Waltzing Matilda Australian unofficial National Anthem
Lyrics by
A.B. Paterson
Swagman
Once a jolly swagman camped by a billabong,
Under the shade of a Coolibah tree,
And he sang as he watched and waited till his billy boil,
You’ll come a Waltzing Matilda with me.
Waltzing Matilda, Waltzing Matilda,
You’ll come a Waltzing Matilda with me,
And he sang as he watched and waited till his billy boil
You’ll come a Waltzing Matilda with me.
………………..
Down came a jumbuck to drink at that billabong
Up jumped the swagman and grabbed him with glee,
And he sang as he shoved that jumbuck in his tucker bag
You’ll come a Waltzing Matilda with me.
Waltzing Matilda, Waltzing Matilda,
You’ll come a Waltzing Matilda with me,
And he sang as he shoved that jumbuck in his tucker bag
You’ll come a Waltzing Matilda with me.
…………………
Up rode the squatter mounted on his thorough-bred
Down came the troopers One Two Three
Whose that jolly jumbuck you’ve got in your tucker bag
You’ll come a Waltzing Matilda with me.
Waltzing Matilda Waltzing Matilda
You’ll come a Waltzing Matilda with me
Whose that jolly jumbuck you’ve got in your tucker-bag
You’ll come a Waltzing Matilda with me.
………………….
Up jumped the swagman sprang in to the billabong
You’ll never catch me alive said he,
And his ghost may be heard as you pass by that billabong
You’ll come a Waltzing Matilda with me.
Waltzing Matilda Waltzing Matilda
You’ll come a Waltzing Matilda with me
And his ghost may be heard as you pass by that billabong
You’ll come a Waltzing Matilda with me.
Swagman’s cork hat
Swagman a term describing an underclass of transient temporary workers, who traveled by foot from farm to farm carrying the traditional swag (bedroll). Also characteristic of swagman attire was a hat strung with corks to ward off flies. Kind of like a hobo or someone during the 1920-30’s during the depression when times were tough and work was hard to come by.
Billabong means drinking spot or pool in an intermittent stream. Because of the very dry conditions in out-back Australia, streams and rivers can often become dry leaving only a few water-holes where stock are able to drink
Coolibah tree is a type of Eucalyptus. It is is used to treat snake bites. The tree inhabits the arid and semi-arid open woodland areas of Australia. Its common name is of Aboriginal origin and Aborigines used part of the tree to treat snakebites.
billy boil is to make tea over a campfire
Waltzing Matilda is the knapsack on the back of a swagman. Where he goes, Maltilda waltzes with him.
Jumbuck is an Australian slang word for sheep
Tucker bag – a storage bag for food
Squatter in this instance means landowner
This tune is a traditional Scottish Melody and the words are by A. B. Paterson who is generally referred to as Banjo Paterson. He also wrote the Kookaburra Song.
Being in Australia, I thought I should share some music. What better songs than ‘Down Under’ by the 80’s Australian band, Men at Work and a childhood favorite, The Kookaburra Song by Marion Sinclair in 1932.
“Marion Sinclair wrote the song in 1932 for a contest being held by the Victorian Girl Guides.
The competition was for an ‘Australian round’ song. Her song, the Kookaburra Song won and was introduced by Marion at the World Jamboree in Frankston, Victoria in 1934. It was instantly a hit with the girls and has become a much loved song all over the world.
This is a fun children’s song. A gum tree is a name for the eucalyptus tree. There are more gum trees than any other kind of tree in Australia.
Lawsuit The Kookaburra song was involved in a copyright dispute with the Aussie band Men at Work over their song (I come from the land)”
The Song, ‘Come from the Land’ or simply ‘Down Under’ had a flute riff which the Australian Court ruled is an infringement of the copyrighted tune, ‘The Kookaburra Song.’ Despite the controversy between the two songs, and even former members of ‘Men at Work,’ both songs are wonderful and are shared here via YouTube videos. But first, what does a Kookaburra look and sound like?
Now for the lyrics and followed by the video of, ‘Down Under.’
Travelling in a fried-out Kombi
On a hippie trail, head full of zombie
I met a strange lady, she made me nervous
She took me in and gave me breakfast
And she said:
“Do you come from a land down under
Where women glow and men plunder
Can’t you hear, can’t you hear the thunder
You better run, you better take cover.”
Buying bread from a man in Brussels
He was six foot four and full of muscle
I said, “Do you speak-a my language?”
He just smiled and gave me a Vegemite sandwich
And he said:
“I come from a land down under
Where beer does flow and men chunder
Can’t you hear, can’t you hear the thunder
You better run, you better take cover.”
Lying in a den in Bombay
With a slack jaw, and not much to say
I said to the man, “Are you trying to tempt me?
Because I come from the land of plenty.”
And he said:
“Oh! Do you come from a land down under (oh yeah yeah)
Where women glow and men plunder
Can’t you hear, can’t you hear the thunder
You better run, you better take cover.”
