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24 May 06 - 04:29 PM (#1746801) Subject: Lyr Req: Songs about deportation to Australia. From: Eric the Viking Hi all. My number 1 son is needing songs about deportation to Australia from the eighteenth to nineteenth centuries for a play. Not the fields of Athen or Peckham Rye ! Any suggestions that you may have (including those which are rude and tell him where to go) are welcome. He will be logging on to see what info you can give him. Thanks Eric |
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24 May 06 - 04:30 PM (#1746803) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Songs about deportation to Australia. From: John MacKenzie Van Diemen's Land Wild Colonial Boy Wild Bass Strait Etc. |
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24 May 06 - 04:31 PM (#1746805) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Songs about deportation to Australia. From: Eric the Viking Thanks Giok, a good start already. |
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24 May 06 - 04:38 PM (#1746810) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Songs about deportation to Australia. From: Nigel Parsons Botany Bay Nigel |
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24 May 06 - 04:42 PM (#1746816) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Songs about deportation to Australia. From: breezy he can buy a CD from Tony Truscott with Swallow's Wing on it, its a song that paints the picture. |
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24 May 06 - 04:48 PM (#1746823) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Songs about deportation to Australia. From: bfdk A pretty defiant one: Jim Jones. Best wishes, Bente |
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24 May 06 - 04:50 PM (#1746825) Subject: Lyr Add: JIM JONES (Bob Dylan) From: Little Hawk Another vote here for Jim Jones. Here are the lyrics as I know them: Bob Dylan - Jim Jones Lyrics Come and listen for a moment, lads And hear me tell my tale How across the sea from England I was condemned to sail Now the jury found me guilty, lads Then says the judge, says he "Oh, for life, Jim Jones, I'm sending you Across that stormy sea So take a tip before you ship To join the iron gang Don't get too gay in Botany Bay Or else you'll surely hang Or else you'll surely hang", says he "And after that Jim Jones It's high above on the gallows tree The crows will pick your bones". Now our ship was sailing high upon the sea When pirates came along But the soldiers on that convict ship They were full five hundred strong And they opened fire and somehow drove That pirate ship away But I'd rather have joined that pirate ship Than gone to Botany Bay With the storms all ragin' round us And the wind a blowin' gale I'd rather have drowned in misery Than gone to New South Wales There's no time for mischief there they say Remember that, says they For they'll flog the poaching out of you Down there in Botany Bay. Now it's day and night the irons clang And like poor galley slaves We toil and toil, and when we die Must fill dishonored graves But it's by and by I'll slip my chains Into the bush I'll go And I'll join the brave bush rangers there Jack Donohue and all And some dark night, when everything Is silent in the town I'll shoot those tyrants one and all I'll gun the floggers down Oh, I'll give the lot a little shot Remember what I say And they'll yet regret they sent Jim Jones In chains to Botany Bay. |
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24 May 06 - 05:11 PM (#1746836) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Songs about deportation to Australia. From: Dug Ten Thousand Miles Away Sing ho for a fair and gallant ship with a fair and favourin breeze With a bully crew and a captain too to carry me o'er the seas To carry me o'er the seas me boy to me true love far away She's taken a trip on a government ship, ten thousand miles away. You can find the rest of it in the database. If not let me know- I'll give you the rest. |
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24 May 06 - 05:24 PM (#1746843) Subject: Lyr Add: CONVICT MAID From: Charmain To the Tune of The Croppy Boy CONVICT MAID Ye London maids attend to me While I relate my misery Through London streets I oft have strayed But now I am a Convict Maid In innocence I once did live In all the joy that peace could give But sin my youthful heart betrayed And now I am a Convict Maid To wed my lover I did try To take my master's property So all my guilt was soon displayed And I became a Convict Maid Then I was soon to prison sent To wait in fear my punishment When at the bar I stood dismayed Since doomed to be a Convict Maid At lenth the Judge did me address Which filled with pain my aching breast To Botany Bay you will be conveyed For seven years a Convict Maid For seven long years oh how I sighed While my poor mother loudly cried My lover wept and thus he said May God be with my Convict Maid To you that here my mournful tale I cannot half my grief reveal No sorrow yet has been portrayed Like that of the poor Convict Maid Far from my friends and home so dear My punishment is most severe My woe is great and I'm afraid That I shall die a Convict Maid I toil each day in greaf and pain And sleepless through the night remain My constant toils are unrepaid And wretched is the Convict Maid Oh could I but once more be free I'd never again a captive be But I would seek some honest trade And never again be a Convict Maid |
