Mudcat Australia-New Zealand Songbook

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: Sandra in Sydney
Date: 17 Jul 21 - 11:41 PM

Warren has been busy posting his albums, 3 on the 8th July, must have been a lockdown activity!

Maybe there are more to come?

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: Stewie
Date: 17 Jul 21 - 10:53 PM

PINT POT AND BILLY
(Anon)

I dined with the swells in famed Piccadilly
Took tea with my cousins in Horsemonger Lane
And now I am stranded on my own native shore
I'll go back to Australia to the goldfields again

When I asked for a nobbler they asked what I meant, sir
I called them all 'new chums' and that served them right
Oh dear, don't I sigh for my famous stock horses
I had when droving on One Man Plain

A mountain flash rider, a son of old Scroggins
Oh dear, don't I wish I was back there again
Oh don't you remember Ben Hall and his troupe, sir
Who stuck up the escort and well-guarded mail

And about that wretch Morgan I could yet relate, sir
But history would serve me to tell a sad tale
Then give me Australia with my pint pot and billy
Making tea in the shade of a gum tree again

Youtube clip

--Stewie.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: Stewie
Date: 15 Jul 21 - 08:43 PM

Sandra, thanks for posting Dale's review. Here is another good'un from the album.

Note in lyric booklet: Mary Gilmore clearly felt that fellow poet, Henry Lawson, was very poorly treated during his life and that his state funeral in 1922 was no compensation.

The Dead Poet (for the pioneer)
(M.Gilmore/M.Somerville)

Turn down his glass on the bar
Take up the cards he let fall
Sort them and count what they are
Now he has taken the call

Joker and sequence and flush -
Trumpeters blowing before -
Flowers, cathedral and crush
What could we give to him more?
Sorrow he had for his portion
Shame - and the cold of a cell
Cruelty, blame and extortion
Hatred, bitter as hell

Poverty, pity, contempt
Patronage, judgment of fools
Always some clerk to pre-empt
Right to read him the rules!

Lonely he walked in your streets
Solitude lone as the grave
Now with your mighty he seats
Spotlight, centre and nave

Ah, had you but given him half
Living, you gave at his death!
Surely his ghost of a laugh
Shakes on the air like breath!

14 October 1922 - published in 'Murray Pioneer', 15 December 1922.

--Stewie.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: Sandra in Sydney
Date: 14 Jul 21 - 10:58 PM

Review by Dale Dengate of 'The Forest Prayed. Poems of Mary Gilmore'

The Forest Prayed is a truly delightful CD of Maggie Somerville’s settings for the poems of Mary Gilmore. The music is totally appropriate & such pleasant listening one wonders why it hasn’t been done before, in the way Henry Lawson’s poems walked off the pages into songs. Maggie has written tunes, which are so evocative of the bush melodies that you can almost smell the gum leaves burning beneath the billy tea. The backings are varied but over all seem to include every instrument found in a bush band & more. These musicians play sensitive accompaniments to Gilmore’s words that are sung with great clarity enabling every word to be heard

Dame Mary Gilmore led a distinguished & romantic life as a humanist, political activist and social reformer and supporter of other artists. She was an acclaimed writer in her own day and I well recall the portrait of her in the Fellowship of Australian Writers rooms where the Bush Music Club met. On her death, the Bush Music Club put out a special Singabout magazine with a pen sketch of Mary and an obituary by John Meredith, page 6 . The most famous portrait of Gilmore was Dobell’s painting commissioned for her 90th birthday; it aroused controversy as it depicted an old woman with slim face & wispy white hair that Dobell painted so delicately but dressed in formal old fashioned lace and satin brocade quite different from the younger portrait once on the ten dollar note. Dobell’s portrait has been included on the attractively presented CD cover & booklet. This booklet is very comprehensive with dates of publication of the poems. The historical context of the poems is significant to the varying sentiments expressed.

There are 16 tracks that cover Gilmore’s poems set to Somerville’s music. The topics include many Australian themes including the environment and a love of nature as well as a concern for the plight of the indigenous peoples, women’s experience and World war II fears with the threatened invasion of the Japanese forces, and tributes to contemporary poets, Henry Lawson and Shaw Neilson.

Maggie Somerville has taken on a well over due task and created beautiful and thoughtful songs that I hope many will learn to sing or they will continue to enjoy listening to the poems of Mary Gilmore.

In the 50s & 60s musicians including John Arcott (better known as Ralph Traill) put some of her poems to music, but the arrangements unfortunately didn't get in to the public consciousness. Another composer was 16 year old BMC member Jennifer Mann

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: Stewie
Date: 14 Jul 21 - 08:21 PM

WAR
(M.Gilmore/M.Somerville)

Out in the dust he lies
Flies in his mouth
Ants in his eyes

I stood at the door
Where he went out
Full-grown man
Ruddy and stout

The beat of the drum
Was clods on the heart
For all that the regiment
Looked so smart

I heard the crackle
Of hasty cheers
Run like the breaking
Of unshed tears

And just for a moment
As he went by
I had sight of his face
And a flash of his eye

He died a hero's death
They said
When they came to tell me
My boy was dead

But out in the street
A dead dog lies
Flies in his mouth
Ants in his eyes

Words by Mary Gilmore 2 April 1916. Published in 'Under the Wilgas' 1932.
Music by Maggie Somerville who set several Mary Gilmore poems to music and recorded them
on her 'The Forest Prayed: Poems of Mary Gilmore' album.

--Stewie.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: Sandra in Sydney
Date: 13 Jul 21 - 06:26 AM

CALL TO SONG by Chris Clarke

video

Oh come all ye who carry songs
And have the voice to share them
They’re only songs, they right no wrongs
But tyrants do beware them

A song can carry all our grief
Our story and our laughter
So come and join your voice to ours
And we’ll be friends hereafter

So if you hear this call to song
Come up and join our number
Or else your voice and all your songs
Are lost in idle slumber

Come one and all who heed the call
And bring your voices’ power
Undying friends when singing ends
We’ll live no finer hour.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: Sandra in Sydney
Date: 07 Jul 21 - 08:16 AM

I'm not a musician, I'd need to ask someone - looks like a job for Dave Johnson who has put tunes to old songs.

sandra (who can't hold a tune on her own & forgets words = chorus singer!)

Sydney is in a 3-week lockdown at the moment ending next week, & my folk club meets the following weekend (covid willing & fingers crossed.)
We had to move our June concert to later in the year but would find it very hard to move another concert as there are a number of festivals later this year (covid willing) & finding a spot for an extra concert is probably impossible.

Singing along to my CDs is not good enough

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: rich-joy
Date: 07 Jul 21 - 06:03 AM

B'coz I'm still busy here at home, I'm just gonna quickly stick this one in here, that is the latest post on the "VERANDAH MUSIC" blog : https://verandahmusic.blogspot.com/2021/07/an-australian-hunting-song-1861.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campa


AN AUSTRALIAN HUNTING SONG - 1861

Here’s a little ditty from 1861 that reflects the settler fascination with shooting everything on sight. Not a great piece of literature, but an amusing sidelight on attitudes and also an indication that the bush ballad was nt the only way to write about the bush.





AN AUSTRALIAN HUNTING SONG.

[BY ONE WHO PADDLES HIS OWN CANOE.]



I've travelled about a bit In my time, of amusements I've seen a few.

But found all tame compared with the game of hunting the kangaroo.

Your wants are small, and you care not at all, so your dogs are but swift and true;

On your pig-skin across, you may shout till you're hoarse, as you follow the kangaroo.



If fond of sport of any sort, I'll try to prove to you

That there's no sort of fun can come up to a run

with an old-man kangaroo.



I like no strife, but enjoy this life as much as a man can do,

And don't think It wrong to spend all day long in chasing the kangaroo.

I lie down at dark, and ' rise with the lark,' and seek out a friend or two,

Who delight in the fun of a rattling good run with an old-man kangaroo.



Some talk of the Play, which is good in its way— that is, if it's something new,

But I think it folly, and not half so jolly, as hunting the kangaroo

As on horse, with your dogs, over fences and logs, and swamps you go slushing through,

You care not for wet il you only can get a good run with a kangaroo.



If far from your home you should happen to roam, and your tucker is quite done, too ;

What need you desire but a good roasting fire, and steaks from a kangaroo?

