Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Stewie Date: 06 Dec 20 - 08:37 PM NEW CHUM SHEARER (Traditional) Well the new chum toils with heart and soul Shearing the sheep just to make a roll Out in the outback, far away Then off to Sydney for a holiday And down in the city he's a terrible swell As he takes a taxi to the Kent Hotel, The barmaid says, 'Well you look ill It must have been rough tucker, Bill' And down in the city he looks a goat With his Oxford bags and Seymour coat Spends his money like a fool of course He's worked for like a bloomin' horse Then he shouts for everyone round the place Then it's off to Randwick for the big horse race Dopes himself on back-ache pills Talks high tallies and tucker bills His money's gone, he's sick and sore And the barmaid's looks aren't kind any more His erstwhile friends don't give a hoot It's back to the bush, per what? - the boot! And back in Bourke where the flies are bad, He tells of the wonderful times he's had The winners that he shouldn't have missed And he skites of the dozens of girls he's kissed And he stands on the corner scrounging a fag The shirt tails showing through his Oxford bags He's pawned that beautiful Seymour coat He's got no money - oh, what a goat Got no tucker, got no booze, The soles are gone from his snake-skin shoes Camps in the bend, in the wind and rain Waits for the shearing to start again So all you blokes with a cheque to spend Don't go down to the city where you've got no friends Head for the nearest wayside shack It ain't so far when you've got to walk back! Youtube clip --Stewie. |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: GUEST,SqueezeMe Date: 07 Dec 20 - 09:54 AM Another regular reader of this thread here. Please keep up the good work; this is a wonderful resource. One or two notable omissions (my humble opinion only). Kevin Baker's "Snowy River Men" has long been a favorite. And maybe something from Broome's Pigram Brothers, perhaps "Saltwater Cowboy". Or have they already been posted and I've missed them???? |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Stewie Date: 07 Dec 20 - 07:12 PM Welcome, Guest. Thanks for your feedback; it is appreciated. I posted 2 Pigram Brothers songs above - 'Dry River Bed' and 'Johnny's Shoes'. I'll post your suggestions. R-J, you'll love this parody of 'Sounds of Silence' if you haven't heard it. Parliament can be fun for a few moments. West Oz pollie --Stewie. |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Sandra in Sydney Date: 07 Dec 20 - 07:54 PM lost your password SqeezeMe? I love Kevin's work, but very little is available outside his records & CDs, & Dave de Santi is not aware of anyone still singing his songs. Doesn't mean that folks don't slip in an occasional song in sessions, but ... I've posted a video of Snowy River men, 29 Aug 20 - 10:04 AM, but not the words. Decades ago BMC published the words not knowing who wrote it & I do have a jpg of them, all I need to do is find it. I asked Ralph to OCR scan the words of 'One hand's the boss's' (05 Nov 20 - 05:22 AM) & probably could ask him to do so again. sandra |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Sandra in Sydney Date: 07 Dec 20 - 07:59 PM oops, I didn't check - the words are there with the video. sandra (blushing) |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Stewie Date: 07 Dec 20 - 09:05 PM SqueezeMe, here's your other request: SALTWATER COWBOY (Pigram Brothers) Lend me your body tonight, my bluewater lady This salty wind is getting to my bones These lugger sails are moving too slowly For this saltwater cowboy sailing home This ol' copper hat is aching my shoulders These lead-weight boots don't need any spurs To ride these waves and bare-back mermaids Ah this saltwater country is my home Stand back, you shallow water man Let a deep sea diver through Selamat tingal, nakula jarndu Sayonara, slo'n', gallow nyundu These lugger sails are moving too slowly For this saltwater cowboy sailing home Stand back, you shallow water man Let a deep sea diver through These lugger sails are moving too slowly For this saltwater cowboy sailing home For this saltwater cowboy sailing home For this saltwater cowboy sailing home Youtube clip --Stewie. |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: rich-joy Date: 07 Dec 20 - 09:44 PM OMG Stewie! I am amazed that the Speaker just let the Hon MLA Templeman keep going to the end!! Wonder if there was "fallout" for anyone?! I seem to recall a famous Sth African politician (a great female singer and activist, whose name at present escapes me) was stopped from her attempt at singing in the South African Parliament .... R-J |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: JennieG Date: 07 Dec 20 - 10:08 PM Is my memory playing me false, or did Kevin Baker write a song called "Superstar"? About how people used to sing while going about their everyday tasks, but now you have to be - or think you have to be - a superstar, to sing. |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Sandra in Sydney Date: 08 Dec 20 - 12:34 AM yes, & I posted it - 29 Aug 20 - 10:52 AM it's probably my favourite of his songs, or is Aunty Rooney my favourite? It's the story of a family entertainment in the days before TV where everyone participates "today I'll play the mouth organ my mother let me bring" I'll type it up later today sandra |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: JennieG Date: 08 Dec 20 - 01:20 AM Thanks, Sandra - jolly good! It's a great song. Mind you, I remember my mother used to sing around the house and we always wished that she wouldn't.....because she couldn't..... |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Sandra in Sydney Date: 08 Dec 20 - 03:59 AM another oops, I posted Aunty Rooney on 18 Sep 20 - 02:17 AM |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: SqueezeMe Date: 08 Dec 20 - 07:03 AM Thanks, Stewie, for posting Saltwater Cowboy; couldn't understand all the words from the recording I have. I missed the earlier post of Snowy River Men, Sandra. Sorry to have put you to any trouble, and the subtle slap on the wrist re. log-in duly noted :-) |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: rich-joy Date: 08 Dec 20 - 07:45 AM I'm reading a dog book at present, hence this offering! DOG’S MEETING (aka CANINE CATASTROPHE) The dogs they held a festival They came from near and far And some they came by aeroplane And some by motor car Before into the concert hall They were allowed to look Each dog had to take off his Boom ba-Boom*** And hang it on a hook Yes, each dog had to take off his Boom ba-Boom And hang it on the hook. Well, when they were all seated there Each mother, son and sire, A dirty little yellow dog Began to holler ´Fire!´ Out they rushed in panic They didn't stop to look Each dog he grabbed a Boom ba-Boom From off the nearest hook Yes, each dog he grabbed a Boom ba-Boom From off the nearest hook. So that's the reason that you’ll see When walking down the street Each dog will stop and swap a smell With every dog he meets And that's the reason why, me boys He’ll leave a big fat bone Just to go and sniff a Boom ba-Boom To see if it’s his own Just to go and sniff a Boom ba-Boom To see if it’s his own. