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Mudcat Australia-New Zealand Songbook
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: rich-joy Date: 11 Sep 20 - 12:27 AM Here is one of many excellent compositions from the late Kiwi-Quoinslander, Mark Gillet. Little England Our pioneers, many generations lost in time, Sail away, made a home across the world They took this land, transformed it with blood and iron Above it all, the flag of England unfurled They saw clouds like white cliffs on the horizon Above a land that was clean, green and new But when they came they bought Little England with them And it lives on inside me and inside you Ch. And in the lion and the unicorn, Cricket oval and a croquet lawn Carol singers and a hunting horn Little England And though I know it’s just a state of mind Little England can be so unkind I’ll sail away and see what I can find In Little England Echoes from, my childhood so far away The cradle songs, my mamma sang to me Oh Little England when will I let you go Your cradle songs, keep haunting me The beating drum, there’s red coats marching in the square Keeps us in chains, stop our souls from flying free Oh Little England when will you let us go Your beating drums keeps driving me Chorus ..... I’ll sail away and see what I can find In Little England I can see clouds, like white cliffs on the horizon Above a land that‘s clean, green and new But I can’t go Little England’s got this hold on me Till everyone can sail away too More about Mark can be read in the Mudcat "In Memorium" thread. Thanks to his mate, Noel Gardner, for these lyrics. Noel has been learning Mark's 'LE' song of late, for his next CD. Here is a YT clip of Mark singing "Little England" that I only just discovered : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2SmVXeq4Jus Cheers, R-J |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: rich-joy Date: 10 Sep 20 - 09:44 PM Yay!! Beats that feckin 'AAF' hands down!! Miss seeing Ali, June, and the girls in those regular Brown's Mart shows, e.g. - it's rather different here in provincial Qld ........... R-J :( |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Stewie Date: 10 Sep 20 - 08:45 PM R-J I didn't even reach 50% recognition, but it is pleasing to note the inclusion of the classic kriol rendition of 'Waltzing Matilda' by Darwin girl, Ali Mills. Thanks to a posting a decade ago by Rob Naylor, we have the lyrics. WALTJIM BAT MATILDA one balla carrdia bin cum up langa billabong im bin chid on a groun langa coolibah tree im bin chingum but corobree watchim but him billy boil you balla cum n waltjim bat matilda langa me waltjim bat matilda, waltjim bat matilda, you balla cum n waltjim bat matilda langa me im bin chingum but corobree watchim but him billy boil you balla cum n waltjim bat matilda langa me bum bye datun maaa bin cum up langa billabong carrdia bin gatchim wholly maaa ngee ngee im bin put im dtun maaa inchide langa ducker bag you balla cum n waltjim bat matilda langa me waltjim bat matilda, waltjim bat matilda, you balla cum n waltjim bat matilda langa me im bin put im dtun maaa inchide langa ducker bag you balla cum n waltjim bat matilda langa me bum bye datun marrdagee bin cum up langa dimina pleetjaman bin cum up one, two, three where datun maaa you bin putim langa ducker bag you balla cum n waltjim bat matilda langa me waltjim bat matilda, waltjim bat matilda, you balla cum n waltjim bat matilda langa me where datun maaa you bin putim langa ducker bag you balla cum n waltjim bat matilda langa me bum bye datun carrdia bin jump in langa billabong you gan gatchim me libe one ngee ngee and im pirit jere chingin out inchide langa billabong you balla cum n waltjim bat matilda langa me waltjim bat matilda, waltjim bat matilda, you balla cum n waltjim bat matilda langa me and im pirit jere chingin out inchide langa billabong you balla cum n waltjim bat matilda langa me waltjim bat matilda, waltjim bat matilda, you balla cum n waltjim bat matilda langa me and im koodook (spirit) jere chingin out inchide langa billabong you balla cum n waltjim bat matilda langa me Dibmorr diborr dibmorr diborr dibmorr diborr – whee Youtube clip Mudcat thread --Stewie. |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Stewie Date: 10 Sep 20 - 08:14 PM THE BALLAD OF 1891 (H.Palmer/D.Jacobs) The price of wool was falling in 1891 The men who owned the acres saw something must be done “We will break the Shearers' Union, and show we're masters still And they'll take the terms we give them, or we'll find the ones who will.” From Claremont to Barcaldine, the shearers' camps were full Ten thousand blades were ready to strip the greasy wool. When through the west like thunder, rang out the Union's call: “The sheds'll be shore Union or they won't be shorn at all.” Oh, Billy Lane was with them, his words were like a flame, The flag of blue above them, they spoke Eureka's name. “Tomorrow,” said the squatters, “they'll find it does not pay. We're bringing up free labourers to get the clip away.” “Tomorrow,” said the shearers, “they may not be so keen, We can mount three thousand horses, to show them what we mean.” “Then we'll pack the west with troopers, from Bourke to Charters Towers. You can have your fill of speeches but the final strength is ours.” “Be damned to your six-shooters, your troopers and police, The sheep are growing heavy, the burr is in the fleece.” “Then if Nordenfeldt and Gatling won't bring you to your knees. We'll find a law,” the squatters said, “that's made for times like these.” To trial at Rockhampton the fourteen men were brought, The judge had got his orders, the squatters owned the court. But for every one that's sentenced, ten thousand won't forget, Where they gaol someone for striking, it's a rich man's country yet. Trevor Lucas The Bushwackers Helen Palmer --Stewie. |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: JennieG Date: 10 Sep 20 - 05:24 PM The Museum of Australian Democracy is in the old Parliament House in Canberra. Might check it out, when and if we can ever visit Canberra again. |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Sandra in Sydney Date: 10 Sep 20 - 03:59 AM I remember that thread search-Austn Songs of Influence at Museum of Australian Democracy 13 results & first one is Songs of Influence - I was only 19! |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: rich-joy Date: 10 Sep 20 - 02:34 AM I just revisited the interesting 2009 discussion thread re Austn Songs of Influence, for the new (at the time) "Museum of Australian Democracy" in Canberra : https://mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=118102#2552374 However, of the final 30 chosen by the Curating team, at first glance I recognised exactly half - not sure what that says of me, hahaha!! Archer, Robyn Menstruation Blues Blue King Brown Come and Check Your Head Bogle, Eric And The Band Played Waltzing Matilda Carmody, Kev Cannot Buy My Soul Cox, Kerrianne Beagle Bay Dreaming De Bortoli, Lucia [trad] Mama Mia Don me Cento Lire Hewett, Dorothy and Mike Leyden Weevils In The Flour Hicks, Peter and Geoff Francis One day in October Hunter, Ruby Down City Streets Luscombe, Jack [trad] Sam Griffiths Mazella, Kavisha Love and Justice McCormick, Peter Dodds Advance Australia Fair Midnight Oil US Forces Mills Sisters Waltzing Matilda (Wadjimbat Matilda) O'Loughlin, Tim and Angie McGowan No dams Palmer, Helen and Doreen Bridges Ballad of 1891 Randall, Bob My Brown Skin Baby Reddy, Helen and Ray Burton I am Woman Slim Dusty When the Rain Tumbles Down in July Sloan, Sally Ben Hall Small, Judy Mothers Daughters Wives Storer, Sara Land Cries Out The Herd The King is Dead The Saints Stranded Warner, Dan & Dastey, Sally Anthem Warumpi Band Blackfella Whitefella Wiggan, Roy Bardi Ilma Wright, Lola and Ruth Shepherd The Equal Pay Song Youthu Yindi Treaty Wonder if the museum is still going strong and if the song list is still the same?! Cheers, R-J |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Sandra in Sydney Date: 10 Sep 20 - 12:28 AM I wonder if I still have Ken Ferguson's tapes? - I just leaned to the right & immediately put my hands on them. Franklin & The Singing Wire, not much use tho, unless I buy a plug-in cassette machine, & transcribe them ... The National Library has both cassettes, but there is no other info on line sandra obit for Ken Ferguson https://mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=124337 |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: rich-joy Date: 09 Sep 20 - 11:47 PM OMG Stewie - that'll teach me to update the page before I post, haha! But great song choice, eh :) R-J |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: rich-joy Date: 09 Sep 20 - 11:45 PM Thanks for that extraordinary Wave Hill news, Stew; I've been off the news radar for a few days! And speaking of Jeannie Gunn, do you have the lyrics/recording to Bob Sharp(?)'s 'Boss Lady'??? I'm having great trouble dredging the singer/songwriter names and songs from my aging memory (and it could be that the continual post-midnight bedtimes and poor diet, are not assisting me?! :( I noted "The Streets of Forbes" posted above and have "The Death of Ben Hall" ready here - but I wanted Tony Lavin's excellent recording to go with it. Haven't found it on YT and Andy Irvine's is just not quite what I wanted. I think Tony's was on "Glenrowan to the Gulf" (Wild Colonial Boys), but I no longer have that LP. I hafta opine that SO MUCH much good earlier Folkie material - esp the HUGE swag of LPs and tapes from 70s-90s - is missing from the Internet, whilst the dross increases by the minute (or am I being too unkind?!) OK, gotta go and werk. Cheers, R-J |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Stewie Date: 09 Sep 20 - 10:13 PM The reference to Jeannie Gunn reminded me of a very fine song by a good mate of mine, Bob Sharp, who lived for many years in the NT but now lives in Tasmania. BOSS LADY (Bob Sharp) She came to the outback unwanted, unseen By the men who lived their lives hard They could not foresee what life there could be For a lady from Melbourne’s backyard But bold Jeannie Gunn would prove it to them She was as strong in the heart as the rest It did not take long before she proved them all wrong And they found a new type of respect She was the lady of old Elsie Station, arrived from the city in 1902 They called her Boss Lady respected her greatly For all the things that she went through Heard many stories of men and their travels And how they developed new lands Jeannie she wrote of a woman's view In a man’s world of hot fiery sands Their lives were hard in a far different way Their reasons for being there too They would follow their men to the ends of the earth To make far distant dreams come true Chorus Time has moved on and the old homestead's gone White ants have left their mark here Road markers stand where the station once stood Now only the hot springs run clear The legends live on of bold Jeannie Gunn Her stories of good times and bad And what it would be for a lady like thee To experience the times that you had Chorus Bob recorded it on album that he made with Ken Ferguson 'The Windmill Run' - the duo called themselves 'Facial Expressions'. You can find info here: Bob Sharp Phil Beck and I included the song in a themed concert entitled 'Images of Strong Women'. Phil's introduction to the song: Jeannie Gunn (nee Taylor), ‘The Little Missus’, was born on 5 June 1870. Her father was a Presbyterian minister. In the 1890s she met Aeneas James Gunn, son of Rev. Peter Gunn. Gunn had spent most of the 1890s in northern Australia and helped to establish sheep and cattle stations. Aeneas and Jeannie married in December 1901. Just before his marriage Aeneas had agreed to manage the Elsey cattle station on the Roper River, about 300 miles south of Darwin, so on 2 January 1902 the couple sailed for Port Darwin. In Darwin Jeannie was told that as a woman she would be 'out of place' on a station such as the Elsey. The Territory had always been considered a man's world and news of her arrival in Darwin caused an alarm amongst the tough stockmen of the Elsey who attempted to stop this female invasion by forwarding telegraph messages to prevent her coming. This wasn't enough to discourage Jeannie, all five feet of her had always had a determined streak. The Elsey was in a remote part of the NT known locally as the ‘Never-Never’: in fact later on in life Jeannie wrote ‘We of the Never Never’ based on her time there. The homestead when she arrived was a run down, comfortless bush dwelling which Jeannie set about trying to transform into a home. The stockmen were not easily won over. They were men who’d withdrawn from civilisation and were intolerant of anything that wasn't an accepted part of their lifestyle, which included intrusions from women. Jeannie's friendliness and humour as well as her personal courage and refusal to complain showed these bushmen that she would, like them, accept and make the best of conditions. It was this attitude along with her determination that in the end earned their respect and admiration. --Stewie. |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Stewie Date: 09 Sep 20 - 09:58 PM Here is a Hallom original. He recorded it on his 'On the Periphery' album. The fizzer delivered mail in the Northern Territory at the turn of the 20th century. He based it on information in Jeannie Gunn's autobiography. THE FIZZER (Gerry Hallom) A thousand miles in forty days He carries the precious freight To the homes along the bush highways For settlers who yearn and wait Day by day, week by week Keeping tight to the government time Dicing with death on the dried out creeks Yet it’s his face not his heart that bears the lines Chorus A thousand miles ‘cross the great divide Inside mail from the world outside No sooner here than he’s gone With a hale so long The long dry stretch on the open downs That’s where the fizzin’ gets done Eighty miles till a drink is found Then fifty more with none The thirst of the team fixes the time This gamble with death is played Where the searing, scorching heat combines With a downs that holds no shade Chorus A drink at the well, an all night spell To the toughest pinch of all Fifty miles of sunbaked hell With a team that’s fit to fall And here’s where the tracks are vague and tell Of a bushman’s skill and pluck It’s here where the last mailman fell And they talk of the fizzer’s luck Chorus Is it luck to know to the very last drop Just what a horse can do? Luck to know just when to stop To know when to take them through Is it luck to have the courage to play This game when the stakes are high? For only those who’ve been can say What’s faced by a man on the downs in the dry Chorus Sixteen days on the open downs He takes the treacherous run Knowing the folk at Anthony’s town Will come out in the noonday sun To watch for the distant moving frame Away in the quivering glare And death will have won in the dice-throwing game If the fizzer is late getting down there Chorus Youtube clip Ted Egan also wrote a song about the fizzer. Ted Egan --Stewie. |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Stewie Date: 09 Sep 20 - 08:53 PM Another Lawson poem adapted by Gerry Hallom. THE FREE SELECTOR'S DAUGHTER (Lawson/Hallom) (Chorus) I met her on the Lachlan side A darling girl I thought her I swore before I left I'd win The free selector's daughter I worked her father's farm a month I brought the wood and water I mended all the broken fence Before I won the daughter. I listened to her father's yarns, I did just what I oughte And what I'd had to do to win The free selector's daughter So I broke my pipe and burnt my twist Gave up my beer for water I had to shave before I kissed The free-selector's daughter Chorus Then, rising in the frosty morn I brought the cows for Mary And when I'd milked a bucketful I took it to the dairy I poured the milk into the dish While Mary held the strainer I summoned heart to speak my wish And, oh, her blush grew plainer Chorus I told her I must leave this place, I said that I would miss her At first she turned away her face But then she let me kiss her. I put my pail upon the ground And in my arms I caught her I'd give the world to hold again The free selector's daughter Chorus Youtube clip --Stewie. |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Stewie Date: 09 Sep 20 - 07:45 PM You have posted some good'uns, R-J. Re Gurindji people, are you aware that only 2 days ago (Tuesday 8th Sept) they were finally granted native title over Wave Hill Station at a special sitting of the Federal Court? ABC report --Stewie. |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: rich-joy Date: 09 Sep 20 - 09:03 AM Mysha's earlier question re if there will be a separate "edition" for Kiwi material, wasn't really answered and I've just come across typed words for one of me EnZed faves, so here goes : PACKING MY THINGS ~ Phil Colquhoun When first to this country I came [when I came and took up my claim] Well, Bill Muggins was me name And though I’m a young man and able Here am I stuck rocking the cradle - And that’s a Bill Muggins game. But I’m awake up – I will break up I’m never more going to roam I've panned in my dugout with never a nugget I’m packing my things to go home. I’ve hunted Otago for gold In the wind and the rain and the cold And I’ve holed up all winter all under the snow All along the winding