For though hunted for pleasure, 'tis thought quite a treasure, by those who are fond of a stew,

And gourmands will stoop to a basin of soup from the tall of a kangaroo.



This parody's fair as far as it goes, but, better than that, 'tis true

That many men aim at less Innocent game than hunting the kangaroo.

And stories are told of those who have sold themselves and their fortunes too.

For the head of a woman— but give me the tail of a plump young kangaroo.



I'm fond of tales of any sort, but this is the tale that's true,

No tale you can tell will go down half so well as the tail of a kangaroo—



FOR SOUP.



Hamilton Spectator and Grange District Advertiser (Vic. : 1860 - 1870) Wed 17 Jul 1867 Page 3

Sandra may be able to suggest a likely tune?


R-J

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: Sandra in Sydney
Date: 05 Jul 21 - 08:08 PM

checking Mudcat today I see Mudcatter Daniel Kelly’s take on the Suez Canal debacle

ON THE SUEZ CANAL by Daniel Kelly, March 2021

video

Oh, dat ship she stuck and she ain’t gonna move,
Ain’t gonna move Oh Lord,
Oh, dat ship she stuck and she ain’t gonna move,
On dat Suez Canal,

On the way from China up to Rotterdam,
..
Oh, dat ship she called the Ever Given,
..

In the big dust storm she ran aground,
..
The tug-boats could’na turn her ‘round,
..

The small back hoe gonna dig her out,
..
Gonna Take ten year, or round about,
..

