Lyr Req: Slaggy Island Farewell (Vin Garbutt)

Subject: Lyr Add: SLAGGY ISLAND FAREWELL (Vin Garbutt)
From: rich-joy
Date: 06 Jan 03 - 12:35 AM

I'm having trouble deciphering all of the words on the only recording I have (from the Oz harmony family group "The Fagans") - can any 'catter assist please?


SLAGGY ISLAND FAREWELL ~ Vin Garbutt


1.        Oh Slaggy Island, farewell, farewell to thee
Your pride has turned into decay
All of your sons they have deserted you
And now you must return unto the clay.

2.        In just one century, you have lived and you have died
Your birth brought life to many men
You thrived when    …    the engine of steel
Now they have gone and you're alone again.

Ch.        So Slaggy Island, farewell, farewell to thee
Your pride has turned into decay
All of your sons they have deserted you
And now you must return unto the clay .

3.        When I was young, in your streets I did laugh and play
In Coral and Connaught, her streets too (???)
Your walls, they sheltered me from the wind and the rain
But now, the hammer is all that's left for you.

Ch.        So Slaggy Island, farewell, farewell to thee
Your pride has turned into decay
All of your sons they have deserted you
And now you must return unto the clay .

4.        Through two long world wars,
                           you have seen many people pass away
Now 'tis your turn to say goodbye
The social life you built, it will die with you
When windowed mountains take the sun from your skies.

Ch x 2           So Slaggy Island, farewell, farewell to thee
Your pride has turned into decay
All of your sons they have deserted you
And now you must return unto the clay .        
        

Most (but not all) of the steel used in the building of the Sydney Harbour Bridge APPARENTLY came from Slaggy Island ~ can anyone enlarge upon this???

Cheers! R-J

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: SLAGGY ISLAND FAREWELL - Vin Garbutt
From: nutty
Date: 06 Jan 03 - 02:26 AM

I believe that the steel for the Sydney harbour bridge was made by Dorman Long Iron and Steel Company which was capable (at one time) of producing the longest steel beams in the world.

Technically not in Slaggy Island (which was South Bank) but in Grangetown (just down the road).

Dorman Long became British Steel and is now owned by Corus. Steel is still in production but in a much reduced capacity.

In its heyday a new town - Dormanstown - was built to house the Steelworkers. This town is now a part of Redcar.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: SLAGGY ISLAND FAREWELL - Vin Garbutt
From: rich-joy
Date: 06 Jan 03 - 03:27 AM

Keying "Slaggy Island" into Google comes up with an interesting site about Slaggy Island / Southbank, it's history and it's characters - but it's taking ages to load for me - with all the pictures I guess - but worth a look and read, I'm sure - just wish they had the WHOLE song on it!!

Still need those 2 missing lines!!!

Cheers! R-J

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: SLAGGY ISLAND FAREWELL - Vin Garbutt
From: GUEST,MCP
Date: 06 Jan 03 - 04:34 AM

After a quick look over I think you have it mainly correct except for:

You thrived with Bolckow, Vaughan and the engine of steam

In Coral, Connaught, Pearl Street too


Bolckow (Henry William Ferdinand) and Vaughan (John) were responsible for the development of the steel industry in Middlesbrough. (Their statues were at opposite ends of the garden in Victoria Square outside of the Town Hall.

My (ancient) transcription shows the 2nd line ending in steam, but I'd like to recheck that before dismissing your steel,

Mick

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: SLAGGY ISLAND FAREWELL - Vin Garbutt
From: rich-joy
Date: 06 Jan 03 - 04:42 AM

Thanks Mick!! Much obliged.

Cheers! R-J

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: SLAGGY ISLAND FAREWELL - Vin Garbutt
From: GUEST,MCP
Date: 06 Jan 03 - 01:13 PM

I've just listened again (after many years) to the song and my native ear hears: engine of steam. (The railway came early to Middlesbrough. Larger ships could then use the deeper water there instead of going further upstream to Stockton as they had done previously).

