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Songwriter, Country, & Bluegrass Musician






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Fun For Little Pickers and Their Families! cover




Fun for Little Pickers and Their Families is the name of my new book/cd project. The idea was that I was recording some stories and songs for my son, David to play when he especially misses me. In order to help his reading, I decided to make a book also.

As I was working on this, it occurred to me that it would be a good thing for families to interact more together through reading and listening to stories together, much like in the days when everyone gathered around the radio or the one tv that was in the house, or when everyone sat on the porch and listened to grandpa or someone tell some story. Even a kid's story can be lots of fun for adults, as you can tell from the popularity of the "Jack" tales and other traditional stories. With that in mind I started working on the book cd set "Fun for Little Pickers and their Families".

When I told my friend and collaborator about this project she became as excited as I was about it, and immediately offered to help by contributing some poetry, and by helping with layout and many other chores. Beth Duncan is an award winning author who contributes to the "Chocolate For the Soul" series of books among others. Beth is currently working on serveral books of her own, and has been published in magazines, newspapers, and books. Oh yeah, she writes some really good songs, too!

In addition to short stories, I also wanted to introduce kids to poetry, and I play a few songs that will hopefully appeal to them and their families as well. To put it another way, I wanted something that would appeal to kids of all ages. I think this project will meet all of its objectives. It will be enjoyed by the whole family. By the way, the book will be in 14 point type which will be easier to read for both the young and the young at heart. It is spiral bound, printed on 24 pound acid free stock, with a cover on 110 pound card stock with a cover of clear plastic for durability. There are 4 original short stories, 10 original poems, and 27 illustrations. There are 3 oringinal songs plus:


9 Pound Hammer

Pig In A Pen

Children Go Where I Send Thee

Tenessee Stud

All in all, this is a very well made book/cd set costing a mere &20;(twenty dollars) including shipping! It will make a gift that you and your little ones will treasure of years to come, and memories the little ones will treasure for a lifetime! Ordering info:
Send &20;(twenty dollars) for the Book/CD set, or &12;(twelve dollars) for the CD. Both prices include shipping in the U.S.
Send to:
Graylen Cook
261 Gwaltney Farm Lane
Taylorsville, NC 28681

Orders received by the 15th should be there in time for Christmas.




Graylen Cook: History of the Graylen Cook Project


I have been a picker for many years. I started playing guitar in the 6th grade, banjo in the 9th. I have been fortunate enough to be surrounded by some good musicians along the way. I have always tried to be playing with someone on at least a semi-regular basis, although groups come and go.

Now, I have decided that I will get my music into the hands of the public on my own terms, which means I will not be dependant on record companies. That's why I started my own label, which is called Lard Bucket Records. It's and old joke in bluegrass that someone on stage would say, "Here is our new song. It's out on the Lard Bucket Label." I always liked that joke, for some reason.

Anyway, although I have played music with many people, I have never been in a band that was just exactly what I wanted so I decided to create just that band. I wanted a band who could play anything from Bluegrass to Country to Western Swing, early rock to gospel. These are all influeneces of mine and each type of music had some great songs!

I played almost all the parts on "ALL MINE!" with the help of who ever was hanging around at the time. Barry Owings played dobro on "I'll Never Be Sorry!", while Joel Nielsen played guitar on "Nothing I Can Say (Or Do)". George Icard and Rick Wyatt played guitar and bass on "In Love, That's What I Am".

I played guitar, bass, dobro, mandolin, banjo, and keyboards on ALL MINE! I had a great time recording it. I hope you will enjoy listening to it!

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The Graylen Cook Project


Thank you for visiting the Graylen Cook Homepage and for supporting the Graylen Cook Project. Be sure to visit often for new information will be added frequently. If you hear of us playing in your area be sure to come and hear us. Also, be sure to say "Hello" to us.
cgraylen@hotmail.com



Graylen Cook Project!