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LGodoFa0FIU Canine Catastrophe : The Wild Colonial Boys (lead : Bob McInnes) John Thompson writes : “A joke old enough to have developed many versions. Ron Edwards notes that many of both his and John Meredith's informants claim Henry Lawson as the author, however there is no evidence that this is the case.” Many variants, Many titles, Many tunes. Possibly started life in Scotland, long ago ….. Australian versions often set to “The Lincolnshire Poacher”, as with the Wild Colonial Boys version. ***however you wish to make the 'knock-knock' sound .... R-J |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: GUEST,John Flynn Date: 08 Dec 20 - 08:25 AM Another very appreciative regular visitor to this thread. Many many thanks to Sandra, Stewie, Rich-Joy and others for all their many enjoyable contributions. From a Kiwi (and former member of the NZFLS) who has lived in Perth since 1975. |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: rich-joy Date: 08 Dec 20 - 08:28 AM Shores of Botany Bay I'm on me way down to the quay Where the good ship now does lay To command a gang of navvies I was told to engage But I thought I would stop in for a while Before I went away For to take a trip on an emigrant ship To the shores of Botany Bay. Ch. Farewell to your bricks and mortar Farewell to your dirty lime Farewell to your gangway and your gang plank And to hell with your overtime For the good ship “Ragamuffin” Is lying at the quay For to take old Pat with a shovel on his back To the shores of Botany Bay. The best years of our life we spend At working on the docks Building mighty wharves and quays Of earth and ballast rocks Our pensions keep our lives secure But I'll not rue the day When I take a trip on an emigrant ship To the shores of Botany Bay. Oh the boss came up this morning And he said "Why Pat, hello If you do not mix that mortar quick Be sure you'll have to go" Of course he did insult me I demanded all me pay And I told him straight I was going to emigrate To the shores of Botany Bay. And when I reach Australia I'll go and look for gold There's plenty there for the digging of Or so I have been told Or maybe I’ll go back to me trade Eight hundred bricks I'll lay In an eight hour shift for eight bob pay On the shores of Botany Bay. Notes Collected from Duke Tritton by John Meredith. Tritton learned the song while busking in Sydney early this century. He also wrote the last verse. Second verse is from Therese Radic's Songs of Australian Working Life : MARK GREGORY http://folkstream.com/080.html Version here by The Wild Colonial Boys, 1970 (lead, Tony Lavin) starts at 12:20 : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UOioyIDnQeo R-J |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Sandra in Sydney Date: 08 Dec 20 - 09:57 AM and here's the earliest copy as published in Singabout, Volume 2(3), December 1957 |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Stewie Date: 08 Dec 20 - 06:44 PM Thanks for the kind words, John. It is great to have feedback from a Kiwi. R-J, the Speaker of the WA parliament must be very tolerant. The Hon David Templeman has been permitted to amuse the chamber with his ditties on several occasions. Here is another: Ode to 2020 --Stewie. |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Stewie Date: 08 Dec 20 - 07:36 PM Alan Mann of Loaded Dog introduced me to the music of C.W. Stoneking several years ago and since then I have added several of his delightful albums to my collection. His style is reminiscent of the great Leon Redbone. I love this whimsical song: TALKIN' LION BLUES (C.W. Stoneking) O-lay-eeeeeee O-lay-ee-ee-ee O-de-o-lay-ee-oh-oh O-da-lay-eee I was over in Africa minin' for gold O-ooh, minin' for gold Come along a big lion, caught me in my hole O-de-lay-eee, caught me in my hole The lion said, 'Buddy, you plumb outta luck O-ooh, you plumb outta luck' Made a lunge for me, lawd, I had to duck O-de-lay-eee, I had to duck I jabbed that lion right clean in the jaw O-ooh, right clean in the jaw Picked up his tail, dragged him 'cross the floor O-de-lay-eee, dragged him 'cross the floor I chained him up in the back of my truck O-ooh, in the back of my truck Said, 'what's that you had to say about luck? O-de-lay-eee, that you said about luck' The first place I took him was ten miles away O-ooh, ten miles away Told the people, 'Listen what this lion can say O-de-lay-eee, what this lion can say' The lion looked round, he started to cry O-ooh, he started to cry Said, 'this man punched me and he blackened my eye O-da-lay-eee, and he blackened my eye' The people got angry, they started to shout O-da-lay-ee-ee-ee-eee Lion said, 'That's what I was talkin' about' O-de-lay-eee, oh-oh, lawd, lawd They hauled me up the courthouse stairs O-ooh, up the courthouse stairs The judge was a monkey in an old wicker chair O-de-lay-eee, in an old wicker chair The monkey said, 'Guilty', and the people all cheered O-ooh, and the people all cheered He slammed his gavel, said, 'twenty five years' O-da-lay-eee, said 'twenty five years' I'm in Africa wearin' a ball and chain O-de-lay-ee, a ball and chain I'll never mess with a talkin' lion again O-ooh, a talkin' lion again Youtube clip --Stewie. |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: rich-joy Date: 08 Dec 20 - 08:42 PM OLD TI CH: Old TI, my beautiful home, That's the place where I was born; The sun and the moon that shine, Make me long for home, Old TI, my beautiful home. TI, my beautiful home, TI, my home sweet home. Darling, won't you take me, Where the sun is sinking, farewell. Why are you looking so sad, my dear, Why are you feeling so blue? I'm thinking of someone so far away, In that beautiful place called TI. Take me across the sea, Over the deep blue sea, Darling, won't you take me, Back to my home TI. When at the break of dawn, Your dear face I cannot see, You will always think, Always think of me. Up above the clouds, Your dear face I cannot see, But in your memories dear, Never, never say goodbye. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gj1LDel24PI JESSIE LLOYD version https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KyYPShjofjI TED EGAN version “Another from the Joy Durst Memorial Australian Song Collection (1980 edition), published by the Victorian Folk Music Club. Published with the following note: Popularised by Joy Durst. From Thursday Islanders at Cairns, Queensland. TI is the popular name for Thursday Island, the administrative centre of the Torres Strait Islands which lie off the Northern tip of Queensland. The islands have been part of Australia since their annexation by Queensland in 1879. The indigenous population are Melanesian islanders.” Lyrics and Notes taken from John Thompson’s “Oz Folksong a Day”blog: http://ozfolksongaday.blogspot.com/2011/11/old-ti.html Documentary : Islands of the Torres Straits, 1989 (This Land Australia series by TED EGAN) : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=23Ih37aPrNM “Are You From TI?” is another popular Island song (Seaman Dan version ) : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oY23WrKbMCU R-J |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: rich-joy Date: 08 Dec 20 - 11:09 PM I think we may have around 495 song lyrics so far (most with recording links) - wadyarekun Sandra?! Well Done Us, in any case :) Of course, there is NOTHING stopping ANYONE from posting Oz-Kiwi songs here ........... (she says hopefully) I'm working on a couple more before my mini workbreak (except I'd rather do this than all the houseshite threatening to bury me! :) R-J |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: rich-joy Date: 08 Dec 20 - 11:52 PM The Volunteers: a ballad (Words only; no tune indicated) Source: "THE VOLUNTEERS, A BALLAD", The Sydney Gazette and New South Wales Advertiser (8 April 1804), 3 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article626124 When menac'd with civil commotion and noise Shall Britons inactively slumber? Then away to the field, the bright musket to poise, With courage, regardless of number. With patriot firmness the laws we'll maintain; With spirit and vigor we'll brave the campaign; Our women and children relinquish their fears, And trust to the prowess of bold Volunteers. Should France, in her fondness for places abroad E'er honor our Coast with a visit, Before on the soil many moments they've trod They'll find our politeness exquisite. With a Marseillois dirge, or a Carmagnel dance To the music of musquetry let them advance But dreadful the musars will be to their ears Struck up by the phalanx of firm Volunteers. Should sordid Mynheer foreign conquest pursue, And fly from his DAMS to assist us, Our RED COATS, supporting the Volunteer BLUE, With good hearts and flints cannot fail us. No jarring contention those hearts shall divide, But Britain's blest Genius o'er Britons preside And the Foes of our MONARCH retreating in tears Shall fly from the ardour of bold Volunteers. just found here : https://www.sydney.edu.au/paradisec/australharmony/chronicle1801-1810.php R-J |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: rich-joy Date: 09 Dec 20 - 12:13 AM "MURTOCH DELANY'S DESCRIPTION OF THE RACES" ANONYMOUS (songwriter) : To the tune "Ballynamony-ora" [Ballinamona ora] The Sydney Gazette and New South Wales Advertiser (20 October 1810), 