Molyneux - And that is where you need to have holed! But I’m awake up – I will break up I’m never more going to roam I've panned in my dugout with never a nugget I’m packing my things to go home. In those shanties where you spin Away all your hard-earned tin Nancy’s smiles are so beguiling That’s why Nancy is always smiling! - Landlord says he’s not taking you in. But I’m awake up – I will break up I’m never more going to roam I‘ve panned in my dugout with never a nugget I’m packing my things to go home. I almost gave up hope of finding many Kiwi folk songs on YT until I thought to plug in "Phil Garland"! So here is his version : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m3kH8cLjr0A Cheers, R-J |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Richard Mellish Date: 09 Sep 20 - 08:38 AM > Richard M, well why don't you 'put forward' a few? Fair comment! But where do I start? I could just scan the contents lists of a few books (where presumably the editors had already exercised some selection) but I should try to make a personal selection. I'm a bit tied up just now but I'll have a go. |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: rich-joy Date: 09 Sep 20 - 08:26 AM THE STATION COOK ~ trad Oz The song I’m going to sing to you, will not detain you long It’s all about a station cook we had at old Pinyong [Penong] His pastry was so beautiful, his cooking was so fine It gave us all a stomach ache, right through the shearing time. Oh, you should see his plum-duffs, his doughboys and his pies I swear by Long Moloney, they’d open a shearer’s eyes He’d say “take your time good fellows” and he’d fix us with a glance Saying “I’ll dish you up much better, if you’ll give me half a chance.” Oh you should see his doughboys, his dumplings and his pies The thought of such luxuries would open a shearer’s eyes He gets up in the morning, gives us plenty of stewed tea And don’t forget when shearing’s done, to sling the cook his fee. But oh dear, I feel so queer, I don’t know what to do The thought of leaving Fowler’s Bay just breaks me heart in two But if ever I catch that slushy, I’ll make him rue the day That he ruined me constitution while shearing at Fowler’s Bay. The Station Cook could often be an old shearer who can no longer do his tally a day, bent over on the board - much like The Old Woman was often an old cowboy who could no longer do long days in the saddle, keeping the cattle in check on the Trails. Fowler's Bay is in South Australia's Eyre Peninsula/Nullarbor Plain region. Here is Gary Shearston's version from 1965 : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ONE44capghQ Cheers, R-J |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: rich-joy Date: 09 Sep 20 - 08:00 AM Miner’s Washing ~ John Warner I come from Durham in 99 Married a laddie from the Coal Creek mine The finest lad that a girl could ever know Til he brought me his washing from the pit below. Ch. Scrubbing the miner's clothes Scrubbing the miner's clothes All piled up in a ghastly stack Heavy as lead and smelly and black And oh, the pain in my aching back! Scrubbing the miner's clothes Well your Currumburra miner is a grimy sort of bloke So I chuck in his duds for an all-night soak I takes me a soap and I'll grate it like a cheese And I'll chuck it in the bucket with his grubby dungarees. And it's haul ‘em from the copper to the rinsing tub Pound ‘em with the dolly and scrub – scrub - scrub Pour away the mucky water, do it all again Haul ‘em through the wringer and pray it doesn't rain. Beyond Cardella, the sky is looking fine Basket out the washing to the old clothes line I bet when they're hung out and I've hauled up the prop The rain'll come a-pouring and the wind will drop. So all you maids who to marriage do incline Never wed a laddie from the Coal Creek mine A squatter may be surly, a merchant may be mean A banker may be boring but they're easier to clean. A great session song - didn't find Margie Walters' version, but here is one from Qld duo, Cloudstreet : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NtnwKFjM1Sc Cheers, R-J |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: rich-joy Date: 09 Sep 20 - 07:36 AM FANNIE BAY ~ Doug & Andy Tainsh / and possibly David Charles Tell her I’m droving down Camooweal way Or signed on with pearlers for seas far away You can tell her I’ve gone, I’ll be back some day Please don’t tell her they hanged me in old Fannie Bay. ch. And on Thursday Island the sun warms her hair As the breeze from the sea blows her hair And she sits by her window and calls me Yes, she calls me. You can say I’ve gone on the old “River Queen” Its whistle a-haunting the bullockys’ dream Down the Murray I’ve gone, I’ll be back some day Please don’t tell her they hanged me in old Fannie Bay. You can say the bush has called me away And I’m riding the fences for ten bob a day Yes, I needed a job, I needed the pay Please don’t tell her they hanged me in old Fannie Bay. And they came to the door and they dragged me away From all that I love and I pray That it won’t reach her ears, ‘cause I love her And she’d die - she’d die - she’d die for sure. Just say the gold has taken me down To the places where fortunes are easily found Yes, I’ve gone, but tell her I’ll be back some day Just don’t tell her they hanged me in old Fannie Bay. I wanted to link to the version by Darwin, NT trio "Tropical Ear" - from the 1980s - but I cannot locate one on YT. However, I found this version which has similarities - it's by FNQ [= Far North Qld] group "Snake Gully" : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_yniaWFegcE Cheers, R-J |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Sandra in Sydney Date: 09 Sep 20 - 06:32 AM Davy Lowston is one of my favourite songs, thanks for posting it. |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: rich-joy Date: 09 Sep 20 - 06:06 AM COONAWARRA [HAS] THREE SHADOWS ~ Judith Crossley T’was the ninth of October, in Echuca way she lay A new boat on the river, while the steamers passed away Laid up, forgotten, rotting, just a few were left to trade Of those roaring river steamers, that saw the outback made. Ch. Excelsior keep turning Murrumbidgee, you’ll never die J L Roberts on the water, see the paddles fly Shadow ships go softly with her, drift on all her days Coonawarra, lovely black swan, takes the River Ways. She was built in 1950, for the Murray tourist trade Murray Valley Coaches, lost a boat in ’48 Brave old Murrumbidgee burned, that sad heroic day There was not a soul there perished, but that fine ship passed away. Last barge to work the Murrumbidgee, J L Roberts stood alone For sixty years she had ploughed the rivers, her story was well-known On her hull they have built a lovely boat, to take the ‘Bidgee’s place And they named her for the black swan, Coonawarra, full of grace. For ninety years that redgum hull, has left the river sand For thirty years the Coonawarra, beat across the land Three ghosts they travel with her, from the elder time And three shadows has the Coonawarra, they carry on the line. Lyn and Denis Tracy used to do a really beautiful version of this, but luckily there is a version on YT by Irene Petrie : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NJhLeRTyqoU Cheers, R-J |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: rich-joy Date: 09 Sep 20 - 05:36 AM DAVEY LOWSTON Oh me name is Davey Lowston, I did seal, I did seal Oh me name is Davey Lowston, I did seal Though my men and I were lost and our very lives it cost I did seal, I did seal, I did seal. We were set down in Open Bay, were set down, were set down We set down in Open Bay, we set down We were left, we gallant men, never more to sail again For to sail, for to sail, for to sail. Our captain, John Bedar, he set sail, he set sail Yes, all for Port Jackson, he set sail “I’ll return men, without fail”, but, he foundered in the gale And went down, and went down, and went down. We cured ten thousand skins for the fur, for the fur We cured ten thousand skins for the fur Brackish water, putrid seal, we did all of us fall ill For to die, for to die, for to die. Come all you lads who sail upon the sea, sail the sea Come all you jacks who sail upon the sea Though the schooner “Governor Bligh”, took on some who did not die Never seal, never seal, never seal. Oh me name is Davey Lowston, I did seal, I did seal Oh me name is Davey Lowston, I did seal Where the icebergs tower high, it’s a pitiful place to die Never seal, never seal, (never) seal. Regarded as a traditional New Zealand song, though many scholars believe it originated on the Sydney docks - and it was collected on t’other side of the world. No matter. It’s a goodun! Here is a version by Qld