Mick

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: SLAGGY ISLAND FAREWELL - Vin Garbutt
From: GUEST,The Fantum
Date: 09 Jan 03 - 08:04 AM

The steel for the Sydney harbour bridge came from Grangetown affectionately known as the cardboard city. If you go to the slaggy island web site links page there is a site for Grangetown.
My father who worked in the mills was quite proud that the bridge used steel made in Grangetown.
getting off the point did your significant other ever learn Sennex Macdonaldus

Regards

The Fantum

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: SLAGGY ISLAND FAREWELL - Vin Garbutt
From: GUEST
Date: 09 Jan 03 - 11:23 AM

Me Dad, Will Sullivan, always told me he helped make the steel for the Sydney Harbour Bridge. He was the leading First Hand Smelter at both the North Plant and then the South Plant at Dorman Long Grangetown, where I grew up in Birchington Avenue.

I went to the same school as Vin and was in the same class at St. Peters as Michael, his brother. I first saw Vin singing at the St. Peter's Working Men's Club in South Bank. Back then I think I was one of the only people listening as he sang.   I had the great pleasure and good fortune to be with Vin and Pete Betts and other friends for the turn of the year at midnight 1999/2000.

We taunted each other as kids about Slaggy Island and Cardboard City. (A reference to the walls of the terrace houses near the steelworks.)
I emigrated to Australia in 1974 and visited Sydney in 1998.

To stand on the great bridge and touch the steel with Dorman Long stamped all over it was a strong moment for me.

We, my father and I, parted after he lost his wife and I lost a mother. He despaired and turned to drink. I was young and hated him for his weakness.

Growing older and realising your own stupidity is hard. Serves me right. Now when I look at that bridge I feel both proud (of Dad) and ashamed (Of me).

None of this is very relevant to the Thread. Guess I'm getting old.

BS

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: SLAGGY ISLAND FAREWELL - Vin Garbutt
From: C-flat
Date: 09 Jan 03 - 12:33 PM

A one-liner my dad used to say........"I worked for Dorman but not for Long"

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: SLAGGY ISLAND FAREWELL - Vin Garbutt
From: rich-joy
Date: 11 Jan 03 - 06:40 PM

The Fantum : my S.O. never learnt it well enough to "perform" it, but he still returns to it and gives himself a giggle, every now and then!!

Cheers! R-J

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: SLAGGY ISLAND FAREWELL - Vin Garbutt
From: Mark Cohen
Date: 11 Jan 03 - 10:34 PM

Guest, don't apologize for your post, I thought it was wonderful. (Maybe I'm just getting old...!) I used to hear recordings of Vin Garbutt on WXPN, the folk music station in Philadelphia, back in the late 70s when I was a pediatric resident and just discovering folk music. Couldn't understand more than 25% of what he said, but I loved listening to him. His version of "Gentle Annie" was wonderful, and "The Hartleypool Monkey" was fantastic. I heard him in concert once in Philly, probably around 1979. Does anybody know the words to "The Bill Collector's Plums", or whatever the real title is? I just remember the last line: "For Christ sake, ding ding dong!" (The bill collector was hiding in the wardrobe, of course, to avoid being detected by the husband who had come home unexpectedly, of course, but his, er, plums had gotten trapped outside the wardrobe when the door closed, and the wife told her husband they were bells, and the husband, of course, tried to get them ringing. At least, I think that was the story.)

Aloha,
Mark

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: SLAGGY ISLAND FAREWELL - Vin Garbutt
From: Joan from Wigan
Date: 12 Jan 03 - 08:43 AM

Mark, the song you're after is Bernard Wrigley's "The Ballad of Knocking Nelly". I've tried doing a DT/Forum search but am getting an error, maybe the search function is down at the moment. When it's working I'll have another search, and if the song isn't there, I'll post it.

Joan

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: SLAGGY ISLAND FAREWELL - Vin Garbutt
From: paulo
Date: 12 Jan 03 - 08:53 AM

I went to see Vin early last year and asked him for the words of Slaggy Island but he couldn't help me as he said he couldn't remember them all off hand.
However an hourlater he realised that he was selling a Garbutt song book which included the words, chords etc.   Typical Vin or what.

Anyway I can't help the enquiry as to the words as I didn't buy the book - do you think I'm daft, £12 for one song.

Its nice to see that there seems to be number of correspondants from Slaggy Island/Cardboard city using the forum.

My dad didn't work down the works, but I did.