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24 May 06 - 05:55 PM (#1746860) Subject: Lyr Add: THE EXILE'S LAMENT From: freda underhill This is a beautiful song. THE EXILE'S LAMENT (also known as THE EXILE OF ERIN or THE PLAINS OF EMU) O! Farewell my country, my kindred, my lover; Each morning and evening are sacred to you, While I toil the long day, without shelter or cover, And fell the tall gums, the black-butted and blue. Full often I think of and talk of thee, Erin - Thy heath-covered mountains are fresh in my view, Thy glens, lakes and rivers, Loch Con and Kilkerran, While chained to the soil on the Plains of Emu. The ironbark, wattle and gum-trees extending Their shades, under which rests the shy kangaroo, May be felled by the bless'd who have hope o'er them bending, To cheer their rude toil, though far exiled from you. But, alas! without hope, peace or honour to grace me, Each feeling was crushed in the bud as it grew, Whilst 'never' is stamped on the chains that embrace me, And endless my thrall on the Plains of Emu. Hard, hard was my fate, far from thee to be driven, Unstained, unconvicted, as sure was my due; I loved to dispense of the freedom of Heaven, But force gained the day, and I suffer for you. For this hand never broke what by promise was plighted, Deep treason, this tongue to my country ne'er knew, No base-earned coin in my coffer e'er lighted, Yet enchained I remain on the Plains of Emu. Dear mother, thy love from my bosom shall never Depart, but shall flourish untainted and true; Nor grieve that the base in their malice should ever Upbraid thee, and none to give malice her due. Spare, spare her tears, and no charge lay upon her, And weep not, my Norah, her griefs to renew, But cherish her age until night closes on her, And think of the swain who still thinks but of you. But your names shall still live, though like writing in water, When confined to the notes of the tame cockatoo, Each wattle-scrub echo repeats to the other Your names, and each breeze hears me sighing anew. For dumb be my tongue, may my heart cease her motion, If the Isle I forget where my first breath I drew! Each affection is warmed with sincerest emotion, For the tie is unbroken on the Plains of Emu. These words were published in the Sydney Gazette, 26 May 1829 and apparently attributed to "M" of Anambaba. The setting is Emu Plains, an agricultural establishment and convict settlement 57 kilometres west of Sydney. The apparent author would be an Irish political convict, perhaps a rebel of 1798, on lifetime sentence, felling the native timber to clear the land for farming. The tune set by Ron Edwards is apparently of the same name and comes from an earlier Irish song on the same theme. the tune can be found on this page of sample songs performed by Jason & Chloe Roweth. |
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24 May 06 - 06:00 PM (#1746862) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Songs about deportation to Australia. From: jamiebanjo Peter Bellamy's folk opera "The Transports" is all about transportation to Oz, based on a real case. The song "I once lived in service" tells pretty much the whole story. F |
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24 May 06 - 06:01 PM (#1746863) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Songs about deportation to Australia. From: Barry Finn Here's another vote for Jim Jones. What's Bob Dylan got to do with JJ, did he sing or record it? I originally got it off a Folk-Legacy LP "Ian Robb & Hang the Piper" (1979), always admired his version which he says in his notes came from David Parry who had it from John Kirkpatrick. The tune is a different one than the standard one done in Australia, according again to the notes. Another nice one is "Far Away in Australia", though not about deportation. Good luck Barry |
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24 May 06 - 06:06 PM (#1746865) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Songs about deportation to Australia. From: freda underhill and there's always the wonderful Anderson's Coast by John Warner.. |
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24 May 06 - 06:12 PM (#1746869) Subject: Lyr Add: ALBION'S SHORE From: freda underhill This is another powerful song.. ALBION'S SHORE. Mick Ryan and Graham Moore. The distant shore of England fades from sight. Now all seems dark that once was pure and bright, And now a convict serves me for a time, To suffer hardship in a foreign clime. My faith and union's stronger than these chains, In pastures green he leads me once again, Through death's dark valley, safely and secure, return once more to stand on Albion's shore. How wretched is an exile's state of mind, By grief worn down, in servile chains confined, While not one gleam of hope on Earth remains, And not one friend to soothe his heartfelt pains My faith and union... Too true I know that man was made to mourn, With anguish full my aching heart is torn The heavy portion falls unto my lot, Far from my friends, by all the world forgot. My faith and union... Farewell my mother, aged father dear, for you I shed a sympathetic tear, I pray before our lives have ceased to run, You'll be united with your long lost son. My faith and union.. |
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24 May 06 - 06:21 PM (#1746874) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Songs about deportation to Australia. From: Bob the Postman Moreton Bay The Catalpa |
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24 May 06 - 07:36 PM (#1746921) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Songs about deportation to Australia. From: Snuffy Judy Small's Mary Parker's Lament |