harmony group “Work in Progress” : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BvDn3tQ7cTI Cheers, R-J |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: rich-joy Date: 09 Sep 20 - 04:19 AM OK, the subject of this song may not be commonly regarded as Aussie or Kiwi, or even Southern Hemisphere, BUT, I prefer to think that - just like the ubiquitous Chickenman - "He's EVERYWHERE, He's EVERYWHERE"!! So, this is a session favourite from Qld's CLOUDSTREET. THE GREEN MAN ~ John Thompson Ch. The Green Man’s a traveller, a reveller, unraveller Of dreams and of fancies from first to the last Older than all men, living in all things Son, father and sage, long live The Green Man. First light of first morning saw The Green Man there waiting He saw the creation and joined in the dance All creatures grew round him He grew with them singing The first song of all, sing of The Green Man. Quietly watching and waiting and learning The storms are his fury, the lightning his laugh The first leaf of spring is his beauty and glory His stillness, his power, in the trees in his path. There are fewer trees now, but The Man is not sleeping ‘Though our ruin brings sorrow to Time’s oldest heart In our soul we may find him and remember his wisdom And rekindle the flames, once again make a start. There are a couple of Cloudstreet versions on YT - This is from "Swallow the Concertina" in 2000 (and the second is from 2010's "Circus of Desires") : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QIRK0uQs760 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bS32e1qWhIM Cheers, R-J |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: rich-joy Date: 09 Sep 20 - 03:21 AM YIL LULL ~ Joe Geia I sing, for the black, and the people of this Land I sing, for the red, and the blood that’s been shed Now I’m singing for the gold, of a new year young and old. Yil Lull ay, Yil Lull ay, Yil Lull ay, Yil Lull ay, Yil Lull ay Yil Lull ay, Yil Lull ay, Yil Lull ay, Yil Lull ay, Yil Lull ay I sing, unto Him, of the most high I sing, so much praises, it makes me want to cry Now I’m singing, just for you, so all can recognise. Yil Lull ay, Yil Lull ay, Yil Lull ay, Yil Lull ay, Yil Lull ay Yil Lull ay, Yil Lull ay, Yil Lull ay, Yil Lull ay, Yil Lull ay Sing for the black (Singout!) Sing for the red (Singout!) Sing for the black (Singout!) Sing for the red (Singout!) Yil Lull ay, Yil Lull ay, Yil Lull ay, Yil Lull ay, Yil Lull ay Yil Lull ay, Yil Lull ay, Yil Lull ay, Yil Lull ay, Yil Lull ay Sing for the black! Sing for the red! And the gold! Stories told, for young and old. Yil Lull ay, Yil Lull ay, Yil Lull ay, Yil Lull ay, Yil Lull ay Yil Lull ay, Yil Lull ay, Yil Lull ay, Yil Lull ay, Yil Lull ay Yil Lull ay, Yil Lull ay, Yil Lull ay, Yil Lull ay, Yil Lull ay Yil Lull ay, Yil Lull ay, Yil Lull ay, Yil Lull ay, Yil Lull ay. “Yil Lull means Sing!” in Kuku Yalanji language of FNQ” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s9BvEa9xxvQ The YT clip is from 1988 when Joe first wrote and released the song (now regarded as an anthem!), but he is still going strong and I was lucky to be part of the choir performing with him at Qld's Maleny Festival in 2019! Cheers, R-J |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Sandra in Sydney Date: 09 Sep 20 - 03:16 AM Richard - I've posted a lot of old songs on Bush Music Club blog, but I'd have to type up the words & that is putting me off - unless I post the URLs of the song image. I've posted 43 articles which include the subject "songs" This article Compilation - Early Song Sheets1950s/60s has links to 14 of them. There are over 600 articles so the blog is heard to search - best way to search is to open a google page & do a site search -(subject) site:blog.bushmusic.org.au & skim down the offerings. Not every song is traditional - The Bush Music Club was founded in 1954 to collect, publish and popularise Australia's traditional songs, dances, music, yarns, recitations and folklore and to encourage the composition of a new kind of song - one that was traditional in style but contemporary in theme. Australian Song Index by Hugh Anderson Being a list of 375 Bush Ballads that have been published between the days of transportation & 1956. The Black Bull Chapbooks No.7, 1957. Here's another good source of early & contemporary Australian songs 2020 Joy Durst Memorial Song Collection download - FREE - Victorian Folk Music Club (est 1959 as Victorian Bush Music Club) 1st ed, 1970, 2nd ed. 1980. It includes audio files sandra |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: rich-joy Date: 09 Sep 20 - 02:38 AM the bush girl (henry lawson) So you rode from the range where your brothers “select” Through the ghostly grey bush in the dawn You rode slowly at first, lest her heart should suspect That you were [so] glad to be gone. You had scarcely the courage to glance back at her By the homestead receding from view And you breathed with relief as you rounded the spur For the world was a wide world to you. Grey eyes that grow sadder than sunset or rain Fond heart that is ever more true Firm faith that grows firmer for watching in vain She’ll wait by the sliprails for you. Ah! The world is a new and a wide one to you But the world to your sweetheart is shut For a change never comes to the lonely Bush Girl From the stockyard, the bush, and the hut. And the only relief from the [its] dullness she feels Is when ridges grow softened and dim And away in the dusk to the sliprails she steals To dream of past meetings [evenings] with him. Grey eyes that grow sadder than sunset or rain Fond heart that is ever more true Firm faith that grows firmer for watching in vain She’ll wait by the sliprails for you. Do you think, where in place of bare fences, dry creeks Clear streams and green hedges are seen Where the girls have the lily and rose in their cheeks And the grass in midsummer is green. Do you think now and then, now or then, in the whirl Of the city, while London is new Of the hut in the bush, and the freckled-faced girl Who is eating her heart out for you? Grey eyes that are sadder than sunset or rain Bruised heart that is ever more true Fond faith [heart] that is firmer for trusting in vain She waits by the sliprails for you. Sung here by the late Gary Shearston (tune by Con Caston) : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BQ9vgyb2S2Y Seeing “Bonnie Jess” posted above, reminded me of this one – a very singable favourite in my teenage years and often heard in Perth’s folkclubs of the 60s-70s! Cheers, R-J |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: rich-joy Date: 09 Sep 20 - 02:08 AM Gurindji Blues Poor bugger me, Gurindji Me bin sit down this country Long time before the Lord Vestey Allabout land belongin' to we Oh poor bugger me, Gurindji. Poor bugger blackfeller; Gurindji Long time work no wages, we, Work for the good old Lord Vestey Little bit flour; sugar and tea For the Gurindji, from Lord Vestey Oh poor bugger me. Poor bugger me, Gurindji, Man called Vincent Lingiari Talk long allabout Gurindji 'Daguragu place for we, Home for we, Gurindji: But poor bugger blackfeller, Gurindji Government boss him talk long we 'We'll build you house with electricity But at Wave Hill, for can't you see Wattie Creek belong to Lord Vestey' Oh poor bugger me. Poor bugger me, Gurindji Up come Mr: Frank Hardy ABSCHOL too and talk long we Givit hand long Gurindji Buildim house and plantim tree Longa Wattie Creek for Gurindji But poor bugger blackfeller Gurindji Government Law him talk long we 'Can't givit land long blackfeller, see Only spoilim Gurindji' Oh poor bugger me. Poor bugger me, Gurindji Peter Nixon talk long we: 'Buy you own land, Gurindji Buyim back from the Lord Vestey' Oh poor bugger me, Gurindji. Poor bugger blackfeller Gurindji Suppose we buyim back country What you reckon proper fee? Might be flour, sugar and tea From the Gurindji to Lord Vestey? Oh poor bugger me. Oh ngaiyu luyurr ngura-u Sorry my country, Gurindji. © Ted Egan https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d8LcF0kwbjE&t=2s Here is a later version by Galurrwuy Yunupingu with Vincent Lingiari : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EdLIlyhLewI The importance of Ted's song and this piece of NT history, cannot IMHO, be overestimated. It was also often played on Perth's ABC radio, back in the day. See also the previous post of "From Little Things, Big Things Grow". Cheers, R-J |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: JennieG Date: 09 Sep 20 - 01:13 AM Words and music to "Bourke Street on Saturday night" can be found in "A treasury of favourite Australian songs, with complete words and music" compiled by Therese Radic. Published by Currey