Cheers

Paulo

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: SLAGGY ISLAND FAREWELL - Vin Garbutt
From: GUEST,The Fantum
Date: 12 Jan 03 - 10:53 AM

Mark Cohen

I have posted the Ballad of Knocking Nellie on a separate thread.
I have used the song and it works ok but it does not feel comfortable for me
The sequels are equally funny and probably the 2nd is usable but the 3rd is way to bad for me.

Regards

The Fantum

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: SLAGGY ISLAND FAREWELL - Vin Garbutt
From: Mark Cohen
Date: 13 Jul 03 - 03:52 PM

Fantum, I just found your reply (only 6 months...not bad!)--thank you! Guess I missed it because you posted on my birthday. Bernard Wrigley, of course! I'd completely forgotten about him. (I hope he's not upset.)

Aloha,
Mark

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: SLAGGY ISLAND FAREWELL - Vin Garbutt
From: GUEST,sheila gallagher(nesbitt)
Date: 04 Oct 06 - 10:51 AM

On research of the area of South Bank and including Dorman Long,for a book I am writing, I thought you would like to know that Bolckow Vaughan initially, then Dorman Long, was responsible for the steel for the Transporter and Newport(both Middlesbrough) and Sydney Harbour Australia Bridges.Also the Otto Beit Suspension bridge over the Zambezi, Northern Rhodesia(as was), the Bankok Memorial Bridge, Siam(as was), the Limpopo Bridge, South Africa, The Government Offices, Whitehall Gardens in London amongst many.Dorman Long had officesthroughout the world e.g Paraguay, New Zealand, Palastine, Uganda, Pakistan to name but a few. Dorman Long was world renowned as the best.The original bell for Big Benat the Palace of Westminsterin London was cast locally too, in Norton Iron Works in 1856!Did you also know that almost all of London's water piping was made from Teesside cast iron!
Sometimes it isn't just what you see!!    AWESOME!!!

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: SLAGGY ISLAND FAREWELL - Vin Garbutt
From: Rowan
Date: 04 Oct 06 - 06:54 PM

The name Dorman keeps cropping up in this thread and it took me back to 1969 when I was at Mawson, the oldest contiuously used research station in the Antarctic. The main power generator in the powerhouse at that time was a "Dorman" and I wonder at the connection.

To keep the mucis aspect of the thread alive I really liked Vin's songs (and their introductions) and his singing but his tin whistle was top hole! JUst after I first heard The Young Tin Whistle Pest the '75 National in Sydney brought a young tin whistler out of the woodwork. He knew most of the tunes and those he didn't know he'd pick up after the first time through. His style was a mirror image of Vin's and we found out he came from Middlesbrough. Ian Stewart got married soon after and became a maths teacher; I haven't heard a peep from or about him since. A pity 'coz he was a nice bloke and an asset to any session.

Cheers, Rowan

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: SLAGGY ISLAND FAREWELL - Vin Garbutt
From: Betsy
Date: 05 Oct 06 - 08:29 AM

It won't mean much to many of you but you could have a look at this ........http://www.communigate.co.uk/ne/slaggyisland/.

Then have a look at the various files printed on the left hand side.

People are still proud to have come from South Bank , though as a late teenager I was terrified to tell people where I came from because it went downhill fairly fast - I think - with the advent of Television . I believe up to then, it was a great place socially for a child , safe , no cars on the roads , everywhere seemed was a play area , and every grown-up "looked out" for all kids - not just his own. We didn't know it was dirty because of the Industry - it had always been like that , so we had nothing with which to compare the air quality.
Grown-ups were poor, but generally working , but because EVERYONE had a hard time making ends meet, robbing Peter to pay Paul, good times,when they happened were very special.Our kids today missed so much , but , you could say, that I missed out on play-stations, computers et al, and the ability to "talk "to you all as I am doing now.
Take your pick, but I know which generation has the bigger network of friends.
OK , OK I'll finish with the old chestnut - Nostalgia ain't what it used to be.!!!
Rowan , have you still got the Record sleeve of The Young Tin Whistle Pest ?
Cheers

Betsy

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: SLAGGY ISLAND FAREWELL - Vin Garbutt
From: nutty
Date: 05 Oct 06 - 08:57 AM

Pete - I think the best thing about South Bank was the trolley buses. How sad that todays youngsters missed out on them. What a brilliant service they provided. When they came off they rails (usually at Bennetts Corner) that just added to the fun.