The shippers they is a mighty sore,
..
Lost ‘em a few billion or more,
..

~~~~~~~~~~
My tribute to the unfolding #Evergiven #SuezCanal situation.

Before people comment with cultural appropriation claims, I have sung this in the style of African American/Slave/Worker songs, often sung in the canal shipping industry. It was these songs that were picked up by European sailors and turned into many of what we call 'shantys'. 'Roll the Woodpile Down' being an excellent example.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: Sandra in Sydney
Date: 04 Jul 21 - 06:28 AM

I was listening to my 3 CDs of Harry Robertson's songs & remembered Evan & Lyn's website with all his lyrics! The Mathiesons had been friends of the Robertsons since the 60s & are the official guardians of his legacy.

We've only posted 9 of his songs, so here's a less famous one, about the Vietnam War.

FREEDOM FREE FOR ALL, Lyrics: Harry Robertson
Music: “Ring The Bell Watchman” by Henry Clay Work 1855
Arranged by Evan Mathieson

video-Ring the bell watchman

On Queen Street tramway tracks — a young conscript stands
clutching a paper in one of his hands
he lights up a match — the paper starts to glow
and on the television you can see the demons go.

Chorus
See how the cops run — eight — nine — ten
Nicklin’s gallant heroes, but none of them men
they quickly seize the youth and knock him to the ground
and with strangle holds and kicks and blows they take him to the pound.

The freedom march is on — they’re marching round the town
they hold their placards up, but the coppers knock them down
the crime rate rises high — but the cops can’t spare a man
they’re busy knocking over boys who won’t fight in Vietnam.

Chorus

The women are out there — they think Australia’s free
but let them show a placard, and they will quickly see
that chivalry’s gone astray in the struggle of today
and the copper’s fist will find them first if they are in the fray.

Chorus

A slim-built youth is there — he won’t go to Vietnam
be sure you grab him tightly and twist his broken arm
we’ll take him to the dungeon — we’ll throw him in the tank
we got our orders to be rough from ‘Pineapple Frank’.

Chorus

Pineapples may be rough — on Frankie’s Nambour farm
but brutal cops in Brisbane have really done Frank harm
for opinions here today — on the Nazi-type display
are that you were wrong and you’ll be gone on next election day.

Chorus

Down in the city’s cells — among the conscript boys
some one started singing and soon we heard the noise
of the people standing in the street whose voices did return
the song that freedom fighters sing, “We Shall Overcome”.

Chorus

© Harry Robertson
and subsequently ©1995 Mrs Rita Robertson, Brisbane, AUSTRALIA
Registered with APRA/AMCOS www.apra-amcos.com.au

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: Sandra in Sydney
Date: 02 Jul 21 - 08:29 AM

I can't believe I didn't post Charlie Mopps, in the early days it was the Bush Music Club' anthem.

sandra (blushing)

here are the original words as published in Singabout The Journal of Australian Folksong, Vol 3, no.3, 1958, referring to Sydney pubs, followed by the version as sung at BMC in the 21st Century.

CHARLIE MOPPS
(Anon)

A long time ago, way back in history,
When all they had to drink was nothing but cups of tea
Along came a man by the name of Charlie Mopps
And he invented a wonderful drink and gave it the name of hops

Chorus:
Oh, he oughta been an admiral, a sultan or a king
And to his praises we should always sing
Oh, look what he has done for us, he's filled us up with cheer
Lord bless Charlie Mopps, the man who invented beer

The day that Charlie died, he knocked at heaven’s gate
He said to St Peter; ‘Now tell me how I rate’:
St Peter looked at him and he said, ‘Now who are you?’
He said; ‘I’m Charlie Mopps’ and Peter said; ‘Pass through’

Chorus

At the Windsor, the Marble Bar, the Castlereagh as well
One thing you can be sure - it’s Charlie’s beer they sell
So come on all you lucky lads, at ten o’clock she stops
For five short seconds, remember Charlie Mopps.

One... two... three, four, five - - (spoken)

CHARLIE MOPPS, an additional verse.

A bushel of hope, a quarter of malt and mix it all up with a stick -
The kind of lubrication that makes your engine tick:
Forty pints of wallop a day will keep away the quacks,
It's only 4½d a pint, a shilling and tuppence in tax.
SHAME    SHAME    SHAME    SHAME    SHAME   
(Tam Murrell, Twickenham, Eng)

=============

As published by Ralph Pride in BMC's Singabout booklet 1, as sung by BMC in the 21st century -

A long time ago, way back in history,
When all they had to drink was nothing but cups of tea
Along came a man by the name of Charlie Mopps
And he invented a wonderful drink and he made it out of hops

Chorus:
Oh, he ought to be an admiral, a sultan or a king
And to his praises we should always sing
Oh, look what he has done for us, he's filled us up with cheer
Lord bless Charlie Mopps, the man who invented beer.

First you malt the barley, then you boil the hops,
You pitch a bit of yeast in, and when the action stops,
You pour it into bottles, then put on the tops,
And in another week or two, it's 'Cheers for Charlie Mopps.'

The day that Charlie died, he knocked at heaven’s gate
He said to St Peter, 'Tell me how I rate’
St Peter looked at him and he said, ‘Now who are you?’
He said; ‘I’m Charlie Mopps’ and Peter said; ‘Straight through.’

At the Windsor, the Castlereagh, the Marble Bar as well
One thing you can be sure, it’s Charlie’s beer they sell
So come on all you lucky lads, the froth is on the top,
For five short seconds remember Charlie Mopps.

One... two... three, four, five - - (spoken)

Chorus:
Oh, he ought to be an admiral, a sultan or a king
And to his praises we should always sing
Oh, look what he has done for us, he's filled us up with cheer
Lord bless Charlie Mopps, the man who invented beer.

===================

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: Stewie
Date: 01 Jul 21 - 10:09 PM

CHARLIE MOPPS
(Anon)

A long time ago, way back in history,
When all they had to drink was nothing but cups of tea
Along came a man by the name of Charlie Mopps
And he invented a wonderful drink and made it of malt and hops

Chorus:
Oh, he oughta been an admiral, a sultan or a king
And to his praises we should always sing
Oh, look what he has done for us, he's filled us up with cheer
God bless Charlie Mopps, the man who invented beer

Oh, the day that Charlie died, he knocked at heaven’s gate
He said to St Peter, ‘Now tell me how I rate’
St Peter looked at him and said, ‘Now tell me who are you?’
He said, ‘I’m Charlie Mopps’ and Peter said, ‘Pass through’

Chorus

At the Hotham, Young & Jackson’s and the Sarah Sands as well
There’s one thing you can be sure - it’s Charlie’s beer they sell
So come on all you lucky lads, at ten o’clock she stops
For five short seconds, remember Charlie Mopps

A-one-two-three-four-five

Chorus

An Australian version of a song that was created somewhere in the British Isles. The above is as printed at pages 94-95 of 'Australian Folksongs of the Land and its People' compiled by the Folk Lore Council of Australia 1974.

Youtube clip

Version collected by Bush Music Club

Mudcat thread

--Stewie.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: Stewie
Date: 29 Jun 21 - 09:22 PM

Another parody of 'The dying stockman'. This one is from Alan Musgrove's 'A Young Man and Able' album. He noted that it is 'a picture of inner Melbourne street life in the 1990s'.

THE DYING JUNKIE
(Alan Musgrove/Trad)

A skinny young junkie lay dying
The kerbstone supporting his head
There were no mates around him a-cryin’
As he lay in a coma near dead

But an ambulance must have been called for
For the bold paramedics appeared
And they gave him a big shot of Narcan
They saved the boy’s life it was clear

Then he screamed at the bold paramedic
‘You bastard, you’ve ruined me stone!’
And he left-hooked the bold paramedic
And he walked down the street to go home

Some days after that I was walking
When I happened to see the same boy
Being bundled into the meat wagon
On a street corner down in Fitzroy

Wrap him up like piece of fresh topside
And bury him deep down below
Where the demons and the wallopers can’t harm him
In the place where all dead junkies go

On the subject of parodies, this YT clip is worth a look if you haven't seen it. It is a parody of Queen's 'Bohemian Rhapsody' by Shirley Serban, a kiwi lass. The lyrics are in the clip.

Menopause Rhapsody

She is also responsible for this Covid parody:

Do Re Mi

--Stewie.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: Sandra in Sydney
Date: 29 Jun 21 - 09:26 AM

THERE'S A RAINBOW OVER THE ROCK by Kevin Bloody Wilson. Recorded on "Looking Forward Looking Back" (2000)

video - Slim Dusty

There's a rainbow over the rock
And the Sun has started shining
I just see a flock of cockatoos fly by
And I see a silver lining
On the clouds as they roll on
Bringing life to the desert and stock
And you've gotta believe in a god
When there's a rainbow over the rock

Call it Ayers Rock or Uluru
They both mean much the same
Named after our ancestors
From both our yesterdays
Now here we stand on common ground
Still drenched from the desert rain
In awe of what's before us
And breathing in being Australian

There's a rainbow over the rock
And the Sun has started shining
I just see a flock of cockatoos fly by
And I see a silver lining
On the clouds as they roll on
Bringing life to the desert and stock
And you've gotta believe in dream time
When there's a rainbow over the rock

There stands that magic, majestic rock
The rain has washed her clean
Dressed in the colors of the rainbow
As if for a new beginning
And there's a brand new day in the horizon
And there's a brand new feeling in the air
And now that the dust has settled
Advance Australia fair

There's a rainbow over the rock
And the Sun has started shining
I just see a flock of cockatoos fly by
And I see a silver lining
On the clouds as they roll on
Bringing life to the desert and stock
And you've gotta believe in a god
When there's a rainbow over the rock

And you've gotta believe in dreamtime
When there's a rainbow over the rock
And you've gotta believe together
When there's a rainbow over the rock

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: Sandra in Sydney