O'Neil, Melbourne, 1983. Music by Fred Hall, words by P.C. Cole, 1918. I wonder if this was one of the Cole faimly of "Cole's funny picture books" fame? Whether it is or isn't, this book is a great addition to my book shelf. |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Stewie Date: 09 Sep 20 - 12:54 AM Here is another Ogilvie poem to which Gerry Hallom put a tune. As usual, his version has alterations and omissions - good but! NORTHWARDS TO THE SHEDS (W.Ogilvie/G.Hallom There's a whisper from the regions out beyond the Barwon banks There's a gathering of the legions there's a forming of the ranks There's a murmur coming nearer with the signs that never fail And it's time for every shearer to be out upon the trail (Chorus) For the Western creeks are calling And the idle days are done With the snowy fleeces falling And the Queensland sheds begun There is shortening of the bridle, there's a tightening of the girth There is a grooming of the horse that they love the best on earth Northward from the Lachlan River and the sun-dried Castlereagh Outward to the Never-Never ride the shearers on their way Chorus They will leave their girls behind them and their empty glasses too For there's plenty left to mind them when they cross the dry Barcoo There'll be kissing, there'll be sorrow such as only sweethearts know But before the noon tomorrow, they'll be singing as they go Chorus They will camp below the station, they'll be cutting peg and pole Raising tents for occupation till the boss he calls the roll And it's time the colts were driven, it's time to strap the pack For there's never licence given to the laggards on the track Chorus John Thompson has a version on his site that is close to the original poem. His source is the excellent CD by Alan Musgrave (with Bob McInnes & friends) 'Songs They Used to Sing: A panorama of Australian folksong'.. Hallom Thompson I found this on the Net, but I can't verify its authenticity: As Will wrote in 'My life in the open (Short stories)' (1908): On a big sheep station everything dates from shearing-time. “It was just before last shearing,” they say, or “I will attend to it after shearing,” or “So-and-so was here two shearings ago.” Through the greater part of the year a large station of 50,000 to 80,000 sheep is worked by a staff of ten to fifteen men; but at shearing-time the shed and surrounding buildings contain from fifty to a hundred men, with here and there a white tent starring the plain, and the stir and hum of the work turn this quiet corner into the semblance of a thriving settlement. --Stewie. |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Stewie Date: 08 Sep 20 - 11:26 PM Here's another forgotten gem, also on the Hildebrand and O'Leary CD. It is in the style of CJ Dennis. Below is how Hildebrand sings it. You can find the original and info here: Info BOURKE STREET ON SATURDAY NIGHT (P.C. Cole & Fred Hall) Them ragtime songs got me fair pippy All Hawaii or old dixie land And the same kind of tarts always in ‘em Starry eye, golden hair, china hands Now tell me what’s wrong with Australia And the cliner on which I am shook I don’t need no cotton fields shady And I don’t need no soft purlin’ brook So give me old Melbourne and give me a tart And then I am simply all right Can any bloke point to a better old joint Than Bourke Street on a Saturday night When me and me Maudie goes out for a stroll Me cobbers all try to be smart ‘Get out of their way, here comes Billo’, they say Walkin’ out with his fair dinkum tart On Princes Bridge once we were standin’ And gazed down at the water below In the lamplight we feels sentimental Holdin’ hands, all that rot, don’t you know Says Maud, ‘Prove you’re fond of me really So I looked to see no one was near I gives her a kiss, then she murmurs ’Now you loves me, I know, Billo dear’ Repeat stanzas 2 and 3. --Stewie. |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Stewie Date: 08 Sep 20 - 10:39 PM Here's a delightful little ditty that has been buried deep in the forum database. It was posted and collected by Joybell, a lady who used to post prolifically to Mudcat. She explained: I believe it deserves its own thread and a place in the DT. It's a Melbourne song probably from around the early 1900s. I learned it from an elderly man, in about 1984, in a pub in Collingwood, a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. He called it an old Melbourne song. He used the title "Push on the Corner". A friend, Jack Johnson, recorded an almost identical version from an elderly man in a Melbourne nursing home. My informant told me he wanted me to have the song because I was "a Collingwood Lassie". He added that he meant not of the type described in the song. These two appearances of the song are the only ones I've come across. It sounds like somebody's music-hall turn. THE PUSH ON THE CORNER Last night I was driven near crazy By one I both love and adore Now she's packed up her boxes and left me And I ain't gonna see her no more I've written her hundreds of letters, To beg her my faults to forget But now she's found one she loves better And this is the answer I get Oh, wait till the push on the corner Refuses to drink a long beer Wait till the thieves and pickpockets From the streets of Fitzroy disappear When the dear little Collingwood lassies rom powder and paint they are free When the Chinese are coppers on Bourke Street My darling I'll come back to thee The tune may be found on a beaut CD O'Leary & Hildebrand 'Together Again, Again' --Stewie |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Stewie Date: 08 Sep 20 - 09:49 PM The other Youtube video of Steam Shuttle is one of those warhorses. They noted that their version was based on one collected by John Meredith from Mrs Ewell late of Bathurst NSW. THE STREETS OF FORBES (THE DEATH OF BEN HALL) Come all you Lachlan men and a sorrowful tale I'll tell Concerning of a hero bold who through misfortune fell His name it was Ben Hall, a man of good renown Who was hunted from his station and like a dog shot down Three years he roamed the roads and he showed the traps some fun One thousand pounds was on his head, with Gilbert and John Dunn Ben parted from his comrades, the outlaws did agree To give away bushranging and cross the briny sea Ben went to Goobang Creek and that was his downfall For riddled like a sieve was the valiant Ben Hall 'Twas early in the morning upon the fifth of May When the seven police surrounded him as fast asleep they lay Bill Dargin he was chosen to shoot the outlaw dead The troopers all fired madly and they filled him full of lead They rolled him in his blanket and strapped him to his prad And they led him through the streets of Forbes to show the prize they had Youtube clip --Stewie. |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Stewie Date: 08 Sep 20 - 09:28 PM For those who have not heard Steam Shuttle, there are 2 recordings available on Youtube. The better one imo is their rendition of Duke Tritton's 'Sandy Hollow Line'. They noted that they put it to a traditional tune that Tritton had used for another of his songs, 'The Great Northern Line', 'in preference to the usual dreary melody'. Amen to that! THE SANDY HOLLOW LINE (Duke Tritton) The sun was blazing in the sky and waves of shimmering heat Glared down on the railway cutting, we were half dead on our feet And the ganger stood on the bank of the cut and he snarled at the men below "You'd better keep them shovels full or all you cows 'll go." "I never saw such a useless mob, you'd make a feller sick As shovel men you're hopeless, and you're no good with the pick" There were men in the gang who could belt him with a hand tied at the back But he had power behind him and we dare not risk the sack. So we took his insults in silence, for this was the period when We lived in the great depression and nothing was cheaper than men And we drove the shovels and swung the picks and cursed the choking dust We'd wives and hungry kids to feed so toil in the heat we must And as the sun rose higher and the heat grew more intense The flies were in their millions, the air was thick and dense We found it very hard to breathe, our lungs were hot and tight With the stink of sweating horses and the fumes of gelignite But still the ganger drove us on, we couldn't take much more We prayed for the day we'd get the chance to even up the score A man collapsed in the heat and dust, he was carried away to the side It didn't seem to matter if the poor chap lived or died "He's only a loafer," the ganger said. "A lazy, useless cow I was going to sack him anyway, he's saved me the trouble now" He had no thoughts of the hungry kids, no thought of a woman's tears, As she struggled and fought to feed