The other brilliant thing about the community was that it looked after it's own. It still amazes me that as a teenager I could get off the late 'Spa' bus at the top of Station Road and walk home with complete confidence that I would be safe. (couldn't do that today).

Industry although dirty had its wonderful spectacles as well. One that will stay with me forever is the way that the sky used to light up when the hot slag from the steelworks was tipped. It was an amazing sight.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: SLAGGY ISLAND FAREWELL - Vin Garbutt
From: GUEST,Rowan,at the library
Date: 06 Oct 06 - 01:14 AM

Greetings Betsy,
Sorry, but I no longer have many of my possessions from then except my concertinas. While I was playing at a wedding in Gundagai, some people thought my possessions so interesting that they loaded them all into a truck and drove them away. Even my thesis! C'est la vie!

Cheers, Rowan

Subject: RE: Req/ADD: Slaggy Island Farewell (Vin Garbutt)
From: Betsy
Date: 06 Oct 06 - 03:41 AM

Hi Nutty ,
Hope you're well . On the subject of Slag / Iron and steel and steel
here's ( a real anorak) statistic which Vin showed me in a book when he was writing the song , that at the turn of the Century (1900's) South Bank was producing One Sixth of the worlds's production of Pig Iron. Considering all the countries especially the USA which were frantically producing - that was some feat.
As an aside, I wouldn't normally listen to Billy Joel - but if you listen to the words of his "Allenstown" it evokes memories about South Bank ,Grangetown and Dormanstown. Strange to put Vin and Billy Joel in the same subject matter !!!!

Hi Rowan
Twats, and I don't even know where Gundagai IS !!!- but you seem to have reconciled the matter in a very calm manner.Good luck to you mate.

Cheers,
Betsy

Subject: RE: Req/ADD: Slaggy Island Farewell (Vin Garbutt)
From: Bob Bolton
Date: 06 Oct 06 - 06:19 AM

G'day all,

I dug out my LP of The Young Tin Whistle Pest ... and this is how I hear the song:

Slaggy Island Farewell
Words & music © Vin Garbutt

Verse 1 (and Chorus) :
Oh, Slaggy Island; farewell, farewell to thee
Your pride has turned into decay.
All of your sons they have deserted you
And now you must return unto the clay.

Verse 2:
In just one century, you have lived and you have died
Your birth meant life to many men.
You thrived with Bolckow, Vaughan* and the engine of steel.
Now they have gone and you're alone again.
Chorus: So Slaggy Island, farewell …

Verse 3:
When I was young in … your streets I did laugh and play (sic)
In Coral, Connaught, Pearl Street too. †
Your walls, they sheltered me from the wind and the rain
But now, the hammer is all that's left for you.
Chorus: So Slaggy Island, farewell …

Verse 4:
Through two long world wars, you have seen many people pass away:
Now 'tis your turn to say goodbye
The social life you built, it will die with you,
When windowed mountains take the sun from your skies.
Chorus): So Slaggy Island, farewell …
‡ (Chorus x 2) :

* en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dorman_Long: "Dorman Long took over the concerns of Bell Brothers and Bolckow and Vaughan in the late 1920s." (Vin seems to pronounce the first name (~) "Bohkoh".)

† That's the way I hear the street names.

‡ I presume that rich-joy's Aussie source (and my good friends): The Fagans, have picked up the English folk club habit of beating the life out of any good chorus.

Vin only sings the final chorus once on my LP The Young Tin Whistle Pest!

Betsy: Were you after some information - or an image - from the record sleeve of The Young Tin Whistle Pest? I have mine, intact (so far ...).

Regars,

Bob

Subject: RE: Req/ADD: Slaggy Island Farewell (Vin Garbutt)
From: Betsy
Date: 06 Oct 06 - 07:24 AM

Hi Bob,
Can't do your fancy symbols , but the street names are correct Vin lived in Coral - I lived in Connaught in the corner house of Coral / Connaught.
I'm not a home at the moment but will check when I get home, one (or two?) of these mens names may have been Anglicised (slightly) as they were quite a few of these Iron Masters were German.
Can't remember - but could be that Vaughan didn't have the last "a" or something like that? i.e. Vaughn, or, did Dorman have 2"n's".
I only mentioning it because it might help when looking up references/ doing searches .
On the other thing I sent a PM.