Date: 26 Jun 21 - 03:25 AM

THE BLOKE WHO SERVES THE BEER by Peter Denahy. Recorded on "Looking Forward Looking Back" (2000)

video - Slim Dusty

My name is Tom I own a Queensland pub
There’s Bundy on the shelf and the ice is in the tub
No lemon lime and bitters just Bundy and Fourex
If they wreck the joint tonight I’ll ring their flamin' necks.

There are so many songs about ringers out hell raisen'
But what about the bloke who pulls the beers
When they’ve all gone I’m still out wipen' tables
When they’ve all hit the hay while i’m still here
I’m the bloke you never hear of servin' beer.

I give change to the fellas if they want a game of pool
Got pies in the oven mate when the weather's gettin’ cool
If the boys get rowdy and decide to have a scrap
I just chuck 'em out the door and I go back to the taps.

My name is Tom I’m a diplomatic thinker
I can listen to the woes of a broken hearted drinker
When the boys come in I say how ya goin’ tonight
They get a bit wild but they’re young and alright.

They tell me how to break a horse and how to brand a steer
I take their dough and listen cause that is why i’m here
They tell me bout musterin' but they don’t seem to know
That Tom their local publican did that years ago
When they’ve all hit the hay while I’m still here
I’m the bloke you never hear of servin' beer.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: Sandra in Sydney
Date: 26 Jun 21 - 03:17 AM

CLEAN UP OUR OWN BACKYARD, by Joy McKean. Recorded on "Looking Forward Looking Back" (2000)

video - Slim Dusty

There's an old rhyme that pits out time take it for what it's worth
Things are crook at Tallarook and there ain't no work in Burke
But we still find room for the many who come a-knockin' at our door
And we sell our wide brown acres without a second thought.

Some will say we are building a nation rich and strong
But if you take a closer look at it perhaps we've got it wrong
Makes you think maybe we're a bit crazy doing it quite so hard
Shouldn't be a crime to take the time to clean up our own backyard.

In the country towns and the land around, in the city streets and slums
The dreamtime lore has gone before and the walkabout is done
On the streets at night you see the plight of our old ones and our young
And the Salvo refuge overflows, but still the people come.

Just a little drop of caring in an ocean of neglect
Can't stem the tide of anger from the lost and dispossessed
In the land of promise keepin' our promise gets to be too hard
Shouldn't be a crime to take the time to clean up our own backyard.

Make you think maybe we're a bit crazy doing it quite so hard
Shouldn't be a crime to take the time to clean up our own backyard

on some lyrics sites "refuge" is spelt "refugge" & on other sites 'And the Salvo refuge overflows" becomes "And the sound old rep you go the flow"

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: Stewie
Date: 24 Jun 21 - 08:27 PM

WHERE CAMEL PADS GO DOWN
(Jack Sorensen)

Last night I dreamed that Father Time had turned life's pages back
And once again a sturdy youth I took the northern track
With my lost mates of long ago I left behind the town
And headed for the country where the camel pads go down

But down the long brown highways, over plains and ranges grey
The speedy motor transports bear the shearers of today
Now spinifex has overgrown the camel pads at last
The camel train and bicycle have drifted to the past

Creator of the spinifex, the hungry sandhills brown
The brazen sky, the creek beds dry, the plains where tracks wind down
Give back to me that which I had, the heart, the strength of limb
That I may do the things I did before my eyes grew dim

Those youthful dreams that once I had of heights to which I'd bid
Are shattered by the memory of things I really did
And down forsaken highways where the twining snakewoods grow
I yearn to travel northwards as I did long years ago

Roger Montgomery put a tune to this poem. It may be found on Dingo's Breakfast 'Jack Sorensen: Weaver of Dreams' album.

--Stewie.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: Stewie
Date: 21 Jun 21 - 08:28 PM

THE FOGGY FOGGY BANKS
(Anon)

Out on the foggy foggy banks
We pitch and toss about
And blow our frozen fingers
When we hear our skipper shout

Chorus:
Heave away on your capstan, lads
Give a hand to heave the trawl
When we get the fish on board
We’ll have another haul
Heave away on your capstan, lads
Give a hand to heave the trawl
In the middle of the night, heave ho ye all

When I was but a lad at school, I would not stay at home
Like lots of other foolish lads, I thought I’d sooner roam
Soon I joined a trawler and there I quickly found
It wasn’t no plain sailing, when I reached the trawlin’ ground

Chorus

Sailing on the ocean far from the Port of Bluff
The southern gale is rising and the sea starts getting rough
When waves are falling ‘round us and pounding on the deck
It’s hard to keep your footing as you try to save your neck

Chorus

We work our guts out day and night, our backs are stiff and sore
There’s nothing more inviting than safe ashore once more
When the work is finally over, hard up our tiller goes
West by south to the harbour’s mouth, to the big jib on her nose

Chorus (x2)

A song from the fishermen of Bluff. The above lyrics are those in Phil Garland's recording. This version is longer than that printed at page 48 of 'Song of a Young Country'.

Youtube clip

--Stewie.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: Sandra in Sydney
Date: 19 Jun 21 - 10:30 PM

LAWSON CENTENARY SONG by John Dengate, 1967, tune Gartan Mother's Lament. First published in Singabout 6(2), 1967, page 3 as part of the Bush Music Club's celebration of the Centenary of Henry Lawson's birth.   

video - Gartan Mother's Lament by The Corries

Come now all Australians and tell me did you know - -
Henry Lawson, he was born a hundred years ago,
He was born in a leaky tent, the night was stormy and cold
All on the fields of Grenfell where his father dug for gold.

Henry Lawson spent his boyhood at Eurunderee,
They were years of deprivation, want and poverty.
He humped his swag in the nineties drought, across the plains out-back,
And in the Country west of Bourke he starved upon the track.

Lawson wasn't what you'd call a sober, steady bloke,
Partly deaf and usually drunk, and nearly always broke,
Yet his verses still synthesize what every conscience feels,
Be loyal and steadfast to your mates and stick to your ideals.

He was not the kind of man the sophists love to praise;
Proper education was denied him all his days;
Lawson's lines were bitter and harsh, but touched with humour too,
For Lawson's words came from the heart, and Lawson's heart was true.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: rich-joy
Date: 19 Jun 21 - 08:12 PM

REFRESH
(to rescue from falling off!)

Once I have done the summer holiday washing and cleared the bombshell debris now in my rather cold winter house, I will post songs again!!

Any other lurking readers, grab your thread Contents Lists from Sandra - and please post some Aussie-Kiwi songs!!

Cheers, R-J

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: Stewie
Date: 16 Jun 21 - 10:32 PM

BONNIE MOON
(Traditional)

I wandered many a night in June
Upon the banks of Clyde
Beneath the bright and bonnie moon
With Mary by my side

A summer wedding unto my eyes
And to my heart of joy
For well she loved to roam with me
Her Ireland minstrel boy

Her presence stood on every star
Two million fields so clear
I thought the flowers sweeter by far
When they were seen with her

Although her heart was true to me
Her Ireland mintrel boy

I played for ladies fair and gay
In many a southern hall
But there is one far, far away
A world above them all

And though many a weary year has fled
I think with mournful joy
Upon that day when Mary wed
Her Ireland minstrel boy

Collected for the National Library by Rob Willis from Carrie Milliner of the South Coast of NSW. She was from a family of sleeper cutters and traced the song back to her great-grandfather.

Youtube clip

--Stewie.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: Sandra in Sydney
Date: 14 Jun 21 - 09:39 AM

corrected verse as suggested by JennieG

It's a greeting that you'll hear across Australia
From Geraldton to Goulburn, Gundagai
It's as dinkum as the Dingo and the failure
And you spell it with a G, apostrophe, a D-A-Y

tho the "a" before D-A-Y seems to be superfluous.
do we need to fix that too?

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: JennieG
Date: 13 Jun 21 - 11:00 PM

They are indeed, Sandra.....but at least 'dahlia' rhymes with Australia, one of few words which do! Another which comes to mind is 'failure'......

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: Sandra in Sydney
Date: 13 Jun 21 - 10:43 AM

G'DAY, G'DAY by Robert Fairbairn

video - Slim Dusty

G'day g'day, how ya goin', what d'ya know, well strike a light
G'day g'day, and how ya go-o-o-in'
Just say g'day g'day g'day and you'll be right

Isn't great to be an Aussie
Takin' a walk along the street
Lookin' in shops or buyin' a paper
Stoppin' and havin' a yarn with people that you meet

Down at the pub or at a party
Whenever you're stuck for what to say
If you wanna be dinky-di, why don't you give it a try
Look 'em right in the eye and say goo'day

G'day g'day, how ya goin', hat d'ya know, well strike a light
G'day g'day, and how ya go-o-o-in'
Just say g'day g'day g'day and you'll be right

Now when Italians meet they all go crazy
The blokes all like to hug each other too
The Yanks invented "hi" "and see you later"
While the Pommy will shake your hand and say "how do you do"

Now watch out for a Frenchmen or he'll kiss you
The Spaniards go for "Olah" and "Olay"
But in the land of the cockatoo, pole cats and the didgeridoo
When you meet an Aussie ten-to-one here's what he'll say

G'day g'day, how ya goin', what d'ya know, well strike a light
G'day g'day, and how ya go-o-o-in'
Just say g'day g'day g'day and you'll be right

It's a greeting that you'll hear across Australia
From Geraldton to Goulburn, Gundagai
It's as dinkum as the Dingo and the Dahlia
And you spell it with a G, apostrophe, a D-A-Y

G'day g'day, how ya goin', what d'ya know, well strike a light
G'day g'day, and how ya go-o-o-in'
Just say g'day g'day g'day and you'll be right