her brood all down the weary years But one of the government horses fell and died there in the dray They hitched two horses to him and they dragged the corpse away The ganger was a worried man and he said with a heavy sigh "It is a bloody terrible thing to see a good horse die" "You chaps get back now to your work and don't stand loafing ther Get in and trim the batter down, I'll get the engineer" Well the engineer he looked around and he said as he scratched his head "No horse could work in this dreadful heat or all of them will be dead" "They're much too valuable to lose, they cost us quite a lot And I think it is a wicked shame to work them while it's hot So we will take them to the creek and spell them in the shade You men must all knock off at once - of course you'll not be paid" And so we plodded to our camps and it seemed to our weary brains We were no better than convicts, though we didn't wear the chains And in those drear depression days, we were unwanted men But we knew that when a war broke out, we'd all be heroes then And we'd be handed a rifle and forced to fight for the swine Who tortured us and starved us, on the Sandy Hollow Line Youtube clip --Stewie. |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Stewie Date: 08 Sep 20 - 08:46 PM Richard M, well why don't you 'put forward' a few? My impetus has been to post, mainly but not exclusively, worthy songs that have not been posted or have been buried deep in the forum database - songs that are less well known and not as easily accessed as the warhorses. Sandra, thanks to the link to Seal's lyrics. Apart from some reordering, Danny's version is much the same. Two stanzas from the Stewart/Keesing printing, as collected by Bill Bowyang, have been dropped: I courted Flo in Jericho And Jane at old Blackall I said farewell to the Sydney belle At the doors of the Eulo hall And the final one: I've seen and heard upon my word Some strange things on my way But spare my days, I was knocked sideways When I landed here today --Stewie. |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: JennieG Date: 08 Sep 20 - 08:18 PM Thank you, Sandra! On a completely differnt note, I quite like Enda Kenny's Earl Grey Tea song - although I never drink tea, I'm a coffee girl. EARL GREY Is it perfume? Is it tea? Whatever it is, it does nothing for me Should I drink it? Or dab it on? Can I swap it for a coffee or has all the water gone. It is hot, it is wet, It is eau de toilette Is it from the House of Lipton or Chanel? I only want a cup of tea, not this stuff you've given me, If you think I'm going to drink it go to..... Help me someone...... Call a doctor or a nurse, Call an ambulance I'm poisoned, And I think it's getting worse. I only wanted a cup of tea But I fear that my last mouthful will be the death of me It is hot, it is wet, It is eau de toilette To my mind it is more toilette than eau. If you want to spoil your day Add the oil of Earl Grey, I'm reliably informed it's bergamot. What a mouthful! Is it perfume? Is it wee? Whatever it's supposed to be it doesn't taste like tea. Should I drink it, or dab it on? Can I swap it for a coffee or has all the water gone. It is hot, it is wet, It is eau de toilette Is it Twinings? is it Tetley? let me see. Go ahead and make my day But please don't make me drink Earl Grey. All I want is a proper cup of tea. Enda Kenny (1995) Earl Grey Tea |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Richard Mellish Date: 08 Sep 20 - 12:51 PM > Lloyd altered the words "I am a young man, cut down in my blossom..." to "I am a young man from the town of Kiandra..." I had heard or read before now that the "town of Kiandra" words were due to Bert, and I had wondered whether we should encourage singers to revert to the version as collected. However "cut down in my blossom" clearly belongs in a different song, not this one. The man is justifiably lamenting having to rock the baby that is not his, but he is not the Unfortunate Rake who really has been cut down. Not for the only time, I think we have to count Bert's work on this song as an improvement. On another matter entirely: it has struck me that a lot of the songs being put forward in this thread are of fairly recent origin. Nothing wrong with that in itself but there are lots of older ones that I think are equally deserving. |
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Subject: LYR Add - The Country Knows The Rest -Graham Seal From: Sandra in Sydney Date: 08 Sep 20 - 03:51 AM Back of the Milky Way (Humping the Drum) - lyrics & audio Lyrics to Graham's songs, all with audio. Graham Seal writes good songs (he also writes good books) & was Australia's first (& maybe only) Professor of Folklore. interview with Graham The Country Knows The Rest by Graham Seal with audio link. Norman Brown was an innocent bystander, he was not one one the strikers. He was JennieG's mother's cousin The year was nineteen-twenty-nine, the place was Rothbury town, The miners were all locked out and our wage had been knocked down, From March until December we lived on bread and dole, Until the Rothbury mine re-opened, with scabs to dig the coal - And the country knows the rest … So the miners’ dole was cut and our strike pay couldn’t last, But the men and women of Rothbury determined to stand fast. All across the coalfields miners heard the call, On a warm night in December they met at Rothbury, one and all - And the country knows the rest … It was early in the morning upon that fateful day, Many hundred miners gathered there to send the scabs away, A piper played before us in the breaking blood-red dawn, But when we reached the Rothbury mine gates a bloodier day was born - And the country knows the rest … The police were in the bushes with pistols in their hands, There were more of them on horseback to break the miners’ stand, Just how it started I swear I'll never know, But the guns began firing and the blood began to flow - And the country knows the rest … When the firing was all over and the police had broken through, Many miners badly beaten - bullet-wounded, too, Beneath the Rothbury mine gate Norman Brown was lying dead, And the lifeblood from his veins stained the coaldust red - And the country knows the rest … Notes Many thanks to Graham Seal for permission to add this song to the Union Songs website. Graham writes 'The Country Knows the Rest was written in the 1970s while I was researching popular protest in Australia. One of the Kelly ballads used the line the country knows the rest and I was also struck by a few phrases from the oral accounts of miners who had been at Rothbury. The music and lyrics came together from these sources. I recorded the song on my Barbed Wire Ballads in 2005 and Andy Saunders and Tim Glover recorded it as The Symbolics, back around the late 70s/early 80s.' When the depression hit at the end of the 1920s miners everywhere were in trouble. In February 1929 the coalowners of the Hunter Valley NSW demanded a 12.5% wage cut. When the workers refused, the bosses, supported by a conservative State Government, locked them out of the mines for 15 months. Towards the end of 1929 the coalowners tried to open some pits with scab labour. Miners decided to take them on. Around 4000 of them made there way to Rothbury on December 16th and the police opened fire killing the young miner Norman Brown and wounding many others. Veteran miner Jim Comerford, now in his nineties, was at Rothbury when he was just 16 years old, he tells his story in his book The Great Lockout |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Stewie Date: 07 Sep 20 - 11:44 PM HUMPING THE DRUM I've humped my drum from Kingdom Come To the back of the Milky WaY I boiled my quart on the Cape of York And I starved last Christmas Day I cast a line on the Condamine And one on the Nebine Creek I've driven through bog, so help me bob Up Mungindi's main street I crossed the Murray and drank at Cloncurry Where they charged me a bob a nip. I worked in the Gulf where the cattle they duff And the squatters they give 'em tip I've worked from morn in the fields of long corn Till the sun was out of sight I've cause to know the Great Byno And the Great Australian Bight I danced with Kit, when the lamps were lit And Doll when the dance broke up I flung my hat on the Myall Track When Bowman won the Cup I laughed aloud with the merry crowd In the city of the plains I sweated too on Omdooroo While bogged in those big bore-drains I wheeled me bike from the shearers' strike Not wanting a funeral shroud And I made the weights for the Flying Stakes And I dodged the lynchin' crowd I've carried a gun through World War One Then went to the track again From Omeo to Bendigo To Bourke and back again I lost some tears in the hungry years When jobs were short and few And I picked up me swag and me old tucker bag There was nothing else to do There are various versions of this song, but the above is what Danny Spooner sang on his final album 'Home'. Danny noted: I like the way that each verse seems to be sung by another travelling character ... these words were adapted by Graham Seal. I first heard the song on an old Larrikin LP by a group named 'Steam Shuttle' of which Graham Seal was a member - 'Steam Shuttle Larrikin LRF-018. Unfortunately, I am unable to play it to check the lyrics against Danny's version as my record player is stuffed. However, the note on the LP sleeve reads: A recitation from Stewart and Keesing's revision of Banjo Pateron's 'Old Bush Songs'. A few verses have been cut out, a couple added and the whole thing set to an Irish tune. As it now stands, the song is essentially a potted history of itinerant labour in Australia up the 1930s. 