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24 May 06 - 07:38 PM (#1746924) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Songs about deportation to Australia. From: Zany Mouse I'd go with Mary Parker's Lament too. Great song. I must dig it out again. Rhiannon |
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24 May 06 - 08:49 PM (#1746972) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Songs about deportation to Australia. From: Bob Bolton G'day Eric the Viking, Over the years, I have posted many of the songs listed above to the Mudcat ... but although they have sometimes been marked "^^" (harvested) most have not yet made it into the DT (Digital Tradition). If you do BIG (3 Years ... or ALL) searches for the traditional titles you should find most of them ... with the "no longer supprted by Mudcat" MIDItext files generated from Alan of Oz's old tune-posting program. If nothing else, this lets you harvest the (reasonably) correct words PLUS the ABC format versions of the tunes ... and there are sites (inc. concertina.com ... ?) that will give you an automatic conversion to music notation. Regards, Bob |
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24 May 06 - 10:12 PM (#1747010) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Songs about deportation to Australia. From: GUEST Freemantle Bay |
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24 May 06 - 10:21 PM (#1747016) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Songs about deportation to Australia. From: Little Hawk Barry, Bob Dylan sang "Jim Jones" quite a bit in live concerts (in the 80's mostly, I think) and there's a good bootleg with that song and numerous other trads performed live by Bob in concert. The bootleg is called "Golden Vanity", that being the name of one of the songs, as you probably know. |
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25 May 06 - 03:07 AM (#1747086) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Songs about deportation to Australia. From: Eric the Viking That's really great. Thank you all. Matthew vikingson is really pleased and passes on his thanks. |
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25 May 06 - 04:01 AM (#1747108) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Songs about deportation to Australia. From: Little Robyn Re Jim Jones at Botany Bay, Frank Fyfe was singing it in Wellington, NZ back in the 60s. I don't know where he picked it up but he came from Aus in the mid 60s and had been at folk clubs there - in Queensland, I think. Robyn |
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25 May 06 - 07:44 AM (#1747203) Subject: Lyr Add: THE FEMALE TRANSPORT From: CeltArctic My votes go to Jim Jones and The Female Transport. Frankie Armstrong sings a great version of the latter: Come all young girls both far and near and listen unto me While unto you I do relate what proved my destiny Me mother died when I was young which caused me to deplore And made me find me way too soon all on me native shore. Sarah Collins is me name and dreadful is me fate Me father reared me tenderly the truth I do relate 'Til enticed by bad company along with many more Which led to my discovery all on me native shore. Me trial it approached fast and before the Judge I stood And when that he the sentence passed it fairly chilled me blood Crying "you must be transported for fourteen years or more And make haste, without delay, unto Van Dieman's shore." It hurt me heart when in the coach me native town passed by To see so many I did know it fairly made me cry Then to the ship I went with speed along with many more Whose aching hearts did grieve to go all on Van Dieman's shore. They chained two by two and whipped and lashed us all along They cut off our provisions if we did the least thing wrong They marched us in the burning sun until our feet were sore So hard our lot not we have got all on Van Dieman's shore. We labour hard from morn 'til night until our bones do ache Then every one we must obey our mouldy beds to make We often wish when we lie down that we might rise no more To face our savage governors all on Van Dieman's shore. So come young men and maidens, a warning take by me: If tongue could tell our overthrow t'would make your hearts to bleed You girls I pray be ruled by me your wicked ways give o'er For fear you end your days like me all on Van Dieman's shore. Moira Cameron |
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25 May 06 - 10:41 AM (#1747313) Subject: Lyr Add: THE POACHERS From: bfdk Just remembered this one: THE POACHERS Trad. Scots Come all ye gallant sporting lads that ramble void of care As ye rove out on a moonlit night with your dog, your gun, your snare The harmless hare and pheasant you have at your command Not thinking on your last career all on Van Dieman's Land There was young Jack Brown from Glasgow town, Tom Williams and poor Joe We were three gallant sporting boys the country well did know One night we were trepanned by the keepers in the sand And for fourteen years transported to Van Dieman's Land The day on which we landed upon that fateful shore The planters stood around us, full twenty score and more They ranked us up like horses and sold us out of hand They yoked us to the plough, me boys, to plough Van Dieman's land The houses that we dwell in here are made of clod and clay With rotten straw for bedding, we dare not say them nay Our cots are fenced with wire and we slumber when we can And we fight the wolves and tigers that infest Van Dieman's Land There came a lass from sweet Dundee, Jean Stewart was her name For fourteen years transported for the playing of the game Our captain bought her freedom and married her off hand And she gives us all good usage upon Van Dieman's Land Although the poor of Scotland do labour and do toil They're robbed of all the blessings, the produce of the soil Your proud imperious landlord, if you break his command He'll send you to the British hulks, or to Van Dieman's Land. You can hear part of it here - the music samples open in a pop-up window. Best wishes, Bente |