3 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article628109 Don't you know I from Hawkesbury came to behold Your Races, that seem'd to delight young and old, Where each rode a-foot, if not blest with a horse And cantered away to the place called the Course Sing Ballynamony-ora, Ballynamony-ora, Ballynamony-ora, A tight little horse-race for me. Och! then what a noise open'd up to my view, About young Paddywhack, and old Bryanboroo, But sacrilege surely it was at the least, That Paddy's dear name should belong to a beast. Sing Ballynamony-ora, Ballynamony-ora, Ballynamony-ora, Ah! no such vile nick names for me. There were Gentlemen mounted so fine and so gay, And ladies that look'd like a star at noon-day; When I see the dear creatures I grieve that I'm poor, Since Beauty's the planet we all must adore. Sing Ballynamony-ora, Ballynamony-ora, Ballynamony-ora, A smart little damsel for me. Six jokers on horseback were standing stock still, Like as many dragoons that were learning to drill, Till losing their wits, sure, they all at one time Gallopped off at full speed, without reason or rhyme. Sing Ballynamony-ora, Ballynamony-ora, Ballynamony-ora, Ah! no such diversion for me. In no time at all sure they twirl'd round about, And met cheek by jowl at the place they set out Then faster and faster they went - I protest, To see which could manage to break his neck best. Sing Ballynamony-ora, Ballynamony-ora, Ballynamony-ora, Their necks they may crack all for me. But think what the devil myself could possess; - One said would I lay, and I thought I'd say yes! Then because I just lost and had nothing to pay, Why I raced by myself, and so gallopped away; Sing Ballynamony-ora, Ballynamony-ora, Ballynamony-ora, No kicking nor whipping for me! More info at : https://www.sydney.edu.au/paradisec/australharmony/chronicle1801-1810.php R-J |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: rich-joy Date: 09 Dec 20 - 02:28 AM THE ALBURY RAM Numerous tunes - numerous choruses - numerous verses - even numerous towns titles They abound for the British (and American) folksong “The Derby Ram” and from which song, Australia’s version comes!!! SO MANY versions of that darn song on YT – whodathunkit??!! (even Archie Fisher has a version : Crikey! :) The MainlyNorfolk website has LOTS of info on the song/s : https://mainlynorfolk.info/lloyd/songs/thederbyram.html The song [version 1] features in John Lahey’s Great Australian Folk Songs with 8 verses - and a tune arranged by P. Evans. This is the version that the prolific Raymond Crooke uses : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FavKdhHtz-g&t=4s I was also after the version I knew, from The Twiliters’ 1965 recording of “The Albury Ram” – but their version has not yet been uploaded to YT, that I can find. However, from memory, their tune is a slower version of this A.L.Lloyd one [version 2] : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qiy9qcc3nJc The Albury Ram (Victorian Folk Music Club’s collection) [version 1] As I was going to Albury along the other day, I saw the finest sheep, sir, was ever fed on hay. Singing blow you winds to morning, blow you winds, hi-ho! Blow away the morning dew, blow boys, blow. The sheep he had four feet, sir, upon which he used to stand, And every one of them, sir, it covered an acre of land. The sheep he had two horns, sir, they grew so mighty wide, They're going to build a bridge with them from Albury to Clyde. The sheep he had a tail, sir, it grew so mighty long, 'Twas used to build a telegraph from Sydney to Geelong The wool upon his belly, it bore him off the ground, 'Twas sold in Melbourne the other day for a hundred thousand pounds. The wool upon his back, sir, it grew so mighty high, The eagles built their nest there, for I heard the young ones cry. A hundred gallons of oil, sir, were boiled out of his bones, Took all the girls in Albury to drag away his frame. The man who owned this sheep sir, he must have been mighty rich, And the man who made this song up was a lying son-of-a-gun. Dalby Ram - A.L.Lloyd [version 2] As I was going to Dalby all on a market day I met the biggest ram my boys that ever was fed on hay And indeed my lads it's true my lads I never was known to lie And if you'd been in Dalby you'd seen him the same as I The wool on this ram's belly well it grew into the ground Cut off and sent to the Sydney sales it fetched a thousand pound The wool on this ram's back my boys grew so very high The eagles came and built their nests and I heard the young 'uns cry The horns on this ram's head they reached up to the moon A little boy went up in January and he didn't get back till June And indeed my lads it's true my lads I never was known to lie And if you'd been in Dalby you'd seen him the same as I The man that fed this ram my boys he fed him twice a day And every time he opened his mouth he swallowed a bale of lucerne hay The man that watered this ram my boys watered him twice a day And every time he opened his mouth he drunk the river dry Now this old ram he had a tail that reached right down to hell And every time he waggled it he rung the fireman's bell And indeed my lads it's true my lads I never was known to lie And if you'd been in Dalby you'd seen him the same as I The butcher that stuck this ram my boys was up to knees in blood And the little boy who held the bowl was carried away by the flood Took all the boys in Dalby to roll away his bones Took all the girls in Dalby to roll away his stone the crows Now the man that fattened this ram my boys he must have been very rich And the man who sung this song must be a lying son of a .... so he is Well now my song is ended I've got no more to say So give us another pint of beer and we'll all of us go away Believe what you will. R-J |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: rich-joy Date: 09 Dec 20 - 02:49 AM Stewie has posted some songs by Charles Thatcher [ Charles R. Thatcher (Charles Robert), 1831-1878 ] and so here is : "Thatcher's Colonial Minstrel: A new collection of songs by the inimitable Thatcher." from Otago University Research Heritage program. "Thatcher's Colonial Songs: Forming a complete comic history of the early diggings, 1864" "Song Lyrics (descriptions and parodies) by Charles R. Thatcher about Melbourne, and Victoria, Australia. Cover shows the price is sixpence. The songster was published and printed by Charlwood and Son in Bourke Street, Melbourne, while the retailer is given as Cole's Book Arcade in Bourke Street, Melbourne. Music is not provided, but a note regarding what tune the song should be sung to is given at the start of the lyric. Also includes 'The Victoria Songster: Containing new and original colonial songs together with a choice selection of the most popular songs of the day', published by Charlwood and Son, 1860. [37 pages are missing between p 109- 145]" Download here : http://otago.ourheritage.ac.nz/items/show/10641 (145pp - it took me a while though, on a rural connection) R-J |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Stewie Date: 09 Dec 20 - 07:02 PM TALKING DOG (Peter Cape) Young cow cocky sitting on a log Sharpening his axe, talking to his dog Tells his dog he's sick of baching all his life Dog answers back and says, 'Better get a wife' Chorus For with the ducks in the duck pond Porkers in the pen You no sooner finish milking Than you've started off again He hitches up the buggy, drives down to the hall Lots of lovely crows there, lined against the wall Says to his dog, 'Leave the choice to you' The dog cuts out a good one, says 'She'll do' For the ... Got to get a licence, got to get a ring Got to see the parson, get the choir to sing: Great day coming, down the church at three 'Who gives this woman?' and the dog says "Me' Not the ... This young cow cocky still hasn't got it right The dog talks all the daytime, missus talks at night Going to leave them to it, take another lease Get up in the tea-tree, get a bit of peace From the ... If you want a moral (though I dunno why you should) Talking to your dog won't do you any good But if you must be talking, just keep it sweet and nice Here's a tip from me, mates, don't take his advice Or the ducks in the duckpond Porkers in the pen They'll keep you going at it When they get you back again Or you'll