'Humping the drum' is one of the many terms for carrying a swag. --Stewie. |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Stewie Date: 07 Sep 20 - 10:50 PM Hi Joe, irrespective of what happens re 'Rise Up Singing', I reckon it's good to have a collection of Australian songs, particularly less-well-known ones, in one place on this site. It's a pity that it is only Sandra and I doing the bulk of the posting. R-J, Sean's voice was particularly fine on those recordings. THE TOWN OF KIANDRA (THE WEE ONE) I am a young man from the town of Kiandra I married a young woman to comfort my home She goes out and she leaves me and cruelly deceives me She leaves me with a baby that's none o' me own Chorus Oh dear, I rue the day ever I married How I wish I was single again With this weeping and wailing and rocking the cradle And rocking the baby that's none o' me own While I'm at work, my wife's on the rantan On the rantan with some other young man She goes out and she leaves me and cruelly deceives me And leaves me with a baby that's none o' me own Now all you young men with a fancy to marry Be sure you leave them flash gals alone Or by the Lord Harry, if one you should marry They'll leave you with a baby that's none o' your own This is in the DT under the title 'Rocking the Cradle'. Extensive information on its provenance may be had here: Mainly Norfolk Bob Bolton posted this back in the day: The "Wee One" was collected by John Meredith from the wonderful old Australian singer Sally Sloane, late 1950s or early 1960s. A.L. Lloyd would have seen the words in the photocopies of Meredith, Ward and Stewart & Keesing's collection notes lodged with the EFDSS (by Edgar Walters?) and possibly heard the field tapes. Lloyd altered the words "I am a young man, cut down in my blossom..." to "I am a young man from the town of Kiandra..." because he had heard of someone from Kiandra to whom such things had happened. Martyn Wyndham-Read may well have sung the Lloyd version in the 1960s. The modal tune is Sally's and typical of her Irish heritage. The song words come from a long and forked line of songs/parodies/re-works that go all the way back to "The Christ Child Lullaby", in the Erse and, at least as far forward across America as "Get along Little Dogey". The details of Meredith collecting this song (and many others, along with a lot of dance tunes) would be in "Folk Songs of Australian and the men and women who sang them", Volume 1, John Meredith & Hugh Anderson, (Ure Smith ~1967 / University of New South Wales Press ~1988). The song was also published in "Singabout Magazine, the journal of Australian folksong", Vol. 5, No. 2, p5, Bush Music Club, October 1964, and so appears in my anthology "Singabout - Selected Reprints", Bush Music Club, 1985. If you are interested in looking at primary sources, these two publications are still available for the Bush Music Club at $12A and $9A plus $3A post/packaging. Sally Sloane was a wonderful singer and I am proud to have known her - and had her sing for me in concerts in the 1970s. She contributed more songs and tunes than any other single singer of Australian tradional songs. I like to remember her by her original songs, rather than the changed versions of later singers. Danny Spooner recorded it under the title 'The wee one' for his last album 'Home'. Wongawilli recorded it under the title 'The Town of Kiandra (The Wee One)'. Youtube clip --Stewie. |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: rich-joy Date: 07 Sep 20 - 04:36 AM Ah, I've always loved that "Let the rope, soap, and calico take me ...." number - Alan and Sean were a great duo, way back when (and as I've said before, when they supported The Dubliners in Perth, The Settlers ran rings around the Dubliners - until the Dubs were shocked into lifting their game, LoL!!) R-J :) |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Joe Offer Date: 06 Sep 20 - 11:50 PM Oh, gee, these are wonderful. Be sure to look at Australian Folk Song a Day from Cloudstreet and John Thompson. Also "Australian Folk Songs": -Joe- |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Stewie Date: 06 Sep 20 - 11:18 PM JAIL AWAY FREMANTLE (W.Evans/A.Ferguson) Chorus: Let the rope, soap and calico take me I’ll grin and I’ll hold me head high And the devil take he who can make me Bow low ‘cos I’d far rather die The landlord that fenced in our farmland Was a thief and he left us to die The judge gave 5 years transportation So I downed him and blackened his eye On the boat we fared far worse than cattle I was detailed to clean up the ship The devil take ye, says I, what a battle But I laughed when they gave me the whip Chorus At Fremantle a rat cell awaited Some others had died in that place The guard who released me weeks later Gave a curse as I spat in his face I was sentenced to work on the chain gang Lashed backs as the rocks we did crush But I struck a great blow at a weak link And made a quick dash to the bush Chorus Near starving I met up with Dugan And rode with his wild Irish band And plundered the rich idle squatters When we levelled our guns and cried stand We were caught in an ambush near Collie And most of them died in that fight I was locked up in jail for a dawn dance But I broke through the roof in the night Chorus I have rode with the rustlers at Moora And many the cattle I’ve duffed I’ve ridden the wild trails through the outback And with me swag many miles I have roughed With a new name I joined in the gold rush And was lucky and struck a rich vein For the landowner’s hirelings claim-jumped me So I swore that I’d blacken his name Chorus Now killing don’t make a man suffer It’s others that get to despair But he’s brought his young wife to the diggings So I gave the old bastard an heir And he sent out his hirelings to kill me And I laughed as the bullets did fly And I’ll laugh when I hang in the morning ‘Cos I don’t give a damn if I die Chorus Alan Ferguson put a tune to this ripper Wendy Evans poem. The Settlers, a West Australian band, recorded it on 'Bound for Western Australia' Tempo DBCD 114. Thanks to Phil Beck for checking my above transcription. Info on Wendy Evans may be found here: Wendy Evans --Stewie. |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Stewie Date: 06 Sep 20 - 09:31 PM THE GLENBURGH WOOL (Jack Sorensen) The ramp outside the woolshed door Holds yet another load: So yolk the camel team once more And take the waggon road. The shafters prop, the leaders pull The wheels creak dismally, And sixty bales of Glenburgh wool Roll westward to the sea On down the winding dusty track From dawn till close of day The punchers shout, the big whips crack While straining camels sway By stony plain, by sandhills brown By wattles o'er the lea The hard-won wool goes rolling down From Glenburgh to the sea Chorus: Come spare a thought for lads outback who shear the Glenburgh wool In summer heat out on the board where the wool fleece bob and pull Our ringer's Tommy Gibson, he's a gun from northern town And he shears his tally every day when the Glenburgh wool goes down A creek to cross, a hill to climb A stretch of sandy track They'll haul it through if given time Though a straw would break each back So a morning breaks, a bright sun wanes Till a day, then a week, is gone. Yet with creaking wheels and clinking chains The Glenburgh wool rolls on Chorus Cool nights of rest while the camels swell As they munch the mulga near While the hobble chain, and the doleful bell Will lull the puncher's ear Two more long days from Rocky Pool And then Carnarvon town So sixty bales of Glenburgh wool From inland heights go down Chorus This song may be found at about 30-min mark of the Roweth concert linked in my previous post. The poem by Sorensen has