G'day g'day, and how ya goin', what d'ya know, well strike a light
G'day g; day, and how ya go-o-o-in'
Just say g'day g'day g'day
Just say G'day g'day g'day and she'll be right

Bonus extra - lyrics - bowdlerised (really??? yes!) & here are the naughty words, properly replaced by asterisks so as not to cause offence.
- If you wanna be d***y-di, why don't you give it a try

- But in the land of the c***atoo, cork hats and the didgeridoo

- It's as d***um as the Dingo and the Dahlia

at least they use "cork hats" instead of "polecats" (native to Europe, Asia, & Africa) as given on many other lyrics sites -

& dahlias are natives of Central America!

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: Sandra in Sydney
Date: 11 Jun 21 - 09:50 AM

Total number of entries on our 2 spreadsheets (Aug-Dec 2020 & Jan to date) is 992, some of these entries are duplicated, due to an error or lyrics & video/audio entered separately,

The first spreadsheet has 625 songs sorted into alphabetical order, the second has 367 entries in numerical order & some of these are duplicates.

If anyone would like a copy of the spreadsheets, PM your email address, & of course if any of our viewers have any songs to add, please do so!

sandra

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: Sandra in Sydney
Date: 07 Jun 21 - 11:42 PM

I wanna see a couple of photos (not on facebook tho, cos I'm not a member)

please & thankyou

sandra

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: rich-joy
Date: 07 Jun 21 - 07:12 PM

REFRESH

Stewie and I are about to descend upon the 50th Top Half FF at Mary River Bush Retreat, between Darwin and Kakadu (starts Friday), so plenty of space here on this thread for Aussie-Kiwi postings by other Catters and our esteemed Guests, eh!!!
(hint hint)


Cheers, R-J :)

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: rich-joy
Date: 05 Jun 21 - 09:26 AM

As this Aussie favourite has just been sung tonight, Australia-wide, on SBS- TV’s “Australia’s Biggest Singalong”, I figure it’s time to include it in our collection!!

THROW YOUR ARMS AROUND ME

Mark Seymour

I will come for you at nighttime
I will raise you from your sleep
I will kiss you in four places
As I go running along your street,

I will squeeze the life out of you
You will make me laugh and make me cry
And we will never forget it
You will make me call your name
And I'll shout it to the blue summer sky.

chorus :
   And we may never meet again
   So shed your skin and let's get started
   And you will throw your arms around me
   Yeah, you will throw your arms around me.

I dreamed of you at nighttime
And I watched you in your sleep
I met you in high places
I touched your head and touched your feet,

So if you disappear out of view
You know I will never say goodbye
And though I try to forget it
You will make me call your name
And I'll shout it to the blue summer sky.

   And we may never meet again
   So shed your skin and let's get started
   And you will throw your arms around me
   Yeah, you will throw your arms around me.

Ohhh, yeah
Ohhh, yeah

You will throw your arms around me (ohhh, yeah)
Yeah, you will throw your arms around me (ohhh, yeah)
Yeah, you will throw your arms around me (ohhh, yeah)
Yeah, you will throw your arms around me (ohhh, yeah)
Yeah, you will throw your arms around me (ohhh, yeah)
Yeah, you will throw your arms around me (ohhh, yeah)


Originally sung by Melbourne band, Hunters & Collectors, though covered by many : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hunters_%26_Collectors


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e69wQsfrbSU   This is the slower, more laid-back version that we all love to sing along with, whether with Astrid Jorgensen’s famous Pub Choir, or in that sentimental, late night session with your boozy mates!!!
[ But for those who prefer the faster, slightly more “serious”?! original from 1986 : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zON9sg6ADjQ ]


It has been described as Australia’s secular hymn. Here is Guardian writer, Brigid Delaney’s take on this Anthem’s important place in our history :
https://www.theguardian.com/music/australia-culture-blog/2014/feb/25/hunters-and-collectors-throw-your-arms-around-me


OK, now everyone take a swig then raise those arms, sway, and sing along with me : "Ohhhhhhhh, Yeah, you will throw your arms around me"

R-J :))

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: JennieG
Date: 05 Jun 21 - 02:02 AM

Stewie - I have a CD "Music of the diggings: songs and tunes of the central Victorian goldfields" which contains "The 'public' by the way", originally written about a pub at Smeaton, Vic., sung by Judy Howell. The CD was made in May 2000. I've just looked it up, it's now no longer available new but used copies can be found on ebay.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: Stewie
Date: 05 Jun 21 - 01:41 AM

SHANTIES BY THE WAY
(E.J. Overbury et alia)

It's in a first-rate business section
Where four bush roads cross and meet
It stands in a quiet and neat direction
To rest the weary traveller's feet

Chorus:
Rows of bottles standing upright
Labelled with bright blue and gold
Beer so cold it needs no icing
From the cellar's drear dark hold.

Kerosene lamps are shining brightly
Cards, and lo, the billiard balls
Men and women are dancing lightly
To the music inside those walls.

There’s quoits and games and bagatelle
All to suit your fancy-0
But better far behind the bar
Stands smiling darling Nancy-0

Nancy's smiles are quite beguiling
To make some fun she's willing-0
You give a rap she turns the tap
And thanks you for your shilling-0

Landlord stands with smiling face
He likes to see your cash forked out
Landlord stands with smiling face
Sometimes he will stand a shout

Landlord “shouting” is uncommon
He’s kidding you to dance and play
How the devil can a bloke keep sober
In those shanties by the way?

When you wake up in the morning
In your thirst without a mag
You cast around a sad reflection
As you shoulder up your swag

Penniless you'll have to wander
For many a long and dreary day
Till you earn another cheque to squander
In those shanties by the way

This began life in Australia as a poem by E.J. Overbury. It became a song that was carried back and forth across the Tasman by itinerant workers. The above version was collected in 1940 in NZ.

Youtube clip

Overbury's original poem, published in 'The Creswick & Clunes Advertiser' in 1864. Info from NZ folk song site:

THE PUBLIC BY THE WAY

On a first-rate business section;
Where four bush roads cross and meet.
Stands a large and fine erection,
Dear to weary traveller's feet.

Should he for a moment linger,
'Tis a case for all the day;
For his cash they'll supply finger
In the public by the way.

In he steps, p’raps never dreaming
More than half an hour to stop.
Tastes the liquor, foaming, creaming,
On the polished pewter pot.

One pint soon brings on another.
Then he feels inclined to stay:
Oh, his cash he'll quickly smother
In the public by the way.

Rows of bottles stand enticing
Radiant with bright blue and gold:
Beer so cool it needs no icing
From the cellar's dusky hold:

Cards and billiards always ready
Landlord presses him to play;
How, then, can a cove keep steady
In these publics by the way.

Landlord stands with smiling features
Glad to see the cash shell out;
Seems the best of generous creatures
For he sometimes stands a shout.

Then he neatly lands his salmon.
By "kidding" him to drink and play
Oh, there is a deal of gammon
In these publics by the way.

Morning finds him in dejection.
Thirsty, sick, without a mag;
Prey to many a sad reflection,
As he shoulders up his swag.

On the road he's free to wander
Penniless for many a day;
Thus it is with all who squander
In the public by the way.

--Stewie.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: Stewie
Date: 02 Jun 21 - 10:31 PM

WAKE OF THE BOUNTY
(The Currency)

Put him in a lifeboat
And said goodbye
Goodbye to Captain Bligh
A gypsy curse, not gentle verse
By all reports no gentleman he
Spitting, "Fletcher Fletcher
I bet you etch your name in infamy
When you touch land you'll be tried and hung
May your men breathe their last before me"

Chorus:
Banned from the ports
Damned in the courts
No more throwing dice on the wharf
There are those
Those are we
Slaves to the sea
A cruel mistress she
Heave away you rolling kings
Show me your mercy
Haul away you howling winds
Fill the sails and sing
In the wake of The Bounty

When they saw the Pandora
Some swam out to her
Saying The Bounty left us marooned
Taken by boat by the ship-wrecked coast
To the new out-post of the Crown
When they hit the rocks, more lives were lost
Poor souls locked below deck
Now it's swinging time
From Norfolk pine
For the mutiny nine

Chorus

When the storm had cleared
She had disappeared
And for twenty years not a word
Then a man named John Adams
Said "I'm the last of them and I saw The Bounty burn"
It was burnt, cinders burnt from the bow to the stern
That night there was a new sun
We drowned in rum
Took to the gun
And when bullets there were none
Sticks and stones

Chorus

Heave away you rolling kings
Show me your mercy
Haul away you howling winds
Fill the sails and sing
In the wake of The Bounty

Youtube clip

--Stewie.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: Sandra in Sydney
Date: 02 Jun 21 - 03:58 AM

a source we haven't mined ...

& here's Joan Baez singing 'Last Night I Had the Strangest Dream'

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: GerryM
Date: 02 Jun 21 - 02:56 AM

The Weirdest Dream (to the tune of Last Night I Had the Strangest Dream)
Clem Parkinson

Last night I had the weirdest dream I'd never dreamt before.
I dreamt our politicians all went off to fight the war.
It seems they decided it was time to join the ranks,
To do their bit to help save face for Nixon and the Yanks.

And as they marched along the street, the crowd just stood and gasped.
"I never thought I'd see the day," an old ex-digger rasped.
"And have you heard the latest news?" I heard a woman cry,
"They're bringing home the conscripts, not another one need die."

There was Snedden and McManus, even Santa-strewth-Maria,
With Peacock, Lynch, and Andrew Jones all bringing up the rear.
And as they marched down Collins Street to sound of drum and flute,
His Eminence, Archbishop Knox, stepped forth to take salute.