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25 May 06 - 11:48 AM (#1747340) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Songs about deportation to Australia. From: pavane Another vote for Peter Bellamy's 'The Transports', based on the very earliest true cases. Well worth checking out, at least. |
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25 May 06 - 11:53 AM (#1747343) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Songs about deportation to Australia. From: Dave the Gnome Some people from Wigan once recoreded an album about deportation. I used to have it and can see the cover in my minds eye but for the life of me can't remember the title! I think Laurence Hoy performed on it and possibly Bram Taylor. Realy good album with a booklet to go along with it but it went the way of all my other vinyls in an auction for Mudcat some years ago. It may have even gone to Yorkshire, Eric! Could be worth asking around. Cheers DtG |
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25 May 06 - 02:02 PM (#1747382) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Songs about deportation to Australia. From: Nigel Parsons Don't think it's been mentioned yet: Black Velvet Band Always assuming that Tasmania counts as 'Oz' CHEERS Nigel |
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25 May 06 - 04:32 PM (#1747501) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Songs about deportation to Australia. From: Willa Try this site http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&rls=RNWE%2CRNWE%3A2004-44%2CRNWE%3Aen&q=+songs+of+botany+bay |
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26 May 06 - 03:55 AM (#1747694) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Songs about deportation to Australia. From: Terry K Dave, the album you mention is called "Beyond the Seas", has Lawrence Hoy, Bram Taylor, Calico, Pennygate, and Bernard Wrigley. Very good. Eric, if it would be useful to you, it is yours, as I have it on mini-disc (remember those?). I also have the Warren Fahey book "The Songs that made Australia" which has a section devoted to transportation songs, so if you need the words, dots and chords I can get them to you. Let me know. cheers, Terry |
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26 May 06 - 05:26 AM (#1747719) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Songs about deportation to Australia. From: ard mhacha Freda Underhill thank you for posting The exile of Erin, a great song performed beautifully by the lady singer. |
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29 May 06 - 10:50 PM (#1749804) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Songs about deportation to Australia. From: Jim Dixon Bodleian Library Broadside Ballads lists 192 broadsides under the subject "transported convict" and 3 more under "transported convict – female." (To find them, on the search page, under "Browse Index", select "3 Subjects" then type "transp" into the search box, and click "Show Index.") |
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30 May 06 - 02:30 AM (#1749839) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Songs about deportation to Australia. From: cobber I'd agree that we've made a pretty good list, except I think we missed Maggie May (not the Rod Stewart one)Most of them are music hall songs and often were popular later than the convict era. A bit like the difference between Bing Crosby singing Galway Bay and the wolftones better songs. Of those listed, Jom Jones and Morton Bay stand out because they reflect the defiant attitude of the convicts who could only express it in song. JJ was, I think writtewn by Frank tehPoet around the mid 1830s. He also wrote a poem called The Convict's Tour of Hell which is equally fierce. He was past his convict days when he wrote but obviously remembered the feelings well. Morton Bay details the death of the hated and sadistic Captain Logan who ran Morton Bay gaol which was one of the worst places a convict could be sent. It's thought that his spearing by aborigines may have been related to his work as contact between the black and convict populations was occasionally cordial, a union of the opressed, so to speak. |