been set to music by Roger Montgomery, Alan Ferguson et alia. A chorus, written by Wendy Evans, has been added to the poem. I'm not sure of the latter part of the second line - 'where the wool fleece ....' A correction is welcomed. Roger Montgomery's band 'Dingo's Breakfast' issued a CD of Sorensen: 'Jack Sorensen: Weaver of Dreams'. You can listen to it on Spotify. --Stewie. |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Stewie Date: 06 Sep 20 - 08:20 PM Thanks, R-J. THE MAN WITH THE CONCERTINA {Stewart/Rummery/Kevans Once more I'm away on the bridle track and through the mountains steering With a horse to ride and one to pack, I'm jogging down to shearing At night I pick the driest camp and build a three-log fire And when a man is on the tramp what more could he desire I eat my tucker and drink my tea, perhaps with a piece of damper Then lie for a while upon my back and watch the possums scamper I light my pipe and puff a cloud, you'd think it was a steamer Then 'Finnegan's Wake' I finger out upon the concertina There's a place I long to be, it's on the old Monaro For ryebuck sport and company, you'd have no need to care O For the boys all get together there and we all toss in a deeper And we'll buy some grog and have some tunes upon the concertina Now, my boys, my song is done I find my throat wants clearing I've told you how to have some fun going down the river shearing You'll hear of me I have no doubt all through the Riverina You're sure to hear them talk about the man with the concertina This song is the title track of Bob Rummery's 'The man with the concertina' CD. Bob noted: A poem by Robert Stewart who travelled from the Illawarra to the Riverina for the shearing season. The third verse was sung, and written by, the late Jacko Kevans and the late 1960s Canberra band The Monaro Boys. The tune after verse 3 is 'Cosgroves Schttische'. The Chloe and Jason Roweth tribute to Bob Rummery, mentioned above by Sandra, is now on Youtube - beaut stuff. Roweths on Rummery --Stewie. |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: rich-joy Date: 06 Sep 20 - 09:09 AM The Goodwills are now based in Warwick, Qld, closer to the border, but are practising Grey Nomads for much of the year! R-J :) |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Sandra in Sydney Date: 06 Sep 20 - 03:53 AM I haven't heard that song for years, since they were in Sydney & did a floorspot @ The Dog. sandra |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Stewie Date: 06 Sep 20 - 12:48 AM COURTING THE NET (Bob Wilson) My love is on the Internet again He says he'll come to bed soon, but he never tells me when He's out there surfin' somewhere with imaginary friends He's a little fish in a big pond, dot com.au at the end My love is on the Internet again I fear some horny geek girl is messing with his brain For the Net's an open sewer, and he's peering down the drain Printing out the porn page as I sing this sweet refrain Why won't you come to bed with me We could yahoo all night long for free Make a real connection if we try But every time I hear that modem squeal Like a lover's cry that's not quite real I put a bookmark in my paperback, think about the things I lack And dream about a real time guy My love is on the Internet again I wish he'd kept his motorbike, we'd more in common then But he's moved away from maintenance and he's given up on zen Now he follows the money markets and the fortunes of the yen Oh the information highway is an easy road to be on Kerouac could have travelled it without ever leavin' home It's like a message in a bottle, swept up on the sand But there's a million bottles on the beach, each with a unique message of its own My love is on the Internet again His cyber-infidelity indelibly ingrained He left me with the phone bill, I left him standing in the rain He even took the lap top where I wrote this sweet refrain Why won't you come to bed with me We could yahoo all night long for free Make a real connection if we try But every time I hear that modem squeal Like a lover's cry that's not quite real I put a bookmark in my paperback, think about the things I lack And dream about a real time guy Source: transcription from The Goodwills 'Courting the Net' Bob Wilson is a Kiwi who now lives in Maleny, Queensland. The Goodwills --Stewie. |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Stewie Date: 04 Sep 20 - 09:40 PM I WAS ONLY NINETEEN (A walk in the light green) (John Schumann) Mum and dad and Denny saw the passing out parade at Puckapunya It was a long march from cadets The sixth battalion was the next to tour and it was me who drew the card We did Canungra, Shoalwater before we left And Townsville lined the footpaths as we marched down to the quay This clipping from the paper shows us young and strong and clean And there's me in me slouch hat with me SLR and greens God help me I was only nineteen From Vung Tau riding Chinooks to the dust at Nui Dat I'd been in and out of choppers now for months And we made our tents a home - V.B. and pinups on the lockers And an Asian (agent?) orange sunset through the scrub And can you tell me, doctor, why I still can't get to sleep? And night-time's just a jungle dark and a barking M16? And what's this rash that comes and goes, can you tell me what it means? God help me I was only nineteen A four-week operation, when each step can mean your last one on two legs It was a war within yourself But you wouldn't let your mates down 'til they had you dusted off So you closed your eyes and thought about somethin' else And then someone yelled out 'Contact!', and the bloke behind me swore We hooked in there for hours, then a God almighty roar And Frankie kicked a mine the day that mankind kicked the moon God help me He was goin' home in June And I can still see Frankie, drinkin' tinnies in the Grand Hotel On a thirty-six hour rec leave in Vung Tau And I can still hear Frankie, lying screaming in the jungle 'Til the morphine came and killed the bloody row And the Anzac legends didn't mention mud and blood and tears And the stories that my father told me never seemed quite real I caught some pieces in my back that I didn't even feel God help me I was only nineteen And can you tell me, doctor, why I still can't get to sleep? And why the Channel Seven chopper chills me to my feet? And what's this rash that comes and goes Can you tell me what it means? God help me I was only nineteen Youtube clip --Stewie. |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Stewie Date: 04 Sep 20 - 09:12 PM DIAMENTINA DROVER (Hugh McDonald) The faces in the photograph have faded And I can't believe he looks so much like me For it's been ten long years today Since I left for Old Cork Station Sayin' I won't be back till the drovin's done Chorus For the rain never falls on the dusty Diamantina And a drover finds it hard to change his mind For the years have surely gone Like the drays from Old Cork Station And I won't be back till the drovin's done It seems like the sun comes up each mornin' Sets me up and then takes it all away For the dreaming by the light Of the campfire at night Ends with the burning light of day Chorus Sometimes I think I'll settle back in Sydney But it's been so long and it's hard to change your mind For the cattle trail goes on and on And the fences roll forever And I won't be back when the drovin's done Chorus Youtube clip --Stewie. |
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Subject: RE: Rise Up Mudcat Songbook - Australia From: Stewie Date: 04 Sep 20 - 08:29 PM SONG OF THE SHEETMETAL WORKER (John Dengate) Oh when I was a boy in Carlingford All sixty years ago, The eucalypts grew straight and tall And the creeks did sweetly flow But times were hard when the old man died And the orchard would not pay So I left the land for the factory bench And I'm working there still today. I've earned my bread in the metal shops For forty years and more My hands are hard and acid-scarred As the boards on the workshop floor. My soul is sheathed in Kembla steel And my eyelids have turned to brass And the orchard's gone, and the apple trees Where the wind whispered through the grass. The workbench is my altar Where I come to take the host. Copper, brass and fine sheet steel Father son and holy ghost. The sacramental wine of work Grows sour upon my tongue Oh the fruit was sweet on the apple trees When my brothers and I were young Youtube clip Dengate's tribute to his father. The tune is 'Valley of Knockanure'. John's recording is on John Dengate 'Australian Son: Vollume I' Danny Spooner recorded it on his 'Emerging Tradition' CD. It is also on Declan Affley 'Vintage Recordings' CD --Stewie. |
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