A music project has been released based on the Manx family history writings of a 93 year old.

George Callow’s parents were from the Isle of Man, with George being born in Calgary, Canada, two years after they moved away from the island.

He wrote about his family’s history for a book titled ‘Book of Callows’, which recounted past stories and fascinating insights into generations of the same Manx family.

George’s son, Bruce, then had the idea to turn these stories into short musical pieces.

These songs include titles such as ‘James Callow: Guardian of Douglas Bay’, ‘John Callow: The Ghost in Your Loaf’, ‘Charlie Cowin: The Unsinkable Man’, ‘Lyndurst Callow: Angel of Dunkirk’ and ‘Civil Bill Callow: Minding His Beat’.

Talking about the music project, George said: ‘I had already written about these people and collected newspaper articles about them for a supplement to my Book of Callows, so I just put that material together and sent it to my son Bruce.

‘He suggested we try to make songs about some of our ancestors connected with major historical events, and I was the recipient of all the hard work Bruce did.

‘In some cases, he would give me six or more versions of songs to choose from which we would edit and finalise together.

‘We put some of the songs together remotely and some when he was visiting with me in Calgary.’

‘At the end of last year I learned about and started playing around with an AI song-writing tool called Suno,’ Bruce added.

‘I suggested to my dad that we make songs about some of the people he had written about in his Manx family history books, and he liked the idea.

‘It was a fun way for me to get to appreciate on a new level some of our Manx ancestors and my dad really enjoyed the novelty of it, having spent decades researching and writing about our family history.’

The songs and stories detail a wide range of figures in the Callow’s family history.

This included James Callow, a Manx boatman who saved over 20 lives from drowning in Douglas Bay, often during dangerous storms.

‘Civil Bill’ Callow was a police officer, known for his dedication to public safety and compassion, including efforts to aid smallpox victims.

John Callow, a distant cousin of George, invented a bread-making machine that significantly reduced labour time in bakeries and held multiple patents.

Meanwhile, Charlie Cowin, a cousin of George’s mother, survived four ship sinkings during the Second World War.

Asked if he thinks these stories should be celebrated, George said: ‘Anyone who did something special in their life should be recognised.

‘It’s a fun project that encourages people to become interested in family history in a way they otherwise might not be - by propagating a bit of family history in an entertaining way.’

To listen to the songs and find out more about the project, you can visit https://suno.com/playlist/7c31ccb3-ce2d-4830-8e79-0940d54965a2