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30 May 06 - 03:29 AM (#1749846) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Songs about deportation to Australia. From: Roberto 4 recordings of Australia, two by Bob Hart and two by Cyril Poacher; 2 recordings of a Van Diemen's Land, by Harry Cox and by Ewan MacColl, and 2 recordings of another Van Diemen's Land, by Enoch Kent and by Cara Dillon. Australia a) Come All You Young Fellows (Australia) Bob Hart, A Broadside, Musical Traditions MT CD 301 -2, 1969 recordings Come all you young fellows Whereso'er you may be Come listen a while to my story When I was a young man Me age seventeen I ought to been serving Victoria, our Queen But those hard-hearted judges Oh, how cruel they be To send us poor lads to Australia I fell in with a damsel She was handsome and gay I neglected me work More and more, every day And to keep her like a lady I went on the highway And for that I was sent to Australia Now the judges, they stand With their whips in their hands They drive us, like horses To plough up the land You should see us poor young fellows Working in that jail yard How hard is our fate in Australia Australia, Australia I would ne'er see no more I'm worn out with fever Cast down to Death's door But should I live to see Say, seven years more I would then bid adieu to Australia That's where they used to send 'em, years ago b) Australia Bob Hart, on Hidden English, Topic TSCD600, from Songs from Suffolk, Topic LP 12TS225; song recorded in 1972 Come all you young fellows Whereso'er you may be Come listen a while to my story When I was a young man Me age seventeen I ought to been serving Victoria, our Queen But those hard-hearted judges Oh, how cruel they be To send us poor lads to Australia I fell in with a damsel She was handsome and gay I neglected me work More and more, every day And to keep her like a lady I went on the highway And for that I was sent to Australia Now the judges, they stand With their whips in their hands They drive us like horses To plough up the land You should see us poor young fellows Working in that jail yard How hard is our fate in Australia Australia, Australia I would ne'er see no more Worn out with fever Cast down to Death's door But should I live to see Say, seven years more I would then sat adieu to Australia c) Australia Cyril Poacher, Plenty of Thyme, Musica Traditions MT CD 303; song recorded in 1974; also on Farewell, my own dear native land, Songs of exile and emigtarion, The Voice of the People, Topic TSCD 654 Now come all you young fellows wheresomever you be If you listen I'll tell you a story When I was a young man of about seventeen I ought to been serving Victoria our Queen But those hardhearted judges, oh, how cruel they've been To send us young lads to Australia I fell in love with a damsel, she was handsome and gay I neglected my work more and more every day And to keep her like a lady, I went on the highway And for that I got sent to Australia You should see how they stand with their whips in their hand They drove us like horses to plough up the land You should see us poor young fellows, we worked in that jailyard How sad was our fight in Australia Australia, Australia, I shall never see no more I'm worn out with fever, cast down at death's door But if ever I should live to see seven years more I will then bid adieu to Australia d) Australia Cyril Poacher, Plenty of Thyme, Musica Traditions MT CD 303 – 3 verses only; song recorded in 1974 Come all you young fellows wheresomever you be If you listen I'll tell you a story When I was a young man of about seventeen I ought to been serving Victoria our Queen But those hardhearted judges, oh, how cruel they've been To send us young lads to Australia You should see how they stand with their whips in their hand They drove us like horses to plough up their land You should see us poor fellows, we worked in that jailyard How sad was our fight in Australia Australia, Australia, I shall never see no more I'm worn out with fever, cast down at death's door But if ever I should live to see seven years more I will then bid adieu to Australia Van Diemen's Land (I) a) Henry the Poacher Harry Cox, What Will Become of England? – The Alan Lomax Collection, Portraits, Rounder 11661-1839-2; song recorded in 1953 So come all you wild and wicked youths, wheresomever you may be I pray now pay attention and listen unto me The fate of our poor transports as you shall understand The hardships they do undergo upon Van Diemen's Land My parents reared me tenderly, good learning give to me Till I by bad companions beguiled my home from me I was brought up at Worcestershire, near to the town did dwell My name is Henry Herbert, and many knows me well Me and three more went out one night to Squire Daniel's park To get some game was our intent, as the night came proving dark And to our sad misfortune, they took us there by speed And sent us off to Warwick Gaol, which made our hearts to bleed 'Twas at the March assizes, at the bar we did appear Like Job we stood with patience to hear our sentence there And being some old offenders, it made our case go hard Our sentence were for fourteen year, and we were sent on board The ship that bore us from the land, The Speedwell was her name And full four months and upwards, we ploughed the raging main No land, nor harbour could we see, and believe it is no lie For around us one black water, and above us one blue sky I oft-times looked behind me towards my native shore And the cottage of contentment that I shall see no more Likewise my aged father, who tore his hoary hair Also my tender mother, whose arms did once me bear 'Twas on the fourth of July, the day we made the land At four o'clock we went on shore, all chain-ed hand-in-hand And to see our fellow sufferers, as I feel I can't tell how Some chained unto a harrow and some unto a plough So we were marched into the town, without no more delay And there a gentleman took me, bookkeeper for to be I took my occupation, my master likes me well My joys are out of measure, I am sure no one can tell He kept a female servant — Rosanna was her name For fourteen year a convict, from Worcestershire she came And we oft-times tell our love tales, when we were far at home And now we are rattling