G'day ... I'm back ...,

I listened to both records and they are two different tunes - and maybe different again from Mike O'Rourke's tune. I have Alan Scott's transcription of Jack Wright's tune on file (from A Collector's Songbook, Alan Scott, Bush Music Club, Sydney, 1970 (and Carrawobbity Press, Albion Park, 1993) and have attached a MIDItext file below.

As I compare this to Alan's recording, I can see that it is basically the same tune, but Alan sings it more lyrically. Jack's version has a lot of repeated notes and Alan "turns' these a little. One day I might sit down and annotate Alan's version of the tune ... but not tonight!

Aan's notes say that Jack wrote this up in North Queensland, around Mareeba c. 1935 but: "... says he always thinks of the railway yard at Babinda [a bit south and out on the East Coast] when he sings it." This is up in the region about which Tony O'Rourke's The Poison Train, in another current thread, was written.

MIDI file: battlers.mid

Timebase: 240

TimeSig: 2/4 24 8
Tempo: 126 (476190 microsec/crotchet)
Start
0240 1 60 080 0096 0 60 064 0024 1 62 080 0096 0 62 064 0024 1 64 080 0144 0 64 064 0036 1 64 080 0048 0 64 064 0012 1 64 080 0144 0 64 064 0036 1 64 080 0048 0 64 064 0012 1 64 080 0144 0 64 064 0036 1 62 080 0048 0 62 064 0012 1 60 080 0144 0 60 064 0036 1 62 080 0048 0 62 064 0012 1 64 080 0144 0 64 064 0036 1 64 080 0048 0 64 064 0012 1 64 080 0144 0 64 064 0036 1 64 080 0048 0 64 064 0012 1 64 080 0144 0 64 064 0036 1 62 080 0048 0 62 064 0012 1 60 080 0144 0 60 064 0036 1 62 080 0048 0 62 064 0012 1 64 080 0144 0 64 064 0036 1 64 080 0048 0 64 064 0012 1 64 080 0144 0 64 064 0036 1 64 080 0048 0 64 064 0012 1 64 080 0144 0 64 064 0036 1 67 080 0048 0 67 064 0012 1 67 080 0144 0 67 064 0036 1 64 080 0048 0 64 064 0012 1 62 080 0672 0 62 064 0048 1 59 080 0096 0 59 064 0024 1 60 080 0096 0 60 064 0024 1 62 080 0096 0 62 064 0024 1 62 080 0096 0 62 064 0024 1 62 080 0096 0 62 064 0024 1 62 080 0096 0 62 064 0024 1 62 080 0096 0 62 064 0024 1 60 080 0096 0 60 064 0024 1 59 080 0096 0 59 064 0024 1 60 080 0096 0 60 064 0024 1 62 080 0096 0 62 064 0024 1 62 080 0096 0 62 064 0024 1 62 080 0096 0 62 064 0024 1 62 080 0096 0 62 064 0024 1 62 080 0096 0 62 064 0024 1 60 080 0096 0 60 064 0024 1 59 080 0096 0 59 064 0024 1 60 080 0096 0 60 064 0024 1 67 080 0096 0 67 064 0024 1 67 080 0096 0 67 064 0024 1 67 080 0096 0 67 064 0024 1 67 080 0096 0 67 064 0024 1 67 080 0096 0 67 064 0024 1 64 080 0096 0 64 064 0024 1 62 080 0096 0 62 064 0024 1 64 080 0096 0 64 064 0024 1 60 080 0672 0 60 064 0048 1 60 080 0096 0 60 064 0024 1 62 080 0096 0 62 064 0024 1 64 080 0144 0 64 064 0036 1 64 080 0048 0 64 064 0012 1 64 080 0144 0 64 064 0036 1 64 080 0048 0 64 064 0012 1 64 080 0144 0 64 064 0036 1 62 080 0048 0 62 064 0012 1 60 080 