Me"....
in 1992 - of which one of the composers, Martin Lee was a member. The album was released on cassette tape only and was never commercially released. The cassette was available to buy at the shows however. Some of the songs were later included on audio book versions of The Butterfly Children books. The album cover describes the content as "A sparkling pop musical". The group's name doesn't appear on the cover of the album, although the credits on the inside sleeve name the singers as: Martin Lee, Sandra Stevens
Sandra Stevens
Sandra Stevens is a British singer and member of pop group Brotherhood of Man.- Early career :Sandra Stevens first entered into a singing career at the age of sixteen when she joined the club band, The Track...
, Nicky Stevens
Nicky Stevens
Nicky Stevens is a singer, famous as a member of pop group Brotherhood of Man.- Early career :Nicky Stevens began singing at an early age was classically trained. At 15 she toured the Continent as a singer performing in night clubs. Following this she went on to tour South Africa as well as clubs...
and Lee Sheriden
Lee Sheriden
Lee Sheriden is a British singer/songwriter and musical director, best known as a member of pop group Brotherhood of Man.-Early career:...
(Brotherhood of Man). The group, who had achieved much success in the 1970s as a pop outfit, here tackled the songs' varying styles such as rap on "Jack the Lad", gospel on "Finders Keepers", Country and Western on "Piece Patrol" and rock on "Wings" as well as a spoken-word song, "The Moth Ball Spoof". Among the 19 tracks, the lion's share of the lead vocals went to Martin Lee, although all the group's members received at least one lead, while other songs were group efforts or joint vocals by Sandra and Nicky.
This was the first album by the group since 1983's Lightning Flash
Lightning Flash
Lightning Flash is the twelfth album by British pop group Brotherhood of Man. Released on EMI Records in 1983, it remains their final commercially-released studio album.- Background :...
, although they had recorded some songs a year previously with Dutch producer Eddy Ouwens, which went unreleased. Today, the album remains officially unreleased, although a number of tracks are currently available on YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
.
Track listing
Side One- "The Butterfly Children" (Lee / Curtis) 2.57
- "Jack the Lad" (Lee / Curtis) 3.04
- "Moth Gang" (Lee / Curtis) 2.42
- "Sunshine All the Way" (Lee / Curtis) 4.07
- "It's Great to Be a Butterfly" (Lee / Curtis) 3.11
- "Wings" (Lee / Kane) 3.40
- "The Big Race" (Lee / Kane) 2.34
- "Finders Keepers" (Lee / Curtis) 3.04
- "Butterfly Ball" (Lee / Curtis) 2.02
- "The Moth Ball Spoof" (Lee / Curtis) 2.16
- "He Looked at Me" (Lee / Curtis) (0.43)
Side Two
- "Butterfly Rock" (Lee / Curtis) 4.21
- "Hey D.C." (Lee / Curtis) 3.43
- "Always You and I" (Lee / Curtis) 3.28
- "Isn't it Sad/She Looked at Me" (Lee / Curtis) 1.46
- "Piece Patrol" (Lee / Kane) 2.33
- "What Would Happen if Christmas Never Came" (Lee / Curtis) 4.26
- "Just When it Seems Impossible" (Lee / Curtis) 3.08
- "Butterfly, Butterfly" (Lee / Kane) 4.00
Personnel
Lead vocals:- Martin Lee: "The Butterfly Children", "Jack the Lad", "Moth Gang", "The Big Race", "Finders Keepers", "The Moth Ball Spoof", "Butterfly Rock", "Hey D.C.", "Isn't it Sad/She Looked at Me", "Just When it Seems Impossible"
- Sandra Stevens: "It's Great to Be a Butterfly", "He Looked at Me", "What Would Happen if Christmas Never Came"
- Nicky Stevens: "Always You and I"
- Lee Sheriden: "Piece Patrol"
- Produced by Martin Lee