Thread: Special Australia Day treat

Beautiful rendition Noel. I don't mind the slight change from the traditional tune but it wasn't all that radical a change anyway. As for the result of the game.

And briefly. You want a legitimate protest. Then pick one that people in positions of power will listen to, find credibility in, and possibly act upon. Burn a countries flag and to me you're saying that what that flag represents is worthless. It doesn't matter whether you think it's the right flag or not. It's the flag.

Support it, or pi$$ off.

We've digressed a bit to the flag and have gone off from Noel's rendition.

To those who know me I can give you 6 degrees of separation from one of two people responsible for the design of the Australian flag.

My SWMBO's great, great, great Uncle was one of the winning entries - Leslie John Hawkins, a teenager apprenticed to a Sydney optician. Don't know if I have too many greats in there or not, but that's by the by.

I'd like to add my bit here..... Well done Noel, that was fantastic. I really enjoyed it.

As for the crappy flag burning comments.... I'm a proud and patriotic Aussie and am proud to stand under our flag and remember what people have done to make this the great country that it is.

It doesn't matter that there are debates over which flag we have and which flag our servicemen and women fought under. The Aussie flag, whatever it is or whatever it will be in the future should be a symbol of unity and invoke pride and loyalty in our country.

Flag burning invokes anger and hatred and shouldn't under any circumstances be used for petty political protests.

Once again well done Noel

Thanks for all the comments, and thanks to the Boss for putting it up.

For or Against doesn't matter to me, its just great that a song that is about 114 years old can still raise some controversy, as it did back when it was first published. And the good thing about living here is that we are free to decided if we like something or not.


Some History

Far as I could research at the time that I did the music for this version, the original tempo as played by Mary Cowan equates to 60 Beats per Minute.
I set my tempo at 55 Beats per Minute ( I've always been a bit slow).
The up-tempo version that we are all used to, was modified in the early 1900's from the original 60 BPM to 100 BPM, so that the song could be used as a theme for an advertising campaign for Billy Tea. (Gasp)
In 1988, Waltzing Matilda got to Number 19 on the charts.
I didn't get rich from the record sales as the owners of Big Time Records, absconded and disappeared back to Los Angeles (Karma will fix them)

The Day

I nearly didn't get the job at the Grand Final......The Head Sherang of the VFL (Ross Oakley) rang about me doing the job, and I thought it was the mob at the Moonambel Pub taking the mickey out of me...so I told him to pi55 off, and hung up on him. He rang back later.

There were 103,000 at the game

It was my first time at a footy game

I left early...just before the streaker

Before the song, I had to ride a horse around the MCG.
The horses name was Socrates
I hadn't been on a horse for 27 years.
I wasn't nervous about the singing, just relieved to get off the horse without falling off and being dragged to death in front of that many people.
Up to that time, the only horses ridden on the "hallowed turf" were mounted police horses.
So that was that.

About the flag burning stuff.
Like many other forumites, I am a Vietnam Veteran, and consider that we fought FOR our country UNDER our flag.
Flag burning is a legitimate form of protest, (albeit probably illegal in this country) but I probably wouldn't try it around my mob.

Thanks All,
and I hope you all had a good Australia Day

Originally Posted by watson

Flag burning is a legitimate form of protest, (albeit probably illegal in this country) but I probably wouldn't try it around my mob.

As far as I can tell, it's not illegal as long as it's your flag (ie. you haven't stolen it) but definitely unwise in certain company... I find this story interesting though - the RSL involved went a long way for someone who stole their flag and burnt it.

My apologies for starting a shitstorm in your song's thread Noel, and thanks for the background info.

Juffy,
I thought I'd started that storm, but you can have the "Cudos".
Watson,
I admire your guts and
misicianship, as I said, and hope I didn't offend you in any way.
I thought I was the only one "In Step" for a long while there, but others sorta agreed with my sentiments.
I was referring to yet another tune, and words not usually sung these days.You probably know them.
As to your equestrianism after so long, you should have been given "Best on Ground" for simply being able to get the words out.
In the words of a famous Rugby League coach, "You done good".
Jim

Originally Posted by Lignin

Juffy,
I thought I'd started that storm, but you can have the "Cudos".

I think you called 10 hearts on it, but then Juffy went open misere with the flag.

Anyhoo. Nuff said. Nice song

10 hearts? I thought we were playing bridge!

No apologies needed at all.
Juffy and Lignin can both have 50% of the kudos
At the risk of flogging a dead horse, the reason for the version's "down" feeling was that I thought the song was about a theft, chase and ultimately, a suicide.
Not a happy or jolly toe-tappin' knee slappin' story for me.

More history:

Banjo got his "walking papers" from Dadsworth Station not long after, after he got a bit over-interested in the owner's fiance . He left on coach and got "caught short" near the Combo Waterhole. The story is detailed by Banjo in a short story entitled Bore Water.
So what is revered as almost a sacred site.....as the site of the suicide.....is actually the site of Paterson Poop.

Have fun

Due to this thread loosing its way from the initial intention it has been decided to lock the thread .

If you wish to continue the drivel please do so at your own place.