have ... I couldn't find a recording of this on the Net. The tune is printed in 'An Ordinary Joker' p64. Martin Curtis recorded it on his 'Gin and Raspberry' album. ABC file available on this page: Click --Stewie. |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Stewie Date: 09 Dec 20 - 07:27 PM Gerry posted a link to a recording of Peter Cape's 'Talking Dog' to R-J's thread about dogs. There are minor variations to Cape's original. I searched YT but somehow missed the recording. by Graham Wilson. Youtube clip --Stewie. |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Stewie Date: 09 Dec 20 - 07:31 PM Oops, I'm not doing too well. It was John Flynn who posted the link. My apologies, John. --Stewie. |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Sandra in Sydney Date: 10 Dec 20 - 04:31 AM speaking of the famous Ram as were doing, The Ram of Darby, perhaps the earliest version of this song family collected in Australia, or maybe just the earliest version published in Oz in Singabout 1(4), Spring 1956 |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: rich-joy Date: 10 Dec 20 - 08:02 AM Great to see that version of The Darby Ram, Sandra - I didn't find that one, but it is the variant that Jeff Corfield referenced for the chune of John Dengate's "The Bicentennial Song" - which I posted it back on Dec 3rd!! Funny how the cogs of the Universe can align for us, LoL! Cheers, R-J :) |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Sandra in Sydney Date: 10 Dec 20 - 09:48 AM I'm currently working on a blog about the 1960 Banjo Paterson Festival at Orange (NSW) & was tracing the songs sung there, 4 years after the Bush Music Club was established & less than 10 years after people started looking for traditional Australian songs to counter the increasing Americanisation of our culture. It will appear here Bush Music Club blog, I'm just waiting for some info from a foundation member & another who joined within the first few months about 2 songs with alternate titles. sandra |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Stewie Date: 10 Dec 20 - 08:13 PM DOWN IN THE BRUNNER MINE (Anon) They work in the heat and the coal black dust Sticks to the skin like a burn'd pie crust We curse each day that the miner must Go down in the Brunner mine Down at the face of the the Brunner mine Two hundred feet by the survey line There's never a sign of sun and sky Down in the Brunner mine The miner's breath comes short and hot He's using all the breath he's got Whether it's good for his lungs or not Down in the Brunner mine A sound that'll creep through the miner's soul Is the shake and rattle and down she'll roll A hundred feet of rubble and coal Down in the Brunner mine A cave-in'll give us a shut down day But that'll never make a miner gay For the trembling earth speaks Judgment Day Down in the Brunner mine Youtube clip Note in 'Song of a Young Country': New Zealand's worst mining disaster occurred at the Brunner Mine in Westland on the morning of 26 March 1896 when an explosion at the coalface rocketed through the whole mine and killed every man, a total of 67. The accident left 186 children fatherless and 14 other aged and invalid persons without a bread winner. --Stewie. |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: rich-joy Date: 10 Dec 20 - 08:56 PM THE DYING FETTLER A strapping young fettler lay dying With a shovel supporting his head The ganger and crew round him crying As he let go his pick-handle and said: Ch. Wrap me up in a tent or a fly, boys And bury me deep down below Where the trolleys and trains won’t molest me To show there’s a navvy below. There’s tea in the old battered billy-can Place the dogs spikes out in a row And we’ll spike to the next merry meeting To show there’s a navvy below. Hark, there’s the wail of a trolley Far, far away it seems It sounds like the inspector is coming And hopes to see us all here. So back to your shovels, my boy-lads And bend your backs with a will For this inspector has no time of judgement But there is a navvy below. “The Dying Fettler” was collected at Lappa Junction, N.Q., August 21, 1966. It will be readily recognised as a parody on “The Dying Stockman”. It was sung by Vic Leonard, who in turn had learned it from Frank Stock of Koorboora, a now extinct mining centre.” Ron Edwards, To the North – Pt 5 of The Overlander Songbook, 1966 The town of Koorboora (east of Herberton), was in an area of Tin and Wolfram (Tungsten) mining, extant from the late 1800s to maybe 1930s. A Fettler (in this song), is someone who repairs or maintains a Railway. ***[Horace Flower, 1st published, Portland Mirror, 1885]. “The Dying Stockman”*** has collected a fair few parodies and the tune (and its variations) is, I think, very well-known, but I have included two links. One to Dave de Hugard’s singing : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nxZ5EARLsQ8 And one, from a more classical voice. I am not normally drawn - at all - to the use of this type of singing style in folk music, but, I suspect that is probably a Baby Boomer penchant!! This chap, as well as being a singer and writer, is a geologist and Australia does a pretty good line in Singing Geologists!! So here is Robert Pyper : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=INCf9_YXFYA I might post his own song about gold mining in 1930s Meekatharra, sometime soon. R-J |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Stewie Date: 10 Dec 20 - 10:01 PM On 20 August, I posted lyrics to Lawson's 'Down the River', but no sound links. Since then, I have found a couple of renditions: Loaded Dog Gerry Hallon --Stewie. |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: rich-joy Date: 11 Dec 20 - 03:31 AM speaking of Dogs ...... THE KELPIE Lyrics, Bill Robertson / Music, Lyndon Kris To build this country, the new Promised Land The Kelpie was there; it gave us a hand Mustering the High Country in hail and the rain Or in the Outback on a dry dusty plain. Without any wages, working daylight to dark T’was in the back country they made their mark Mustering sheep and cattle, and horses too The Kelpie dogs did what we couldn’t do. He moved to the left, he moved to the right He backed them on through until they took flight He drove from behind and ran to the lead Turned them around and slowed them to feed : This Kelpie Dog is one heck of a breed! [spoken] The sun pounded down, they’d stopped to rest This Kelpie dog was still giving his best He’s tough as a Dingo, never complains Some say they’re related, well, that’s no shame. The Kelpie doesn’t mind, they’ll go anywhere When the going gets tough, they just don’t care They’re the best b…? this world’s ever seen The Kelpie dogs, yeah, they’re a working machine. He moved to the left, he moved to the right He backed them on through until they took flight He drove from behind and ran to the lead Turned them around and slowed them to feed : This Kelpie Dog is one heck of a breed! [spoken] Crossing rivers so deep and wide – they move stock to the other side The edge of the banks so terribly steep – a difficult place for a large mob of sheep Pushing forward and paniced with fright – all bunched up – what a terrible sight Some went down in the mud and the glue – He never lost one to the old Barcoo.*** Relentless and tough, endearing to all They respond in a flash to their master’s call They came from mixed cultures, just like we all do Now the genes of Australia run through their veins too. With the passing of time, we’ve been remiss We forgot to thank Kelpie for doing all this When our need was greatest, they gave us a hand To build a nation, a new prosperous land. Spoken : Thanks Kelpie – you did it : what we couldn’t do YOU LITTLE BEAUTY! Sung by Ian Sandercoe : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wFSehjkFNHw From the 2012 documentary “KELPIE THE LEGEND” https://vimeo.com/ondemand/kelpiethelegend (trailer + watch or buy) ***The Barcoo is a river in SW Qld rising in the Warrego Range and eventually joining Cooper’s Creek. All are mentioned in Australian folksongs and stories. Barcoo Rot, Barcoo Fever were maladies also mentioned, but are apparently rarely experienced these days, probably due to better quality food and safer water. Interestingly, a Barcoo Dog is a noise-making device for herding sheep when dogs are unavailable. It’s made of wire and bottle tops and was first recorded in 1936. R-J |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: DaveJohnson Date: 11 Dec 20 - 06:24 AM Here's one that I thought deserved a tune and chorus. There are very few bullocky songs and yet these men were the mainstay of early colonial transport. Bill the Bullocky In an article called Gundagai's Dog by JG Castleton written in 1938 he says these words were sighted on a matchbox holder and dated 1859. In “Songs of Australia” it is set to an Irish rebel tune and given a rollicking chorus to rollick by myself. As I came down through Conroy's Gap, I heard a maiden cry, "There goes old Bill the Bullocky, he's bound for Gundagai!' Chorus With a heave on the yoke and a heave on the chains And the crack of the whip again and again. 