Lyr Add: Tennant Bloody Creek

Subject: Tennant Bloody Creek
From: Ted from Australia
Date: 27 Apr 16 - 09:17 PM

A song from The Northern Territory Australia
Remembered, perhaps imperfectly, especially as to the order of the verses) Any additions or corrections?
Yair I know it used to be no bloody trains, but there is one now so I stuck in trams for the mexicans (Melbournians)

Tennant Bloody Creek

This bloody town's a bloody cuss
No bloody trams no bloody bus
And no one cares for bloody us
In Tennant Bloody Creek

No bloody kerbs No bloody drains
The bloody council's got no brains
God help us if it bloody rains
In Tennant Bloody Creek

Just bloody heat and bloody flies
The bloody sweat runs in your eyes
And if it rains, what a surprise
In Tennant Bloody Creek

No bloody fun no bloody games
No bloody sex no bloody dames
They don't even give their bloody names
In Tennant Bloody Creek

The bloody dances make you smile
The bloody band is bloody vile
They only cramp your bloody style
In Tennant Bloody Creek

PS Don't sing this in TC

Subject: RE: Tennant Bloody Creek
From: Andrez
Date: 27 Apr 16 - 09:41 PM

Hmmmm having lived and worked in Tennant Creek at one time, apart from the heat and flies in the season, this little ditty sure isn't representative of life there.

It certainly doesn't acknowledge the unemployment, poverty and disadvantage experienced by Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples nor the damage caused to children, families and community by get-rich-quick 'whitefella' floggers of booze and poker machines. Nor is there any sense of the suffering and anguish experienced by the Tennant Creek branch of the 'stolen generation' as a result of past government policy and white Christian do-gooders. Nuff said!

I have to add it wasn't a song I ever came across in my time in various towns and places in the NT and given the low grade writing and poetic 'imagery' I'm not at all surprised. Methinks its better left forgotten, but thats only my opinion.

Cheers,

Andrez

Subject: RE: Tennant Bloody Creek
From: Dave Hanson
Date: 28 Apr 16 - 02:43 PM

I don't know how old this song is but it only differs in name and an odd word to the second world war song, ' Fucking Halkirk '

Dave H

Subject: RE: ADD: Tennant Bloody Creek
From: Effsee
Date: 28 Apr 16 - 02:58 PM

... ' Fucking Halkirk '...or Bloody Orkney.

Subject: Lyr Add: BLOODY DARWIN
From: GUEST,TonyinDarwin
Date: 28 Apr 16 - 10:26 PM

Googling:
Written by a soldier serving at Darwin during the war, 1941

BLOODY DARWIN

The bloody town's a bloody cuss
No bloody trams, no bloody bus
And no one cares for bloody us
Oh bloody, bloody Darwin

The bloody roads are bloody bad
The bloody folks are bloody mad
They even say 'you bloody cad'
Oh bloody, bloody Darwin

All bloody clouds and bloody rain
All bloody stones, no bloody drains
The council's got no bloody brains
Oh bloody, bloody Darwin

And everything's so bloody dear
A bloody bob for bloody beer
And is it good? No bloody fear
Oh bloody, bloody Darwin

The bloody 'flicks' are bloody old
The bloody seats are bloody cold
And can't get in for bloody gold
Oh bloody, bloody Darwin

The bloody dances make me smile
The bloody band is bloody vile
They only cramp your bloody style
Oh bloody, bloody Darwin

No bloody sports, no bloody games
No bloody fun with bloody dames
Won't even give their bloody names
Oh bloody, bloody Darwin

Best bloody place is bloody bed
With bloody ice on bloody head
And then they say you're bloody dead
Oh bloody, bloody Darwin

- Soldier's chant

Subject: RE: ADD: Tennant Bloody Creek
From: Ted from Australia
Date: 29 Apr 16 - 12:24 AM

Andrez. I first picked this up in TC about 40 years ago. Its a fun song not a social comment. Build a bridge. Tony Thanks for the movie and ice verses I had forgotten those.

Subject: RE: ADD: Tennant Bloody Creek
From: GUEST,gecko
Date: 29 Apr 16 - 08:28 PM

Very popular song, especially when in Tennant Creek for the annual 'Goldfields Folk Festival' - now sadly defunct. Us Alice folkies travelled north to Tennant and the Darwin mob travelled south and then the music and fun began! Great memories of Tennant Bloody Creek.

Subject: RE: ADD: Tennant Bloody Creek
From: Stewie
Date: 29 Apr 16 - 09:37 PM

Hi Ted and Janet. Those were the days. The bus trip down to the Goldfields was a highlight in itself.

I too thought Andrez was being a little too precious. It was a fun song. I recall that the ladies preparing the CWA Hall in Tennant where we practised didn't mind it.

Janet, are you coming across to the Top Half this June?

--Stewie.

Subject: RE: ADD: Tennant Bloody Creek
From: GUEST,Mary Brettell
Date: 10 Jul 17 - 03:17 AM

Does it have a tune? I have heard it only as a poem.

Subject: RE: ADD: Tennant Bloody Creek
From: McGrath of Harlow
Date: 10 Jul 17 - 07:23 PM

More or less naturally it seems to push you into using the tune used for Johnny Cope.

Seems to have travelled to all kinds of places soldiers were stationed. Best known version seems to be Bloody Orkney, which is ascribed here to Captain Hamish Blair.
Bloody Orkney