of our chains, in foreign lands to roam b) Van Diemen's Land Ewan MacColl, in Chorus from the Gallows, Topic TSCD502, recorded 1959, and in the anthology The Real MacColl, Topic TSCD463 Now come all you wild and wicked youths, wheresoever you may be I pray now pay attention and listen unto me The fateful awful transports as you shall understand The hardships they do undergo upon Van Diemen's Land My parents reared me tenderly, good learning they gave to me 'Til all my bad companions beguiled my home from me I was brought up in Worcestershire, near to the town did dwell My name is Henry Abbott, and many knows me well Me and three more went out one night to Squire Daniel's farm To get some game was our intent as the night come falling down But to our sad misfortune, they took us there with speed They sent us off to Warwick gaol, which made our hearts to bleed It was at the March assises, at the bar we did appear Like Job we stood with patience to hear our sentence there And being some old offenders, it made our case go hard Our sentence were for fourteen years, and we were sent on board The ship that bore us from the land, the Speedwell was her name And full four months and a half we ploughed across the raging main No land or harbour could we see, and believe it is no lie For around us one black water and above us one blue sky I ofttimes look behind me towards my native shore And that cottage of contentment that I shall see no more Likewise my aged father, who tore his hoary hair Also my tender mother whose arms once did me bear It was on the fourth of July, the day we made the land At four o'clock we went on shore, all chained hand in hand And to see our fellow sufferers, I feel I can't tell how Some chained unto a harrow, and some unto a plow So we were marched into the town without no more delay And there a gentleman took me, a book-keeper for to be I took my occupation, my master likes me well My joys are out of measure, I'm sure no tongue can tell He kept a female servant, Rosanna was her name For fourteen years a convict, from Worcestershire she came We oft times tell our love tales there where we are so far from home For now we're rattling of our chains, in foreign lands to roam Van Diemen's Land (II) a) Van Diemen's Land Enoch Kent, on Root & Branch 1 / A New World, EFDSS, song recorded in 1966, first released on Topic Come a' you gallant poaching boys who ramble void of care And when you go on a moonlit night wi' your dog, your gun, your snare The harmless hare and the pheasant you'll have at your command Never thinking on your last career upon Van Diemen's Land There was Jocky Brown frae Glesca, Willie Guthrie and Young Monroe They were three gallant poaching boys, the country well did know The keeper caught them hunting a' wi' their dogs in hand They were fourteen years transported out to Van Dieman's land There cam' a lass frae sweet Dundee, Bessie Logan was her name And she was given sentence for playin' at the game But the captain he caught her fancy and he married her oot o' hand And she gave us all good usage going to Van Dieman's land The very day we landed upon that fatal shore The fairmers gathered round us, some forty score and more The fairmers gathered round us a' wi' their guns in hand Then they yok'd us tae a wooden plough, tae plough Van Dieman's land I lay on my bed the other nicht and I had a pleasant dream I was walking wi' my sweetheart doon by a purling stream We wandered through all Scotland, she was there at my richt hand I awoke quite broken-hearted lyin' on Van Diemen's Land Although the poor o' Scotland dae labour and dae toil They're robbed o' every pleasure and produce of the soil Your proud imperious landlords, you'll obey their sole command Or they'll send you on an English hulk, or to Van Dieman's land b) Van Diemen's Land Cara Dillon, on Root & Branch 1 / A New World, EFDSS, song recorded in 1999, from a version by Tim Lyons Come all you gallant poachers who ramble void of care Who wander out on a moonlit night with your dog, your gun and snare The hare and lofty pheasant you have at your command Not thinking of your long career spend on Van Dieman's land Poor Thomas Brown from Nenagh town, John Murphy and Poor Joe Where three determined poachers, the country well does know By the keepers of the land, one night, at last they were trepanned And for fourteen years transported unto Van Dieman's Land The first day that we landed upon that fatal shore The planters gathered around us, they might be twenty score They ranked us off like horses and sold us out of hand They yoked us to a plough, brave boys, to plough Van Dieman's Land Often when I slumber, I have a pleasant dream I 'm lying on the cold green grass down by your purling stream Oh, wondering through the maid of fair with my sweetheart by the hand Then I awaken broken-hearted upon Van Dieman's Land Fourteen years is a long long time, that is our fatal doom For nothing more the poaching got no all that so we done You give up dog, gun and snare and the poaching, every man If you only knew the hardship upon Van Dieman's Land |