'A better bullock-driver never cracked more honest crust; A kinder-hearted driver never dragged a whip through dust.' With Spark and Charlie in the lead and on the pole old Ball, Who bent his back, nor cared a damn if the others pulled at all. His team got bogged at Five-Mile Creek; Bill lashed and cried and swore, 'If Nobby don't haul us out of this I'll speak to him no more!' So Nobby strained, and broke the yoke, and poked out Baldy's eye, And the dog sat on the tucker-box five miles from Gundagai. Come all you bullock-drivers, and listen to my rhyme, And if ever you go a-carrying, don't bind yourselves to time. For I'm on the Sydney Road, my boys, my fortune for to try, And I'm loaded for a storekeeper, in the town of Gundagai. Song file with abc and pdf links |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Sandra in Sydney Date: 11 Dec 20 - 06:57 AM good to see you here, Dave, I look froward to lots more songs from your songbook sandra |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: rich-joy Date: 11 Dec 20 - 07:55 AM Thanks Dave! - that post was well-timed, coz : NINE MILES FROM GUNDAGAI I'm used to punching bullock teams across the hills and plains I've teamed outback these forty years in blazing droughts and rains I've lived a heap of troubles down without a flamin’ lie But I can’t forget what happened [to] me nine miles from Gundagai T’was getting dark, the team got bogged, the axel snapped in two I lost me matches and me pipe - ah what was I to do The rains came on t’was bitter cold and hungry too was I And the dog sat in the tucker box nine miles from Gundagai Some blokes I know have stacks of luck, no matter how they fall But there was I - lord luvva duck - no flamin’ luck at all I couldn't make a pot of tea nor get me trousers dry And the dog sat in the tucker box nine miles from Gundagai I can forgive the bloomin’ team, I can forgive the rain I can forgive the dark and cold and go through it again I can forgive my rotten luck but hang me till I die I can’t forgive that bloody dog nine miles from Gundagai But that's all dead and past and gone; I've sold the team for meat And where I got the bullocks bogged now there is an asphalt street The dog, ah well, he took a bait and reckoned he would die So I buried him in that tucker box nine miles from Gundagai ”In Australian Tradition Jan 1967 John Meredith wrote a piece entitled 'Along the Road to Gundagai - but how many miles?'. In it he explores the origins of this song and its relatives. He is of the opinion that it derives from 'Bullocky Bill' which was printed in the Gundagai Times in 1857. Meredith writes "Over thirty of our old bush songs and ballads are about Gundagai - the struggles of her people and the troubles and fun that the bullockies and the shearers had there in the second half of the last century". He dates 'Nine Miles from Gundagai' from the 1880's. As Meredith points out the song could hardly have lived so long if the dog had merely sat in the tucker box. Whatever the case, it's the dog that has a memorial outside Gundagai. Gundagai journalist and poet Jack Moses published a collection of his poems in 1938. Both the collection and first poem are called 'Nine Miles from Gundagai' but only last verse matches any of the song.” Thanks to MARK GREGORY’s great site for lyrics and notes : http://folkstream.com/064.html Jack Moses (1860 - 1945) a travelling wine salesman and poet, had his poem published Jan1924 in Nth Qld Register. Read here : http://www.middlemiss.org/lit/poetry/nine_miles_from_gundagai.html The 1880 poem by Bowyang Yorke (aka reporter Tom Kinnaine), can be read here along with further explanations - and stories of the iconic statue in Gundagai : https://janedogs.com/dog-on-the-tuckerbox/ Listen to : The Wild Colonial Boys (Jacko Kevans, lead) from 23:15 at : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UOioyIDnQeo&t=913s R-J |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: rich-joy Date: 11 Dec 20 - 09:19 AM It is now the 12th, Down Under. As today is a bit of a special memorial day for me, and as Stewie has previously posted some Mike McClellan, I am unashamedly posting my favourite! THE ONE I LOVE - Mike McClellan - I don't care for dancing and I'm not much at talk At least it’s never been that way I know it's not easy to understand my ways When there's so much that I oughta say When I'm standing right before you, I feel like the fool Blinded by the light in his eyes No, and love’s light steals the dark night in his soul And the one I love she shines like silver The one I love she glows like moonlight The one I love is warm like sunshine The one I love Yes, the one I love she shines like silver The one I love she glows like moonlight The one I love is warm like sunshine The one I love I don't care for parties and I like the quiet life And I've never felt at ease within a crowd I've never found it easy to live the way I do Sometimes the song’s the only time I think out loud When I'm standing right before you, I feel like the fool Who never finds the right words to say No, and his chance goes with the last dance of the night And the one I love she shines like silver The one I love she glows like moonlight The one I love is warm like sunshine The one I love Yes the one I love she shines like silver The one I love she glows like moonlight The one I love is warm like sunshine The One I Love Listen to Mike here : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IcJwkXeiFrk “(celebrating) Another Grey Day” was one of my faves too, great guitar and bluesy feel……. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5UO8FTphM1k R-J |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Stewie Date: 11 Dec 20 - 08:35 PM Good one, Dave. Like Sandra, I look forward to more. Here is a Kiwi bullocky song from one their finest songwriters. BULLOCKY (Peter Cape) Dat ol' brindle bullock wi t'e white wall eye Maul and wedges and a tot'ra tree He'll lead t'is team til t'e day he die Maul and wedges and a tot'ra tree Swing t'at maul and drive t'em dogs Maul and wedges and a tot'ra tree Chris' keep t'e tailers from a rollin' log Maul and wedges and a tot'ra tree Whitey an' Teufel is hardly broke Maul and wedges and a tot'ra tree Can't pull together in a double yoke Maul and wedges and a tot'ra tree Lancewood pole an' a nine-foot lash Maul and wedges and a tot'ra tree Whip t'rough the air but never touch flesh Maul and wedges and a tot'ra tree Some men got stones set up for the names Maul and wedges and a tot'ra tree But a good strainer post tells a bullocky's fame Maul and wedges and a tot'ra tree As noted in 'An Ordinary Joker', the song attempts to capture the accents of Bohemian/Dalmatian bush workers of North Auckland. Chris' [Christ] tailers [timber workers] Double yoke [pulling harness for bullocks] Dogs [spikes which hold railway lines on sleepers] Maul [wooden hammer] wedges [v-shaped steel wood-splitters] Lancewood [small native tree] Some men got stones [headstones on graves] Strainer post [main post on a fence] Whitey [bullock's name] Teufel [devil] is hardly broke [broken in - trained] Tot'ra [totara tree] Youtube clip --Stewie. |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: rich-joy Date: 12 Dec 20 - 08:45 PM Thanks to GerryM for alerting me to this song, over in the “Aussie-Kiwi Horses and Dogs” thread. The lyrics and Eric's notes are taken from one of the two Mudcat threads on the song. AS IF HE KNOWS Eric Bogle It's as if he knows