Cheers

Betsy

Subject: RE: Req/ADD: Slaggy Island Farewell (Vin Garbutt)
From: Bob Bolton
Date: 06 Oct 06 - 08:40 AM

G'day Betsy,

The Advanced Google search used the exact phrase "Dorman Long" and required the separate words "steel" and "Cleveland". The result was (~) 22,000 'hits'. Changing to either "Dormann" or "Vaughn" both get nil!

"Bolckow" could be roughly from the area where the border has oscillated between Germany and Poland ... according to who won the last stoush (perhaps around the Gdansk / Danzig region, for instance). Vin's pronunciation is a pretty good approximation of the likely 'Polish' one. I would expect the 'real pronunciation' to be: "Boh" (with a suggestion of the terminal sound of the Welsh "ll" ...) - "kow" (with a terminal suggestion of a "v". That is, somewhere between Vin's "Bowkow" and "Bolwkov" ... I presume that the Wilkipedia entry cited uses the commonly accepted (indeed, the commercial records') spellings of the surnames.

I was pretty sure of hearing Coral and Connaught Streets ... Pearl was a bit less definite ... as I was playing an old cassette copy of the LP, since it was too much work to unearth my LP transcription deck (which needs to be plugged into the back of the 'puter).

It's a long time since I heard Vin sing it in the flesh!

Regards,

Bob

Subject: RE: Req/ADD: Slaggy Island Farewell (Vin Garbutt)
From: Betsy
Date: 06 Oct 06 - 09:24 AM

Hi Bob ,
Sorry about the bum steer re:-the names, but one of the main men anglicised his name, only slightly , to make it appear less German , I'll check it out when I get home.
In the meantime here is a fabulous "film" related to the subject matter, it gives a great insight to how they won the Iron Ore from the surrounding hills of Slaggy Island

http://www.communigate.co.uk/ne/slaggyisland/page52.phtml

Vin is known for his Polish-ed performances - his ability to pronounce it probably is just his Teesside accent.

Cheers ,

Betsy.

Subject: RE: Req/ADD: Slaggy Island Farewell (Vin Garbutt)
From: Rowan
Date: 06 Oct 06 - 08:04 PM

Greetings Betsy,
At the time of the robbery I was running a school camp at Steiglitz (60 miles west of Melbourne) and Gundagai is about 300 miles or so 'north' (actually, northeast) of Melbourne, on the Hume Highway and on the northern bank of the Murrumbidgee. I was most unhappy at the time because I'd collected a lot of folk music and folkloric material and specialised in material culture items that required no gas or electricity, as the camp was four miles from the nearest power line. I learned a lot about hearing and listening while I was there. And, with help from good friends, I got over most of the emotional aspects of loss quite well.

I'm glad Bob could help with the cover.

Cheers, Rowan

Subject: RE: Req/ADD: Slaggy Island Farewell (Vin Garbutt)
From: Betsy
Date: 07 Oct 06 - 04:18 AM

Hi Rowan,
I note you say non-specifically "some people " made off with your belongings.
I have visions of Rolf Harris appearing on Tele with his wobble board backed by a didgeridoo singing Slaggy Island - a song he learned in the outback from native Australians.
Forbid !!
Bob is still helping with a query over the cover - will tell you when its sorted out

Cheers
Pete.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Slaggy Island Farewell (Vin Garbutt)
From: GUEST,GerryM (using wrong app)
Date: 20 Mar 23 - 03:53 AM

Rowan, wasn't this Ian Stewart, was it? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ian_Stewart_(mathematician)

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Slaggy Island Farewell (Vin Garbutt)
From: Long Firm Freddie
Date: 20 Mar 23 - 04:24 AM

A quote from Fred Truman, legendary England and Yorkshire fast bowler:

At Sydney, when they asked the obvious "What do think of our bridge?",
bang came the legendary response:

"Your bridge? Our bloody bridge, you should say: and bugger it, a Yorkshire firm, Dorman and Long, built it and you bastards still ain't paid for it!"

LFF

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Slaggy Island Farewell (Vin Garbutt)
From: rich-joy
Date: 20 Mar 23 - 10:07 AM

Gerry, we are unlikely to receive a reply from Rowan to your 20th March question, as sadly, he passed in 2010......

R-J

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Slaggy Island Farewell (Vin Garbutt)
From: GerryM
Date: 20 Mar 23 - 09:51 PM

R-J, thanks.