His hands began to tremble as he then, with courage true,
Threw down his crucifix and cried, "Hey, boys, I'm coming, too."
"Left wheel," the sergeant shouted. McManus shook with fright.
No matter how he tried, he kept veering to the right.

They marched down to Port Melbourne, to embark at Station Pier,
Where some wharfies, somewhat rudely, gave a rather loud Bronx cheer.
McManus got the jitters, and he beat a quick retreat.
He grabbed a wharfie's bicycle, and pedaled down the street.

"I've left behind my toothbrush," he mumbled as he fled.
Then I awoke, and found that I had tumbled out of bed.

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

Lyrics copied from Warren Fahey, The Balls of Bob Menzies: Australian Political Songs 1900-1980.

The men named in the song were all supporters of the Australian military involvement in the war in Vietnam. Billy Snedden was Minister for Immigration and then Minister for Labour and National Service. Frank McManus was from the Democratic Labor party, an anti-communist breakaway from the Labor Party. "Santa-strewth-Maria" was B A Santamaria, associated with Democratic Labor.

Andrew Peacock was Minister for the Army and then Minister for Territories (and, much later, leader of the Liberal Party). He died in April 2021. Phillip Lynch was at various times Minister for the Army, Minister for Immigration, and Minister for Labour and National Service. Andrew Jones was a very conservative member of Parliament, but only served one term, 1966-69, and never as a Minister.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: Stewie
Date: 02 Jun 21 - 12:17 AM

DINGO
(Gary Shearston)

He was nought but a windy old bushranger, sir
His ways, I know, appearing somewhat strange
He roamed the country wide with a song-thorn in his side
And a memory of an old blue mountain range

Well now, it really doesn't matter, I know
Just how it came to pass that
A bounty got placed on his hide
No, the only thing that matters and
The thing that he done wrong was
To lose it in the morning one time
That poor boy
He did lose it in the morning one time

Dingo, dingo there's a hunter coming
Up dingo, run

From his lair hidden so well by ghost gums and pine
And the tracks that he covered far behind
Taking leave of his mate, he ran down to meet his fate
Upon the plain just as the sun began to climb

Well now, it really doesn't matter, I know
Just how it came to pass that
He paid for the ways of his kind
No, the only thing that matters and
The thing that he done wrong was
To lose it in the morning one time
That poor boy
He did lose it in the morning one time

Dingo, dingo there's a hunter coming
Up dingo, run

Youtube clip

--Stewie.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: Stewie
Date: 29 May 21 - 10:31 PM

R-J, looking forward to seeing you again. It has been a long time.

THE DIGGERS SONG
(Tom Smith/Wongawilli)

By the side of the creek with shovel and pan
I see the gold diggers, a bold, sturdy clan
They are sinking for wealth and ‘neath the red mould
Lies all that they seek for, the long wished for gold

Chorus
So dig ‘neat the mould, boys
Where you’ll find gold, boys
Aye, find it the same as you’ve found it before

The rock and the cradle sounds constant and clear
’Tis music indeed to the gold-seeker’s ear
For when fortune favours, it makes their hearts bold
Contented and happy though toiling for gold

Chorus

Ah, what can compare with the life that they lead
Unvexed by those cares of which others take heed
And when with their pile they visit the town
Repine not in finding they’ve knocked it all down

Chorus

Come, I’ll pledge you a toast and now let it be
‘The diggers’ who here give a welcome to me
May fortune be theirs as they toil in the mould
And each one go home with a good pile of gold

Chorus

Youtube clip

--Stewie.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: rich-joy
Date: 29 May 21 - 06:46 PM

Good One, Stew! I really should have thought to save some of Lawls' ashes for His Beloved Shed; guess there were just too many other places in line, LoL!

Sorry I've fallen a bit behind with posting songs. Hopefully some other Catters or Guests will help 'take up the slack' for we regular Posters!

Cheers, R-J
(and only 12 more sleeps til we meet again at the Top Half! :)

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: Stewie
Date: 28 May 21 - 08:30 PM

THE OLD MAN’S SHED
(Luke O’Shea)

Well, the old man kicked the bucket about seven months ago
They left me with his ashes and he left me with a note
It read, 'Son, you know I love you, from this world I've been released
And I know you'll know just what to do so I can rest in peace'

So I hung on to his ashes and the words he said
And I went out for inspiration to the old man's shed
I opened up the door, I could still recall his face
As he would try and tell me sternly, everything must have its place

Well, he tried to educate me but I never quite could see
'Cause he had so many hammers, how many hammers do you need?
Oh, of all these nuts and bolts and washers, there is nothin' he would waste
Yes, in my old man's shed, everything must have its place

Well, that man could build the Taj Mahal with nails, clips and glue
If somethin' ever broke, he knew exactly what to do
And I would watch him at that workbench in a state of grace
Yes, and everything he touched, it was meticulously placed

Well, there were ropes and there were ladders, there were brushes, there were leads
And a poster on the fridge when the Dragons won in '63
I'd try and borrow somethin' and leave without a trace
Well, every tool, it had an outline, everything must have its place

Well, yes, he tried to educate me but I never quite could see
'Cause he had so many chisels, how many chisels do you need?
Oh, of all these nuts and bolts and washers, there is nothin' he would waste
Yes, in my old man's shed, everything, it had its place

Then suddenly it struck me, I knew exactly what to do
I opened up a jam jar and I emptied out the screws
And then I poured the old man's ashes in with a smile upon my face
And then I left him there within the shed, everything must have its place

Well, yes, he tried to educate me and finally I see
When you find your place within the world, how happy you can be
Oh, of all these nuts and bolts and washers, there is nothin' we should waste
Yes, in my old man's shed, everything must have its place

In my old man’s shed, everything has got its place
In my old man’s shed, he found his final resting place

Youtube clip

--Stewie.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: Stewie
Date: 25 May 21 - 09:51 PM

SYRIA
(Donna Simpson)

Nails and bombs and dying son, daughter is nearly three
Give a man my coin, take a boat with my family
I’ve heard all about the sunshine, but all I'm seeing is rain, rain, rain
Raining bombs upon our home - cannot return again

What’s a man to do, what’s a man to do
When everything’s been taken from you
What’s a man to do, what’s a man to do
Nails and bombs and a dying son, what’s a man to do

I know nothing of the ocean, I’ve been reared a farming man
Chin up above the water until your feet hit the sand
We’re floating in the darkness, now they are talking about tides , tides , tides
I’ve got everything to lose, my wife and children by my side

What’s a man to do, what’s a man to do
When everything has been taken from you
What’s a man to do, what’s a man to do
Nails and bombs and a dying son, what’s a man to do

Life’s my God-given right, God damn this holy war
Don’t know who they are fighting against, don’t know who they are fighting for
I spend my time praying to God, praying for peace, peace, peace..
What’s the use of praying to God if my God ain’t hearing me

What’s a man to do, what’s a man to do
When everything has been taken from you
What’s a man to do, what’s a man to do
Nails and bombs and a dying son, what’s a man to do

Pray, pray, pray …

Yutube clip

--Stewie.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: GerryM
Date: 24 May 21 - 12:35 AM

That's Australia
Lyrics: Dennis Watkin
Tune: Chris Harriott

There's a country road, somewhere back of Bourke,
Where flies the size of a dingo like to lurk.
Locals swear they've been there,
Can't tell you how to get there,
But sure as hell they will tell you where to go.
That's Australia! x2

There's a farm down South where kangaroos can speak,
And cows meow like a tomcat that's on heat.
You won't find a drover,
Just an old Land Rover,
And a bloke with a camera making docos on the cheap.
That's Australia! x2

From East to West across this land, as they sip their favorite brew,
You'll hear folks tell the strangest tales, and swear to God...that they're all true.

There's this crocodile in a Northern creek
That takes a break from eating tourist once a week.
He likes a change of diet,
So weekly on the quiet
You'll find him drinking mineral water neat.
That's Australia! x2

There's a jackaroo who told me that he knew
A bloke who choked on a dish of rabbit stew.
He died and went to Heaven,
Came back at half past seven,
And told his mate ... there was nothing there to do.
That's Australia! x2

From East to West across this land, as they sip their favorite brew,
You'll hear folks tell the strangest tales, and swear to God...that they're all true.

That's Australia! Everyone's got a story or two.
That's Australia! Everyone swears their shaggy dog story is true.

This was the theme song for a program on Australian TV in 1988.
Recording by John Derum, the emcee of the program, backed by The Bushwackers.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: Stewie
Date: 23 May 21 - 07:41 PM

888
(The Currency)

You said you'd meet me at the corner
Of Russell and Victoria
When I arrived you weren't there
So I opened up the bottle
Of red I brought to share
And sat upon the monument stairs
It says here
Of battles fought and won
It says here
Of victories a long time coming
An eight hour day
An honest working wage
It's just history

Sitting on the steps of the Eight Hour Monument
Drinking my day away
Sitting on the steps of the Eight Hour Monument
Thinking what would the ghosts of our great-grandparents say

Across the road Trades Hall
And behind me the Old Melbourne Gaol
I bought a souvenir mug
To drink out of
With the death mask of Edward Kelly
It says here
Ned's parting words
It' says here
"Such is life!"
