THE ROBOT SHEARER, by Roland Griffin - tune Ryebuck Shearer.

Well I've heard about a bloke who's makin' a machine
To take the wool off the sheep and take it off clean
It doesn't need a man so no shears will be seen
And they call it the robot shearer.

CHORUS -
If it don't shear a tally and it's fuses blow
It's silicon chips in the river I'll throw
And it's back to the drawing board the scientist will go
It's the end of the robot shearer.

There's a new one on the board it's the RS21
It doesn't take a tea break at the end of every run
The rousies all call it the galvanized gun
Yes of course it's the robot shearer.

CHORUS

Well it doesn't mind the dags and it doesn't mind the smell
It doesn't even sweat and it's cheap to feed as well
It'll never join the union so I hope it goes to hell
Yes a curse on the robot shearer.

CHORUS

Well it had a little trouble, or so I'm told
It found the ewes were difficult to hold
It seems they don't like him his hands are always cold
Bad luck to the robot shearer.

CHORUS

The boss he didn't mind when it docked all his lambs
Dipped all his wethers and crutched all his dams
But he really did his block when it castrated his rams
It's the sack for the robot shearer.

Published in Stringybark & Greenhide, 4(2), p.28

from Tony Suttor - It was awarded joint first prize in the 1986 Top Half Folk Festival Songwriting Competition, together with Paul Lawler's My Dear Darwin (according to Peter Bate's book Top Half Folk Festivals 1971-2012).