He's standing close to me His breath warm on my sleeve His head hung low It's as if he knows What the dawn will bring The end of everything For my old Banjo And all along the picket lines beneath the desert sky The light horsemen move amongst their mates to say one last goodbye And the horses stand so quietly Row on silent row It's as if they know Time after time We rode through shot and shell We rode in and out of Hell On their strong backs Time after time They brought us safely through By their swift sure hooves And their brave hearts Tomorrow we will form up ranks and march down to the quay And sail back to our loved ones in that dear land across the sea While our loyal and true companions Who asked so little and gave so much Will lie dead in the dust For the orders came No horses to return We were to abandon them To be slaves After all we'd shared And all that we'd been through A nation's gratitude Was a dusty grave For we can't leave them to the people here, we'd rather see them dead So each man will take his best mate's horse with a bullet through the head For the people here are like their land Wild and cruel and hard So Banjo, here's your reward It's as if he knows He's standing close to me His breath warm upon my sleeve His head hung low It's as if he knows. these are Eric's notes from the CD, Colour of Dreams : During WWI, Australia shipped about 53,000 horses overseas to serve in the various theatres of that war. Of that number, only one returned to Australia at the end of the war, and it was, of course, a General's favourite mount. The rest, or at least the survivors of that original 53,000, were not allowed to return home mainly because of quarantine restrictions, it was feared they could spread anthreax and similar diseases throughout Australia's cattle industry. So the ANZACS were ordered to get rid of what horses they had left. In the European theatre of war many of the horses were sold or given to French and Belgian farmers and peasants and such like. But in Palestine the Light Horsemen refused to either give or sell their horses to the local Arab population, as they thought that the Arabs in general treated their animals with dreadful cruelty. Mind you, I can't think of anything more cruel than subjecting innocent horses to the horrors of modern warfare, but I guess those were the prevailing attitudes of the times. So, rather than leave their horses to a lifetime of slavery, as they saw it, the Light Horsemen shot them. Each man shot his best mate's horse, and that was that. I wrote this song after reading an Anzac Day newspaper artivle about an old veteran Light Horsemen called Elijah Conn, who was talking about his horse, Banjo, and how his best mate shot Banjo just before they marched off to the ship that was waiting to take them home to Australia. Even after 70 years, Elijah's eyes filled with tears when talking about it. This song is for Elijah and Banjo. Sorry to take up so much of your time with this little story, but it's one that deserves to be heard I think. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uXXWFbPjgmc This version of Eric’s heart-rending song is by Peter Pratt and has a slideshow with many interesting images. If you read through the YT Comments (which I tend to do!), and also the posts on the 2 x Mudcat threads concerning this song, you’ll see that as with everything, there was more to the story, and other points of view, complicating this history. There were something like 1.5 million riding horses, mules, donkeys, draft horses et al, used by the allied forces for the Empire – hard to get one’s head around the implications of that figure! One poster points to the possible influence on Eric of Banjo Paterson’s “The Last Parade”, writing about the same situation in the Second Boer War. PETER PRATT, the "smooth western crooner” ….. is from a family of wheat farmers in southern New South Wales and a lover of the western country song. Roy Rogers, Gene Autry and Smoky Dawson are his musical hero's….. A former drover, ringer and rouseabout, this wool classer lives and works in regional Australia. His love of this land’s heritage is also evident in his involvement with the Australian Heritage Light Horse Troop….. See Also : http://www.lighthorse.org.au/poetry-and-song/ R-J [My Great Uncle, Bill Youd of Collie, left Albany, WA with the first wave of soldiers - as a Blacksmith with the Australian Light Horse. Thankfully he returned, but spent the rest of his working life quietly, keeping to himself and raising Poultry.] |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Stewie Date: 12 Dec 20 - 10:33 PM THE EAGLE AND THE ISLANDERS Way out on the ocean, blue Pacific sea Lay some coral islands Once were free Gentle people lived there by lagoon and restless palm Open hearts and easy smiles Knew no harm No long distance liners ever came to call Once a year, a freighter If at all They never knew of Hitler or the world at war outside Nagasaki, Hiroshima Or how many, many died As always in a battle, only the leaders choose It’s the innocent who suffer And who really lose And, for these lovely islands, misfortune cast the die As spoils of war they fell Under the Eagle’s eye But the Eagle was not contented with her victory hour She coveted, at any cost The greatest power So she built another weapon that was bigger than before Even though she had already Won the war And to these hapless islands, the Eagle brought her bomb And she built an iron tower To explode it from And as the wind blew steady, and as the sea shone gold The sun it burst in unison A hundredfold The frightened island people did not understand That they were all a part Of the Eagle’s plan They saw the ashes falling and they thought that it was snow And they watched their children play Among its deadly glow From Paul Metsers 'Fifth Quarter'. Sleeve note: After the end of the 2nd World War, the Marshall Islands, a remote chain of coral atolls in the north-west Pacific, were part of the territory designated to be held in trust by the United States, presumably until the political climate in the area was considered to have stabilised. By 1954, the USA had developed the largest atomic bomb to date and had decided to use the northern part of this entrusted area as a test site. On the day set for the test, weather reports advised that the prevailing winds would carry fallout to the inhabited island of Rongelap, in the southern part of the Marshall chain. In spite of this, it was nevertheless decided to continue with the explosion. Meteorologists, present at the time and interviewed later, were among the many who concluded that the Rongelap people were deliberately exposed to determine the effects of fallout on humans. After the explosion, the ash of the molten coral from the test site rained down on Rongelap for three days and the islanders, who had received no prior warning, soon began to suffer the effects of radiation poisoning and burns. This lamentable state of affairs continued to plague the islanders and for the next thirty years they suffered on their ruined land while their parliamentary representative, Jeton Anjain, tried valiantly but unsuccessfully to elicit aid and compensation from the Americans, who generously built a supermarket on the island and sold the people tinned (uncontaminated) food. Finally, Anjain turned to Greenpeace and it is a shaft of light in the dark tunnel of the ruthlessness of powerful governments that the last act of Greenpeace’s flagship, the “Rainbow Warrior”, before she was bombed in New Zealand by the French security service, was to transport these diseased and suffering islanders to a new home, the island of Mejato, some 120 miles away. Youtube clip --Stewie. |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Stewie Date: 12 Dec 20 - 11:05 PM A song originally recorded by the Muttonbirds was re-recorded and released to mark the 20th anniversary of the bombing of the 'Rainbow Warrior'. ANCHOR ME (Don McGlashan) Full fathom five Someday I'll lie Singing songs that come From dead men's tongues Anchor me, anchor me As the compass turns And the glass it falls Where the storm clouds roll And the gulls they call Anchor me, anchor me, anchor me Anchor me In the middle of your deep blue sea, anchor me Anchor me In the middle of your deep blue sea, anchor