Where the heavens are you, what the hell am I to do
And how on earth did it end up this way?
It's just history

Sitting on the steps of the Eight Hour Monument
Drinking my day away
Sitting on the steps of the Eight Hour Monument
Thinking what would the ghosts of our great-grandparents say

Youtube clip

--Stewie.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: rich-joy
Date: 23 May 21 - 12:56 AM

Despite a love of folk songs featuring the historical practices of Whaling, many of us were also part of the 60s-70s campaigns to try and stop the slaughter of these extraordinary, intelligent and sentient beings on this planet - or, at least many remember those times.   Apparently this song was used by the International Whaling Commission to assist in the campaign to stop International Whaling, but so far I’ve not found the info on-line to corroborate this …..


THE WHALES ARE SINGING TO ME (A WHALER’S LAMENT)

Kevin Johnson

I went to sea; there were no other choices for me
A Whaling ship – what greater adventure could there possibly be
The first day out we found them; circled our ships around them
Fired our harpoons till the sea ran red
In no time at all, those whales were dead.

We towed them in; oh how we drank that night at The Sailor’s Inn
Singing whaling songs, as the Captain played on his violin
But drinking was something I’d never known
So I staggered back to the ship alone
As drunk as a young man could ever be, listening to the night around me.

Was it the sound of the violin, drifting in on the cool night wind
Or was it something that came from the moon (?)
Could it be? That whales were singing to me
Perhaps they sung of those terrible things I’d done.

I have to say, when I look back over that dreadful day
There was treachery, that hadn’t really occurred to me
There seemed to be a kind of trust, as though they had nothing to fear from us
We got so close like we were friends, but then
We slaughtered them.

It wasn’t the sound of a violin, drifting in on the cool night wind
No, it was something that came from the moon, yet to me
Those whales were singing to me
Now they sung of the terrible things I’d done.

I left the sea, there were no other choices for me
A Whaling ship – what greater misfortune could there possibly be
And now I’m as old as a man can be, even today it’s still haunting me
Though my deeds have long since gone, sadly I see
It still goes on.

Now the Captain plays on his violin and I walk by the sea in the cool night wind
And I hear something that calls from the moon, has to be
The whales are singing to me, those things we’ve done
Of those terrible things we’ve done.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yoiHgTrWb0o&t=12s
an illustrative film clip with a recording from Kevin Johnson’s 2018 album entitled “Milestones 1”, but I think the song is much earlier.
Also, there are a few words I am having difficulty discerning!
I’ve not found the song’s provenance currently online. If anyone can assist, I’d be grateful.


Cheers, R-J
(who still has her LP of Dr Roger Payne's iconic recording of "Songs of the Humpback Whale" 1970 :)

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/dec/31/calls-from-the-deep-do-we-need-to-save-the-whales-all-over-again   :   "Calls from the deep: do we need to Save the Whales all over again?" 1st Jan2021

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: Stewie
Date: 22 May 21 - 09:38 PM

SHOULD I DUMP YOU SOMEWHERE PRIVATE
(Andrew London)

In spite of all our efforts, it’s apparent now to me
our romance just hasn’t blossomed like it should
despite a dozen dates and dinners disillusionment decrees
that our directions deviate, we have divergent destinies

And so it falls to me I guess to do the decent thing
before we’re inextricably entwined
I hope you’ll soon get over it and we can still be friends
with benefits perhaps if you’re inclined

Should I dump you somewhere private or in a neutral public place.
etiquette says gentlemen of breeding should always do it face to face
should I opt for somewhere open, shunning small cafes and bars
could be an awkward silence after, should we maybe take two cars?

Should I take you to a restaurant, will you react with some reserve?
I’ll try and get the whole thing over just before the mains are served
I understand you’ll be downhearted and your feelings may be hurt
but such a shame to let a tantrum ruin both of our desserts

Could I ‘unfriend’ you on Facebook, send a text in lower case
or an email to your office with a little smiley face?
No, there’s just no way around it, it’s a job that must be done
can we meet at 12 tomorrow – you’ll be back at work by one

Should I take you to a sad movie, betray my sensitivity
Because then you’d be upset already, but not directly cos of me
should I dump you somewhere private or in a neutral public place
Oh, look, there’s a message on my cellphone – well I’d have done it face to face

Youtube clip

--Stewie.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: Stewie
Date: 20 May 21 - 08:49 PM

SAM GRIFFITH
(Anon)

One night while lying on my bunk
In my humble six by eight
I dreamt I saw Sam Griffith
With a darkie for a mate
I thought I met them travelling
On a dreary Queensland track
And Sam was decorated with
A collar-fashioned pack

I thought that it was summertime
And Sam had o’er his eyes
A little piece of muslim
To protect him from the flies
Through his boots his toes were shining
And his feet looked very sore
I knew his heels were blistered
From the Alberts that he wore

When Sam saw me coming towards them
He sat down upon his swag
Said he, ‘Look here, stranger
Got much water in your bag?
We are victimised by squatters
For we are two union men’
And Sam had on as usual
His same old polished grin

Said I, ‘Look here, Sammie Griffith
You have a flamin’ cheek
If you want a drink of water
You can get it from the creek
As for the South Sea Islander
I do not wish him ill
For well I know, poor devil
He’s here against his will’

‘You said, with wife and family
One time you’d emigrate
If they did not stop kanakas
That was in eighty-eight
You spoke against black labour then
And talked of workers’ rights
You spoke from lips but not from heart
Australia for the whites’

‘You should loaf to those you crawl to
The sugar-growing push
For you’re hated and detested
By the workers in the bush
They might give you some easy billets
Such as boots and shoes to clean
Or driving the kanakas as
They work amongst the cane’

I thought Sam jumped up
Froth around his mouth like spray
Said he, ‘My agitator
Just let me have a say
I remember you at Longreach
How you did hoot and groan
I believe you would have mobbed me
But for Constable Malone’

I thought Sam tried to rush me
A shape before my face
But I got home the LaBlanche swing
And gave him coup-de-grace
The darkie raised his tomahawk
And gave a savage scream
Then all at once I wakened up
And found it all a dream

John Meredith recorded this in 1953 from then 81-year-old Jack Luscombe who had picked up his songs from various shearing sheds.

Audio of Meredith recording

Sir Samuel Griffith was Premier of Queensland and first Chief Justice of the High Court of Australia. He won his election largely on his policy of preventing the importation of kanaka labour. His policy was inoperative but the practice was brought under some control.

Sir Samuel Griffith

Some trivia:

LaBlanche swing, also known as the "pivot blow" or "La Blanche pivot" was named after middleweight George LaBlanche, who reportedly used it to knock out Nonpareil Jack Dempsey (John Edward Kelly) in their 1889 bout. The 'Tacoma News Tribune', a Washington newspaper, described the punch in 1919: 'This blow is delivered by closing the eyes, turning rapidly on one heel and letting the right go at random'.

I couldn't find any reference to 'Alberts' on the Net. The term could relate to the Balmoral boot which was a favourite of Prince Albert. A shearer would perhaps surmise that it was the type of boot that Sam Griffith would wear. I found this on a site relating to the history of boots:

The Balmoral boot (or Bal) was originally designed for Prince Albert and consisted of a close fitting lace up boot, similar to those worn by today's wrestlers. They could be front or side lacing and acted as a galosh to protect the feet from the wet gorse. The upper section of the toe box was treated with water proofing. Queen Victoria must have approved because she had several pairs made and wore them regularly. Possibly because Prince Albert expressed a liking for the style because it had a slendering effect. Balmoral boots became popular with both men and women.

--Stewie.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: Stewie
Date: 19 May 21 - 08:13 PM

Staying on the subject of women in the bush, here's a good'un from the Prickle Farmer.

LETTER TO NARELLE
(Mike Hayes)

She sits down by the light of the kerosene lantern
And wearily brushes the moths from the glass
Takes her pen in her hand and she starts on a letter
To her girlfriend Narelle back at home from the past

They had grown up as one, they were schoolgirls together
Til time and the pull of her heart changed her life
Took her far far away from her friend and the city
To this bare backblocks kingdom she now rules as a wife

And she writes:
Dear Narelle, the drought's getting worse now
And I don't know if we're gonna make it this time
And I've been on my own since my man went a-droving
But, apart from these dust storms, everything's been fine

But oh dear Narelle, I wish you could be here
When the rain finally falls and the country turns green
And the wind moves the hills in an ocean of grasslands
And the gulleys sing loud with the song of the stream

And she writes how she misses the kids, off at school now
But she knows that it's better that they're both away
And she hopes the supply truck comes in with some stores soon
'Cos there's just one or two things that she ran out of today

And she writes:
Dear Narelle, it's been almost three years now
Since I shopped in the city or took in a show
But when my man's back and the bank gives us credit
He's promised me this time we'll definitely go

But oh dear Narelle, I wish you could see him
As he rides through the gate when the rains finally fall
With his old hat thrown back and his eyes warm and smiling
These long months on my own just won't matter at all