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30 May 06 - 03:32 AM (#1749848) Subject: Lyr Add: ROLL DOWN (Peter Bellamy) From: Roberto ROLL DOWN (by Peter Bellamy) Roll Down Cyril Tawney, on The Transports, A Ballad Opera by Peter Bellamy, Topic TSCD459, first released in 1977 Sweet ladies of Plymouth we're saying goodbye Ro - o - o - oll down We'll rock you and roll you again by and by Walk around m' brave boys and roll down And we will Ro - o - o - oll down Walk around m' brave boys and roll down Now the anchor's aweigh and the sails are unfurled Ro - o - o - oll down We're bound for to take her half way round the world Walk around m' brave boys and roll down In the wide Bay of Biscay the seas will run high Ro - o - o - oll down The poor sickly Transports they'll wish they could die Walk around m' brave boys and roll down When the wild coast of Africa it do appear Ro - o - o - oll down The poor nervous Transports they'll tremble with fear Walk around m' brave boys and roll down When the Cape of Good Hope it is rounded at last Ro - o - o - oll down The poor lonesome Transports they'll long for the past Walk around m' brave boys and roll down When the great southern whales on our quarter do spout Ro - o - o - oll down The poor simple transports, they'll goggle and shout Walk around m' brave boys and roll down And when we arrive off Australia's strand Ro - o - o - oll down The poor weary Transports they'll long for the land Walk around m' brave boys and roll down And when we set sail for old Eng - gl - land's shore, Ro - o - o - oll down The poor stranded Transports we'll see him no more Walk around m' brave boys and roll down Then sweet ladies of Plymouth we'll pay all your rent Ro - o - o - oll down And go roving no more 'til our money's all spent Walk around m' brave boys and roll down |
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30 May 06 - 04:24 AM (#1749871) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Songs about deportation to Australia. From: Nigel Parsons Jim Dixon (above) makes the case for a search of The Bodleian Library for broadsheets about 'Transportation'. I should add a large caveat to that suggestion. Please remember that the "Transportation Act 1718" allowed for the removal of some of our criminal classes to America. This was interrupted by some effort by the colonials in 1776. When transportation re-commenced in 1787 it was to Australia. So, depending on the date of the ballad, if a destination is not named, care should be taken with any presumption. CHEERS Nigel Transportation |
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30 May 06 - 05:45 AM (#1749902) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Songs about deportation to Australia. From: The Fooles Troupe You could try digging around in The National Library of Australia: The digitised printed music collection comprises Australian sheet music and some published albums held by the National Library published before 1930. Music is defined as Australian if it involved an Australian composer, librettist, arranger, subject or place of publication. There are 9,300 pieces of printed music digitised. |
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30 May 06 - 11:41 PM (#1750399) Subject: Lyr Add: MARY PARKER'S LAMENT From: GUEST,AMC MARY PARKER'S LAMENT (Judy Small) There's a little more grey in my hair nowadays As I sit here watching my grandchildren play, And I wonder if they have the faintest idea Of the life that their grandmother knew. CHORUS: It's oh and alas for you, Mary my girl, To be torn from the life you knew half round the world And never again to see home. It was back in the eighties, a younger girl then, With my auburn hair flashing, I'd walk with my man, And he'd tell me the places he would take me to see, If only that he had the means. But then I was with child and I saw him no more. At the pain of our parting, I thought I should die; And I stole from my master some blankets and some cloth Just to keep me and baby alive. But 'twas all for a'nought, for the baby he died. It felt like a part of me perished inside; And for stealing I was sent as a transport to sea, Never knowing for where I was bound. Seven long years was the sentence I bore. It felt like a lifetime as I came ashore; And I wept when I saw the life waiting for me As a chattel, a whore and a slave. So I married a convict, the safer to be From the soldiers and the freed men who chased after me; And for seven long years we did work for our keep, Ever dreaming of England and home. And the children I bore were the joy of my days. I longed for my mother to see them at play; And our hands grew rough from the scrubbing and the dirt; And the sun turned our fair skins to brown. Then on ticket of leave we were granted some land. We worked it and ploughed it by sweat of our hands, And forgot about England except in our dreams. We called New South Wales our true home. And now here I sit watching my grandchildren play, And looking back over the length of my days, And it's clear in my mind is the Plymouth I knew, And I weep for my mother again. |
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31 May 06 - 03:46 AM (#1750457) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Songs about deportation to Australia. From: alison Back home in Derry slainte alison |
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31 May 06 - 05:07 AM (#1750495) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Songs about deportation to Australia. From: Flash Company We keep coming back to 'Transports' Farewell to our loved ones and our fond relations, Farewell to the land we love well, There is never an ending to our tribulations, We are damned like the sinners in hell. Here's adieu, Here's adieu to the green fields of England, we are parting from you! Used to sing it, but can't remember all the words now. Age is a problem! FC |