me Anchor me, anchor me Let the salt spray lash The shivering skin Where the green waves crash And the whirlpools spin Anchor me, anchor me, anchor me Anchor me In the middle of your deep blue sea, anchor me Anchor me In the middle of your deep blue sea, anchor me Anchor me Where the banshees cry And the bells they sound When you lift me high When you pull me down When you pull me down When you pull me down Anchor me In the middle of your deep blue sea, anchor me Anchor me In the middle of your deep blue sea, anchor me Anchor me, anchor me Anchor me, anchor me In the middle of your deep blue sea, your deep blue sea In the middle of your deep blue sea, your deep blue sea Anchor me, anchor me Anchor me Anchor me Anchor me Youtube clip NZ Herald article --Stewie. |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: rich-joy Date: 13 Dec 20 - 12:41 AM TRACTOR PIONEERS Peter Pratt (Australian 'Western' singer) Dedicated to the Tractor Pioneers, like Peter’s father, Charles Roy Pratt (1915-2008), whose farming life covered the passing of the Horse era into Tractors. A good song and an interesting slideshow, which covers farming in the NSW districts between Moree and Narrabri, and some further south around Junee (just north of Wagga). By the fire Mother knits while in his chair the old man sits Staring at the quiet dancing flames He recalls the block of land from the bush he cleared by hand To realise his dream of growing grain. Old hands that know the feel of an iron steering wheel On a frosty night beneath the winter stars He can smell the fresh-turned soil, kerosine, the hot sump oil Fond memories of those tractor days gone by. Ch. He was a Tractor Pioneer Saw the passing of an era as the horse teams disappeared And it changed the farming scene of yesteryear Oh he was a Tractor Pioneer. Those tired bones now pain from years in wind and rain As an army coat hung damp across his back Through summer harvest heat, sitting on a cast-iron seat As the wheat dust settled on his grease-stained hat. We’ve come so far since then, it’s hard to comprehend So many memories graze the old man’s mind These simple quaint machines, once the essence of his dreams Now slowly fade into another time. Chorus …. So by the fire Mother knits while in his chair the old man sits And remembers those good 1950s years And he still can hear the sound of a Bulldog*** working ground And the rocks as they resound against the shears. They were the Tractor Pioneers Saw the passing of an era as the horse teams disappeared And it changed the farming scene of yesteryear Yes, they were the Tractor Pioneers. *** presumably the KL Bulldog from Victoria, based on the German Lanz Bulldog tractor : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lanz_Bulldog https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ML_L0B0Sv4o : starting a 1951 KL Bulldog (after heatup!) ‘crook gudgeon’ but! :) Loads of fun. And here is Peter singing his celebration of his father’s life : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GvT_RSVS3X4&t=8s R-J |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: rich-joy Date: 13 Dec 20 - 12:57 AM FWIW, by my rough calcs, I reckon we've posted 510 songs so far :) So many more to go (only I really should go and werk for a while :( Over to the rest of "Youse Mob" :) R-J |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Stewie Date: 13 Dec 20 - 08:51 PM For R-J's dog and horse theme. McKENZIE'S GHOST (Kath Tait) I've mustered from Southland, through Central and North In that rough barren country of tussock and gorse And I've listened to songs that the old shearers tell And passed them along with me own tales as well Chorus McKenzie, McKenzie was that you I saw Roaming them backhills just up from Benmore With 50 odd sheep and a good shepherd's dog Was it your ghost in the morning fog? They tell of McKenzie, sheep stealer they say He stole squatters' sheep and he drove them away With one strong eyed dog who hypnotised sheep To a far distant land where no white man had been Some say you were criminal, some say a good man Put down by the law and your dog it was damned They took you to prison but you set yourself free Then they took you again, your dog hung from a tree Them high country gales that blow through the night Where the musterers camp in the fire's dim light They often bring sounds way off in the dark Like a lone shepherd's whistle and a lone sheepdog's bark Youtube clip My father was an engineer on the Benmore Dam," says Kath, "and I had learnt about James McKenzie at school. I was reluctantly dragged away from the Mackenzie Country to Auckland at the age of 14, and lived in Auckland for the next 20 years. The McKenzie song was the first song I ever wrote, at the age of 17, after reading James McNeish's book The McKenzie Affair." Phil Garland recorded it on his 'Swag of Dreams' album with an introductory verse of his own: When evening shadows lengthen and starry skies grow bright You rest beside your campfire, keeping warm on chilly nights You might hear a distant whistle or a far-off wailer go Then see a highland shepherd with a phantom mob of sheep In an eerie silence passing so walking in their sleep At their heels closely followed by a silent collie dog His master's true companion before they vanish in the fog Perhaps this ghostly vision will send shivers down your spine While you watch this cavalcade forever tramping onwards Down the corridors of time Youtube clip Phil's note: The legend of James McKenzie displays a remarkable durability ... In 1855, McKenzie, an illiterate Scots drover, was accused of stealing 1000 sheep and hiding them in the hitherto unexplored inland basin which would later bear his name. Along with his remarkable dog 'Friday', reputed to be half dingo, half collie, he discovered and explored a huge spectacular hidden plain, surrounded on all sides by high snowy mountains. Upon capture, he was thrown into Lyttleton Gaol where the harsh conditions nearly drove him insane. His farcical trial has been described as one of the most glaring miscarriages of in NZ history. Although public opinion of the day called for him to be hanged, he was eventually pardoned some nine months later and quickly disappeared from view. Subsequently myth and legend would have us believe his loyal dog was shot, while McKenzie is believed to have returned to Australia and settled down in Queensland. The exploits of McKenzie and his dog have become so romanticised over the years that they are now firmly entrenched in NZ folklore. The vast inland plain that he discovered was given his name, MacKenzie Country (despite the different spelling). The striking bronze statue of a shepherd's dog erected in recent times at Tepako (in tribute to the legion of faithful border collies that have long mustered the vast high country runs) has also assumed something of the McKenzie legend, often acquiring (incorrectly) the popular mantle of McKenzie's dog. Phil also recorded and put music to a poem by Joe Charles, 'McKenzie and His Dog'. You can listen to it here: Youtube clip --Stewie. |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Stewie Date: 13 Dec 20 - 09:22 PM Another song of the McKenzie legend. THE OLD MACKENZIE TRAIL (Bob Edwards) There's a story that you're bound to hear if you're down Otago way About an outlaw and the dog that bought him fame Of an ancient Maori trail To a grassy mountain vale In the rugged land that bears Mackenzie's name And the station riders say When Aurob'ralis play And the stars that form the Southern Cross are shining high and pale You may F see a phantom collie Drive a ghostly mob of sheep Through the mists along the old Mackenzie Trail When the campfires are a blazin' And the drovin' men are lazin' All fired with Hokonui mountain grog There's a story in the makin' Wth perhaps a little bacon As they weave their legends round Mackenzie's dog Now Mackenzie so the story goes Rode the ranges on a steer Preselecting squatters' sheep then when he'd done He would tell his collie pup To go back and round them up And to punch them homeward to his mountain run Then the troopers took the trail Swore to bring this Scot to jail And recover all the mossy faces too And they captured him at last In a rugged mountain pass And he went before the judge in Timaru