And oh dear Narelle, you should be here at sundown
When the easterly breeze hunts the heat from the day
And the stars shine like diamonds in a sky of black velvet
And I'm glad that my city life's far far away

And the moon rises softly like a far away bushfire
And I'm glad that my city life's far far away

Youtube clip

--Stewie.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: Stewie
Date: 19 May 21 - 02:28 AM

R-J, he has written some fine songs. Thanks for posting the links.

--Stewie.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: rich-joy
Date: 18 May 21 - 11:15 PM

Good one, Stew - Thanks!    Just reading the lyrics had me in tears!

Here is a documentary on the great Kev Carmody, whom many regard as our best ever Aussie songwriter : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YzaZkjJL5E0

In this version by Paul Kelly & Co, we see and hear from Kev about his early life and him writing this song to help depict his Mum and the women of that era - their lives and and inner strength and dignity : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tR4ioLnFWq4


R-J

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: Stewie
Date: 18 May 21 - 10:19 PM

DROVING WOMAN
(Kev Carmody)

She buried him down on the edge of town
Where the brigalow suckers on the cemetery creep
She stood with them children in a heavy brown gown
What you want you just can't always keep

"I'm sorry", I says, "I knew him so well"
Though your body is young you just never can tell
When the hand of fate rings the final death knell"
She just turned with the saddest of smiles

She says "At the start well we knewed it so hard
We were always dealt the severest of cards
Honeymoon spent droving Jamieson's stock
Through the wildest winter you seen

Romantic notions of horses and land
They were soon dispelled as a fantasised dream
Watching cattle at night in the mid-winter cold
Turns a person, both wiry and old

The flame of the breakfast fire'd be dead
As the sun rose up he'd be miles up ahead
I'd be breaking the camp there and rolling the beds
While he fanned the stock wider for feed

When the weather turned sour with the onset of rain
An' the truck'd bog down to the axle mains
He'd move ahead with pack saddles and chains
And I'd wait in the mud by the road

With the blankets and canvas there hung out to dry
With nothing for heat 'cause you couldn't light a fire
With no stock permit for the forthcoming shire
The dog'd whimper in the winter wind rain

Cattle don't camp where they're sloshing in rain
They keep walking all night like a dog on a chain
He'd be red eyed and weary with a pack horse gone lame
I'd sit miles behind in the mud

It was down through Charleville up to Julia Creek
Living on syrup and damper and salted corn meat
We had nothing but the ‘roos and the mailman to meet
We'd move up and down with the rains

But them inland skies have the starriest of nights
With the dance of the fire throwing flickering lights
The beauty of it's sunsets were a constant delight
I felt that nature had let me intrude

The enormous vastness of them inland plains
Gives you a lonely contentment to which you can't put a name
It's satisfied glow city folks seldom attain
They spend life on a right rigid rail

The kids got their schooling from the government mail
We posted their work in at each cattle sale
They considered the learning a self imposed jail
They'd rather help their father and fail

Early last month at the end of the dry
He was given a horse nobody could ride
Alert were his ears with a fire in his stride
He was young and his spirit was wild

To catch him each morning was an hour long battle
We had to collar rope his near side to throw on the saddle
He'd bite and he'd strike, he made my nerves rattle
Pandemonium reigned with each ride

It was a hot summers' mornin' at the government bore
There was stillness around that I'd never felt before
How could he know it was fate at his door
That was stealthily watchin' his moves

He mounted up quick taking slack from the reins
Grasped a full hand of hair from the horses long mane
He'd just hit the saddle when the horse went insane
Churning dust in a frenzy of fear

The girth on the saddle let go at the ring
The surcingle slipped it was impossible to cling
The horse felt it go made a desperate fling
He was thrown to the length of the reins

I heard his spine snap like a ‘roo shooters' shot
He'd busted his back on the concreted trough
Sickness and fear were the feelings I got
For the doctor was a six hour drive

I looked at his face and his colour turned white
He turned slowly and said "I can't make it till night
My body is broken, I'm bleedin' inside"
And the life slowly drained from his eyes

I'll sell up the plant and I'll move here to town
Before the winter returns with a chill on the ground
For what I've just lost can seldom be found
I was blessed with the gentlest of men

Eventually the children will move to the east
But I couldn't stand the bustle of even a quiet city street
I'll stay in the scrub here where my heart really beats
For some dogs grow too old for change

Youtube clip

--Stewie.

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: rich-joy
Date: 18 May 21 - 08:25 PM

OVER THE HILLS AND FAR AWAY

Kevin Johnson

Throwing stones at the embassy, policeman come and arrested me
Paper at the university, said I was a hero,
And the wise old judge that I went before, wouldn’t believe what I did it for
Said this is no way to stop the war,
But, how the hell would he know?

Singing songs of dissolution, ban the bomb and beat pollution
Writing on walls about a revolution, that’s guaranteed to grow,
And I see on the news some identity, with an old man’s views on society
Said there’s no room for guys like me,
But, how the hell would he know?

CHORUS
Over the hills and far away
I’m gonna understand one day
What the other half believe in, if they’re real or just deceiving
So until I find that day
I’ll go along my way
And I’ll look back on my life and I’ll know I lived it right.

Lying down across the roadway, almost lasted out the whole day
Drivers trying but there was no way left for them to go,
And the wise old judge that we went before, wouldn’t believe what we did it for
Said this is no way to help the poor,
But, how the hell would he know?

CHORUS

1995 came quickly, crept right up and now it’s hit me
Seems the mayor of a busy city, don’t know where the days go,
Build a bridge and move the highway, spend the rest and mend the byways
Someone wrote things across my driveway, and someone broke my windows,
And I see on the news some identity, with a young man’s views on society
Said there’s no room for guys like me,
But, how the hell would he know.

FINAL CHORUS
Over the hills and far away, I’m gonna understand one day
What the other half believe in, if it’s real or just deceiving
So until I find that day, I’ll go along my way
And I’ll look back on my life and I’ll know I lived it right.
Over the hills and far away, merrily on my way…..


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Py8yU2hiY28

KEVIN JOHNSON album : “A Man of the 20th Century”

KEVIN JOHNSON website : https://www.rocknrolligaveyou.com/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kevin_Johnson_(singer)    KEVIN JOHNSON : WIKI BIO



R-J

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: rich-joy
Date: 18 May 21 - 08:21 PM

KEDRON BROOK

Kevin Johnson

In the last light of evening sun, when summer grasses spoke of early dew
I took an unfamiliar turning,
And so I wandered
In the power of some strange subconscious yearning,
Down the turnings and the twistings of the road
Till the sun was gone from the distant hill
And Kedron Brook seemed strangely still.

1st REF.
Visions of sunsets and soft summer skies
Like cellophane papers that danced in my eyes
Echoes of footsteps that wandered their way
Through the last, lonely lights of the day,
Feelings of feelings that sent my head reeling just wondering how it could be
That the feelings of something so strangely confusing were strangely familiar to me
Like the feeling of something I seemed to recall, but I couldn’t remember it all
The feeling as though I had stepped through a door
And I knew I had been there before.

2nd REF.
When the gentry were waltzing to the gentle maxinas
And the hansom cabs swayed, like young ballerinas
And life was as sweet as an old concertina, that rattled its way through a holiday,
When the night was the sight of the weary lamplighters
And the crowded marquees of the bare-fisted fighters
And the bustles and bows of the Saturday nighters, were rustling their way through a Saturday,
When the world twirled around to an old-fashioned sound, and the seasons were young in the ground
Did I once stand there at Kedron Brook
Watching the sun going down?


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rluy2hta5y0

KEVIN JOHNSON album - “Rock&Roll, I Gave You All the Best Years of My Life”

KEVIN JOHNSON website : https://www.rocknrolligaveyou.com/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kevin_Johnson_(singer)   KEVIN JOHNSON – WIKI BIO



R-J

Subject: RE: Mudcat Australia/NZ Songbook
From: Sandra in Sydney
Date: 17 May 21 - 10:34 PM

BYE BYE AWARDS ©1996 Bernard Carney

Audio

Since the Libs and Nats got in
Unions take it on the chin Bye Bye awards
Johnny Howard have no fear
Will whip the workforce into gear
Bye Bye awards
No more extra rates for working over
Businesses will soon be all in clover
Workers working extra hours
Management with extra powers
Unions Bye Bye

I just can't wait for the day
To argue for my weekly pay bye bye awards
When I feel a rise is due I'll make my bargaining debut
Bye Bye awards
And if I want employment to stay in tact
Better sign the individual contract
Divide and conquer that's the trick
Work conditions get the flick
Unions Bye Bye

Pre-strike ballots sent to undermine me
If I refuse maybe they would fine me
I'm free to choose in this dispute
Choose these rates or get the boot
Unions Bye Bye

So hoist the flag of profits high
Upon the good ship enterprise Bye Bye awards
Democracy defiled deflowered
That's the word from Johnny Howard
Bye Bye awards
The razor gang is sure to make you nervous
Especially if you're in the public service
So just to keep your budget right
You'll be working late tonight
Unions Bye Bye - no way
'Cos unions won't die