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31 May 06 - 11:49 AM (#1750647) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Songs about deportation to Australia. From: r.padgett Two Poms travel over on assisted passage to Australia cost £10 each 1955 When they get there the Immigration officials ask them all questions: * age 25 and 27 * sex male female * country of origin England * town Doncaster * money? £100 and £160 * occupation miner, miner's wife * religion? * Church of England * convictions?? - - wait for it! - - * Oh WE DIDNT KNOW IT WAS STILL COMPULSORY! |
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31 May 06 - 01:49 PM (#1750694) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Songs about deportation to Australia. From: Big Tim 'Transportation', rather than 'deportation', is the word generally used by historians. The final transportation ship, the 'Hougoumont', sailed in 1867 and the practice was formally abolished in 1868. On board the 'Hougoument' were about 70 Irish Fenians. Numerous songs have been written about them, and by them. 'Johnny Golden' is an example. A good account of the Fenian experience can be found in a book published by Wolfhound Press, Dublin, in 2001: 'Fenian Diary: Denis B. Cashman on board the Hougoument, with additional poems by Cashman, John Boyle O'Reilly, John Flood, and others'. Edited by Dr. C.W. Sullivan III. Very atmospheric. |
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31 May 06 - 02:30 PM (#1750719) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Songs about deportation to Australia. From: Big Tim I forgot about 'The Boys of Mullaghbawn', IMO the greatest of all the transportation songs, dating from about 1791, recorded by Christy Moore. |
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31 May 06 - 03:14 PM (#1750739) Subject: Lyr Add: AUSTRALIA (from Cyril Poacher) From: Fidjit There's actually a song called, "Australia". (Which Bob Fox changed to "Virginia") Recorded by Cyril Poacher by Tony Engle, Blaxhall Suffolk, 1974. On Topic records somewhere. I have it on EFDSS' "Roots 2" CD. AUSTRALIA Now come all you young fellows, where'er you may be Come listen a while and I'll tell you For it's many a young man, myself aye it seems More fitter to serve than to die on the streets But those hard hearted judges, how cruel they have been For they've sent us poor lads to Australia For they've sent us poor lads to Australia Now when I was in service in fair London town I worked long and hard for my master Till those pretty young girls, they led me astray And my work I neglected, for to sport and to play And for to maintain it, robbed on the highway And for that I was sent to Australia And for that I was sent to Australia Now when we got to Australia, that cold shameful place Which now I recall in my story Our Captain he stood with a whip and a cane And he bargained for us poor souls out of hand Like horses they yoked us, to plough the salt main And they sold us for slaves in Australia And they sold us for slaves in Australia When I robbed on the highway, I lived at my ease I laid down my head on soft feathers With a glass in my hand and a lass on my knee No robber in England lived better than me Now my bed's the cold ground, far across the salt sea And how hard is my fate in Australia And how hard is my fate in Australia Oh England! Oh England, I fear I'll not see you more If I do it's ten thousand to twenty For my fingers they're rotting, and my back it is sore And I wander around right at death's door But if I could live for to see seven years more Well I'd soon bid farewell to Australia Well I'd soon bid farewell to Australia. |
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07 Jun 06 - 08:41 PM (#1755335) Subject: Lyr Add: THE CONVICT'S CHILD From: Jim Dixon Bodleian Library Broadside Ballads has about 15 copies of this one. I don't know the tune. It doesn't mention Australia, but the convict is obviously being transported somewhere. THE CONVICT'S CHILD The convict ship lay near the beach. The morn was drear and dark, And many a wretched felon stood Waiting to embark. One felon stood among the rest Whose eye was fierce and wild. He held an infant in his arms. 'Twas, alas! his only child. His auburn hair fell careless o'er A brow of spotless white. His little eyes beamed playfully With innocent delight. He little knew his father's heart Was breaking while he smiled, Or that he took a last farewell Of him, his only child. They tore the infant from his arms And dragged him from the shore. He wildly gazed around the beach But saw his child no more. The vessel sailed. The convict fell In dying anguish wild. " 'Tis done. The fatal struggle's o'er. Alas! my only child." The widowed mother sobbed alone [or "aloud"]. Her tears might flow in vain. That bitter morn her husband fell She ne'er could see again. She pressed her infant to her heart. Again she saw him smile. "I'll live for that dear boy," she said. "Alas! my only child." |
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07 Jun 06 - 09:06 PM (#1755357) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Songs about deportation to Australia. From: Snuffy Fidjit, The song was originally called Virginia, but we couldn't send convicts there after that minor unpleasantness with Mr Washington, so we sent them to the Antipodes instead. And the song changed to reflect the changed geopolitical realities of the day. Or something. |
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07 Jun 06 - 11:32 PM (#1755487) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Songs about deportation to Australia. From: Scoville All I've got is the U2 recording of "Van Diemen's Land". |