There was no sign of repentance When Mackenzie heard his sentence But the last words rang from him a broken cry He defied the law and told them That no prison bars could hold him When the judge condemned his faithful dog to die. That was years ago but the records show That Mackenzie kept his word On the evening of a cold and wintry day When he rolled the dice with fate How the troopers fired too late Though they wounded him Mackenzie got away Now there are city folks who swear That Mackenzie and his dog Were nothing more than thievin' scoundrels wrapped in hair and hide But along the mountain stations Where the campfires burn at night You can hear oldtimers speak their names with pride. There's a story that you're bound to hear If you're down Otago way When the night winds through the mountain passes wail They will tell you tat's Mackenzie Whistling home his collie dog Through the mists along the old Mackenzie's trail You can hear a shortened version here: Youtube clip The above lyrics are from the NZ folk song site. The page also gives links to a traditional song and historical material re McKenzie. Click --Stewie. |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: rich-joy Date: 14 Dec 20 - 06:29 PM Interesting to recall this song and this time in Australian history and its comparison to now!! (and no wonder the current conservative govt is again trying to stomp on the Union movement once and for all :) THE PIG-IRON SONG Clem Parkinson, 1964 Listen here : http://unionsong.com/u150.html Did you ever stop to wonder why the fellows on the job Refer to Robert Menzies by the nickname Pig-Iron Bob? It's a fascinating tale though it happened long ago It's a part of our tradition every worker ought to know Chorus We wouldn't load pig-iron for the fascists of Japan Despite intimidation we refused to lift the ban With democracy at stake the struggle must be won We had to beat the menace of the fascist Rising Sun It was 1937 and aggressive Japanese Attacked the Chinese people tried to bring them to their knees Poorly armed and ill equipped the peasants bravely fought While Australian water siders rallied round to lend support Attorney General Menzies said the ship would have to sail "If the men refuse to load it we will throw them into jail" But our unity was strong - we were solid to a man And we wouldn't load pig-iron for the fascists of Japan For the Judas politicians we would pay a heavy price The jungles of New Guinea saw a costly sacrifice There's a lesson to be learned that we've got to understand Peace can only be secured when the people lend a hand. Notes below and lyrics, from Mark Gregory’s excellent website : http://unionsong.com/u150.html “In his biography of wharfies leader, Ted Roach - "From Pig Iron Hero to Long Bay Gaol" Denis Kevans describes how Ted Roach consciously used the Eureka Oath at marches and rallies, before and during the famous "Dalfram" Pig Iron dispute, in November, 1938, in Port Kembla, NSW. Ted Roach, who was the Secretary of Kembla Branch, and later, Federal Assistant General Secretary of the Waterside Workers' Federation, told Denis Kevans: "I got hold of the Eureka Oath from a Lloyd Ross pamphlet. The wharfies, en masse, took the oath, and through the Trades and Labour Council, and at as many mass meetings as possible, we had the oath recited and sworn." Ted said that taking the Eureka Oath "went over big, a big lift, it was very lifting". During the 11 weeks Dalfram dispute, Attorney General in the United Australia Party government, Mr. Robert Gordon Menzies, gazetted "The Transport Workers Act". He did this to break the spirit of the wharfies, who were locked out over their refusal to load pig iron onto the "Dalfram", part of a 300,000 ton BHP pig iron contract with "aggressor nation", Japan. The TWA also known as the "Dog Licence Act", or the "Dog Collar Act" allowed for the dismissal of the wharfie work force, and their replacement by untrained, non-union workers, each of whom needed only to purchase a licence for one shilling to work on the wharves. Ted Roach, a step ahead of the authorities, arranged for "Bunny" Griffiths to go and buy the only TWA licence bought in Port Kembla. Ted Roach then publicly burnt the licence, outside the Customs House. Ted Roach told Denis Kevans that he burnt the licence as a conscious re-enactment of the miners' burning their licences at Eureka. Many thanks to Denis Kevans for permission to add this information.” EUREKA’s history was recalled in Sandra’s 30Nov song post above and JennieG’s song post of 03Dec and my two link posts of 03 Dec. R-J |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Stewie Date: 14 Dec 20 - 08:02 PM THE GIFT OF LIFE (Phil Garland) So long Kevin Kiwi, your life was not in vain You are our country's emblem so your memory will remain When I heard your mates were dying, it was so hard to believe What can we do to help prevent a huge catastrophe Chorus Pass the hat around amongst family and friends It's time to work together before this story ends Every contribution helps our little spotted mate The gift of life is something we can all appreciate The kiwi is a special bird - although he cannot fly The sporting logo he inspires is truly flying high. Kevin needs protection, it's time to make a stand We must learn to play our part and lend a helping hand The bush is almost silent where Kevin once roamed free How will our kids identify a bird they've never seen Possums, stoats and weasels may seem cute and small Send them back where they belong, we don't want them here at all Wake up New Zealand before it gets too late If we want to save our kiwis, we must learn to shut the gate Keep your family pets inside. don't ever let them roam If we want Kevin to survive, then training starts at home Youtube clip This is from Phil's 1998 album 'A Sense of Place'. Since that time there has been some success in protecting the kiwi with 2 of the 5 species downlisted from 'endangered' to 'vulnerable'. --Stewie. |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Sandra in Sydney Date: 15 Dec 20 - 02:26 AM now all we need is a koala song, cos our icon is heading for extinction. NSW koala bill dumped after Liberal MP Catherine Cusack crosses floor but trees are still being cut down & housing estates are still being planned for koala land. found a good one - an old one! Koala Koala by John Williamson, found on JW's Family Album, 1990, Audio Koala Koala - we love you But we chop down your home And you run Koala, Koala - where do you go When we take your gum tree away Please don't run on the road And please don't cry Help is on its way We're gonna learn what makes you die Gonna send in some money today You can't dig a hole Or live in a roof Or hang from a big, fig tree If I plant you a special Eucalypt Will you come and live with me Koalas they used to be everywhere What a paradise it could be A walk in the bush could be heaven Bring the dreamtime back to me Yeah, we're going to learn what makes you die Gonna send in some money today |
Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: rich-joy Date: 15 Dec 20 - 03:13 AM Sad indeed, Sandra. I've just been reading of the horrendous "Marsupials Destruction Act" from 1855 in Qld, amended 1885 and included not just the introduced feral pigs, red fox, hares, but dingoes (of course) PLUS kangaroos, wallabies, pademelons, rat kangaroos, bandicoots, koalas, wedge-tail eagles ...... HALF A MILLION KOALAS were destroyed in Queensland alone, in 1927!!!!! Easy to do, yes, but how the hell were they harming anything??!! We sing songs lustily about the Sheep Industry, but why not Laments about the war waged against Australia's native creatures??? And The War drags on ..... sigh ..... Stewie's song post on Dec12th re the Marshall Islands atomic tests by the US, has an alarming update here in this ABC (Aust) news clip from 2017 : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=autMHvj3exA I am at present preparing some songs for a post about Britain's Atomic testing in Australia in the 50s and 60s, esp at Maralinga, Emu Fields, Christmas Island, Monte Bello Islands ............. On that cheery little note, I think I might go and have a beer. Cheers, R-J |
Share Thread: |
Subject: | Help |
From: | |
Preview Automatic Linebreaks Make a link ("blue clicky") |