G'day all,

This is the gen on 'The Dog's Meeting' as collected in Australia. At least this time I have the publisher correct (I realised my error as I sent the reply away).

From 'Folk Songs of Australia and the men and women who sang them', John Meredith and Hugh Anderson, Ure Smith, Sydney, 1967. The following text is written by Hugh Anderson, describing the collecting of this song by John Meredith in the 1950s (c. 1957, as the Sloanes still lived in Lithgow).

"Several elderly people have told John Meredith that Henry Lawson wrote 'The Dogs' Meeting' as well as the well-known 'Shearer's Lament'. When John was taking part in a concert at Mudgee, some time ago, an old man told him he was with Lawson when he wrote it. They were sitting, the old chap said, on a seat outside one of the local pubs watching the dogs do what dogs do when they meet, and afterwards, in the bar, Henry wrote out the ballad and read it aloud. There are certainly a lot of dogs about Mudgee streets even today and Lawson certainly knew his dogs (see, for example, 'The Shearing of the Cook's Dog', 'That There Dog of Mine', 'The Loaded Dog'. or 'Two Dogs and a Fence'), but whether he actually wrote these verses has been doubted by several reputable authorities.

When Bill Boundy sang 'The Dogs' Meeting' he thumped on a table with a boom, boom-boom rhythm in place of some words. A popular song of a few years ago, sung to the same tune, used the same method of replacing words with a thump, thump-thump."

THE DOGS' MEETING

Oh, the dogs once held a concert,
They came from near and far,
Oh, some they came by aeroplane,
And some by motorcar.
Before into the concert hall
They were allowed to look,
Each dog had to take his (boom, boom-boom)
And hang it on a hook.
Oh, each dog had to take his (boom, boom-boom)
And hang it on a hook.

Oh, hardly were they seated there,
Each mother, son and sire,
When a dirty little yeller dog
Began to holler 'Fire!'
Out they rushed in panic -
They didn't stop to look -
Each dog he grabbed a (boom, boom-boom)
From off the nearest hook.
Oh, each dog he grabbed a (boom, boom-boom)
From off the nearest hook.

And that's the reason why you see,
On walking down the street,
Each dog will stop and swap a smell
With every dog he meets.
And that's the reason why a dog
Will leave a big fat bone
To go and smell a (boom, boom-boom)
In hope to find his own.
To go and smell a (boom, boom-boom)
In hope to find his own.

'The Dogs' Meeting' was recorded at Fred Sloane's house in Lithgow. When Boundy had completed his song, Fred remarked that he had never heard it sung before, only as a recitation, so Meredith recorded him as well.

It will be seen from the latter part of the quote that the words precede the pop song ('The Thing') using the same tune and device. It may be that Lawson did write the poem and the appearance of the pop song prompted setting the words to the same tune/structure. Anderson notes that "... whether he actually wrote these verses has been doubted by several reputable authorities." Of course, this is what "reputable authorities" do ...

Another interesting aspect in all this relates to another song - once more to the 'Lincolnshire Poacher' tune and coyly using with a (boom, boom-boom), or similar device. This is what I have known since ~ 1962 as 'The Chandler's Wife'. In fact I gave a version of this to John Meredith around late 1962 at the time he was looking for bawdy material, much of which was subsequently published in 'Snatches and Lays or songs Miss Lilywhite never taught us', "Sebastian Hogbotel & Simon Ffuckes", Sun Books, 1973.

The version I find in my current copy of the expanded version; 'More Snatches and Lays ', "Hogbotel & Ffuckes", Sun Books Pty Ltd, The MacMillan Co of Australia, South Melbourne, 1983, is two verses short of mine and transferred to the third person, so I don't think I can (or would wish to) claim it as my submission.

As I remember it, my version went:

THE CHANDLER'S SHOP
To the tune 'The Lincolnshire Poacher'

When I went down to the chandler's shop, some candles for to buy,
Very annoyed was I to find - no chandler could I spy;
But as I turned around to leave, I heard above my head -
I heard the sound of a (boom, boom-boom), right above my head.
Oh, I heard the sound of a (boom, boom-boom), right above my head.

Now I was quick and I was young, so up the stairs I sped,
And very surprised was I to find, the chandler's wife in bed.
With her was another of a quite considerable size
And they were having a (boom, boom-boom), right before my eyes.
Yes, they were having a (boom, boom-boom), right before my eyes.

When the fun was over and the lady raised her head,
Very surprised was she to find me standing by her bed.
"Now if you will be discreet my lad, if you will be so kind,
You can come round for some (boom, boom-boom), whenever you feel inclined.
Oh, you can come round for some (boom, boom-boom), whenever you feel inclined.

So many times and often, when the chandler wasn't at home,
To get myself some candles, to the chandler's shop I'd roam;
But never a one she gave to me - she gave to me instead -
A little bit more of the (boom, boom-boom) to light my way to bed!
A little bit more of the (boom, boom-boom) to light my way to bed.

So all you married men beware, take heed of what I've said.
If you would leave your wife at home, then tie her to the bed -
Or, if you be more kind, good sir, then lay her out on the floor ...
And give her so much of the (boom, boom-boom) she won't want any more -
Yes, give her so much of the (boom, boom-boom) she won't want any more.

Now the interesting question is: just how old is this song? I believe I learned it from the late Declan Affley - a locally noted Irish singer, despite being born in Wales (but raised in an Irish Navvies' ghetto!) but I can no longer ask him where he learned it. I must check with the DT to see if there is a version there.

Was this song simply inspired by the pop song or was it (or a similar song) the sub rosa inspiration for the pop song? The wide use of the 'Lincolnshire Poacher' tune can only go back to the start of this century but was this the original tune? I note that the version of 'The Dogs' Meeting' that started this thread goes to 'The Church's One Foundation' so the tune is not a reliable indicator.

Regards,

Bob Bolton