0144 0 60 064 0036 1 62 080 0048 0 62 064 0012 1 64 080 0144 0 64 064 0036 1 64 080 0048 0 64 064 0012 1 64 080 0144 0 64 064 0036 1 64 080 0048 0 64 064 0012 1 64 080 0144 0 64 064 0036 1 62 080 0048 0 62 064 0012 1 60 080 0144 0 60 064 0036 1 62 080 0048 0 62 064 0012 1 64 080 0144 0 64 064 0036 1 64 080 0048 0 64 064 0012 1 64 080 0144 0 64 064 0036 1 64 080 0048 0 64 064 0012 1 64 080 0144 0 64 064 0036 1 67 080 0048 0 67 064 0012 1 67 080 0144 0 67 064 0036 1 64 080 0048 0 64 064 0012 1 62 080 0672 0 62 064 0048 1 59 080 0096 0 59 064 0024 1 60 080 0096 0 60 064 0024 1 62 080 0096 0 62 064 0024 1 62 080 0096 0 62 064 0024 1 62 080 0096 0 62 064 0024 1 62 080 0096 0 62 064 0024 1 62 080 0096 0 62 064 0024 1 60 080 0096 0 60 064 0024 1 59 080 0096 0 59 064 0024 1 60 080 0096 0 60 064 0024 1 62 080 0096 0 62 064 0024 1 62 080 0096 0 62 064 0024 1 62 080 0096 0 62 064 0024 1 62 080 0096 0 62 064 0024 1 62 080 0096 0 62 064 0024 1 60 080 0096 0 60 064 0144 1 60 080 0096 0 60 064 0024 1 67 080 0096 0 67 064 0024 1 67 080 0096 0 67 064 0024 1 67 080 0096 0 67 064 0024 1 67 080 0096 0 67 064 0024 1 67 080 0096 0 67 064 0024 1 64 080 0096 0 64 064 0024 1 62 080 0096 0 62 064 0024 1 64 080 0096 0 64 064 0024 1 60 080 0672 0 60 064 0048 1 67 080 0192 0 67 064 0048 1 72 080 0384 0 72 064 0096 1 69 080 0384 0 69 064 0096 1 67 080 0384 0 67 064 0096 1 64 080 0384 0 64 064 0096 1 60 080 0096 0 60 064 0024 1 60 080 0096 0 60 064 0024 1 60 080 0096 0 60 064 0024 1 62 080 0096 0 62 064 0024 1 64 080 0192 0 64 064 0048 1 60 080 0192 0 60 064 0048 1 69 080 0672 0 69 064 0048 1 69 080 0096 0 69 064 0024 1 71 080 0096 0 71 064 0024 1 72 080 0096 0 72 064 0024 1 72 080 0096 0 72 064 0024 1 72 080 0096 0 72 064 0024 1 72 080 0096 0 72 064 0024 1 72 080 0192 0 72 064 0048 1 74 080 0096 0 74 064 0024 1 72 080 0096 0 72 064 0024 1 71 080 0096 0 71 064 0024 1 71 080 0096 0 71 064 0024 1 71 080 0096 0 71 064 0024 1 69 080 0096 0 69 064 0024 1 67 080 0192 0 67 064 0048 1 64 080 0096 0 64 064 0024 1 65 080 0096 0 65 064 0024 1 67 080 0096 0 67 064 0024 1 67 080 0096 0 67 064 0024 1 67 080 0096 0 67 064 0024 1 67 080 0096 0 67 064 0024 1 67 080 0096 0 67 064 0024 1 65 080 0096 0 65 064 0024 1 64 080 0096 0 64 064 0024 1 62 080 0096 0 62 064 0024 1 60 080 0576 0 60 064
End

This program is worth the effort of learning it.

To download the March 10 MIDItext 98 software and get instructions on how to use it click here

ABC format:

X:1
T:
M:2/4
Q:1/4=126
K:C
C6D2|E3EE3E|E3DC3D|E3EE3E|E3DC3D|E3EE3E|E3GG3E|
D8|-D4B,2C2|D2D2D2D2|D2C2B,2C2|D2D2D2D2|D2C2B,2C2|
G2G2G2G2|G2E2D2E2|C8|-C4C2D2|E3EE3E|E3DC3D|
E3EE3E|E3DC3D|E3EE3E|E3GG3E|D8|-D4B,2C2|D2D2D2D2|
D2C2B,2C2|D2D2D2D2|D2C4C2|G2G2G2G2|G2E2D2E2|
C8|-C4G4|c8|A8|G8|E8|C2C2C2D2|E4C4|A8|-A4A2B2|
c2c2c2c2|c4d2c2|B2B2B2A2|G4E2F2|G2G2G2G2|
G2F2E2D2|C8|-C3/2||