Even though this video is about 14 years old and was filmed during the Olympics in 2000 in Australia, note both the familiar icons on stage and the enthusiasm of the crowd. They (the Aussies) loved this song, seem to connect to it and it was treated as an almost unauthorized national anthem. The term Down Under is a colloquialism referring to all things Australian, New Zealand or just one or the other. it is also known as “The Land Down Under” for its position in the southern hemisphere. This is because when one looks at a map in the most common way, Antarctica at the ‘bottom’ of the page, north appears to be “up” and south; “down.”
By the way, it rained this evening then cleared off. I am not a star specialist nor do I know the difference between the big and little dipper, but the sky was full of stars and what ever ‘dipper’ I was looking at, I have never seen it appear so close!
Anyway, despite the term “down under’s” wide usage, it is rarely used by Australians themselves, many of whom regard it with some derision. Nevertheless, Australians are not above using it themselves, as exemplified by Men at Work song “Down Under” which has become a patriotic rallying song. Australia’s most famous boxing champion, Kostya Tszyu, was nicknamed as “The Thunder From Down Under”.
According to Roger Ebert, “No film set in Australia is allowed to use the word Australia in its title where “Down Under” is an acceptable alternative. For example, we don’t get The Rescuers in Australia or Quigley in Australia.”
And now for the childhood favorite the world over, The Kookaburra Song.
The Kookaburra Song
By Marion Sinclair in 1932
Kookaburra sits on the old gum tree,
Merry merry king of the bush is he.
Laugh, Kookaburra, laugh, Kookaburra,
Gay your life must be!
Kookaburra sits on the old gum tree,
Eating all the gum drops he can see.
Stop Kookaburra, stop Kookaburra
Save some there for me!
Kookaburra sits on the old gum tree,
Counting all the monkeys he can see.
Laugh Kookaburra, laugh Kookaburra
That’s not a monkey, that’s me!
Here is another video that I thought you might also enjoy.
In 2006, Susan and I were (together) 🙂 , in Japan.
Not everyday, but quite often I would begin my mornings with a cup of coffee from a McDonald’s in Moriyama, literally right across the street from where we were staying. It was always clean and always inviting. It was a comfortable place to hang out. I would listen to music over their sound system always in Japanese. And always, I was clueless to the meaning of the words being sung. This did not prevent me from enjoying it anyway as music, a universal language, has a way of communicating.
One particular morning when I came in, somewhere around the end of July, a new song was playing. I was instantly drawn to the beautiful sounds and the soothing voice of the singer. Armed with a book of Japanese words with pronunciations and English translations and my limited understanding, I set out to try and find out what I could about the song. Our friend and adopted daughter, Yukari, told me it was from an animated movie called Gedo Senki (Tales from Earthsea). Knowing that I had become fond of Japanese music (traditional and modern), her brother made me a DVD with several videos of Japanese Music, including this particular song. To this day, I cannot find this disk. But one day before we left Japan, I was inside a music store and all I could remember or pronounce was Gedo Senki. A store clerk helped me find the CD with this song as a single. It has taken me nearly eight years, to find out all the information I wanted to know then and the translation of the words in English. I share here with you friend-reader that you may enjoy this haunting and beautiful song as I have.
Gedo Senki (Tales from Earthsea ゲド戦記 is a feature anime film from Studio Ghibli, released in Japan on July 29, 2006. It was the first film directed by Gorō Miyazaki, son of Hayao Miyazaki. The movie is loosely based on a combination of plots and characters from the first, third, and fourth books of the Earthsea series, A Wizard of Earthsea, The Farthest Shore, and Tehanu, by Ursula K. Le Guin.
The singer is Aoi Teshima (手嶌葵 Teshima Aoi, born June 21, 1987 in Hakata, Fukuoka, Japan. Aoi Teshima is a Japanese singer and voice actor. In March 2005, she acted in “Japan-Korea slow music’s world” in South Korea and her performance was favorably received among the audience. Her performance attracted the attention of anime director Gorō Miyazaki. Toshio Suzuki was also very impressed when he listened to her demo version of Bette Midler’s “The Rose.” On June 7, 2006, she finally released a song called “Therru’s song” (テルーの唄 Terū no Uta.
Aoi Teshima is in essence, a shy and humble choir girl whose unobtrusive voice soothes your senses and reminds you of our love for nature, for the purity of life and for love itself. I love this song and more so in Japanese, but I will also share the English words and music to follow.
Teru no Uta (Therru’s song)
Music by Hiroko Taniyama – Lyrics by Miyazaki Goro
words in Japanese, and sung by Aoi Teshima
JAPANESE
Yuuyami semaru kumo no ue
Itsumo ichiwa de tonde iru
Taka wa kitto kanashi karou
Oto mo todaeta kaze no naka
Sora wo tsukanda sono tsubasa
Yasumeru koto wa deki nakute
Kokoro wo nani ni tatoe you
Taka no you na kono kokoro
Kokoro wo nani ni tatoe you
Sora wo mau yo na kanashi sa wo
Ame no sobo furui wakage ni
Itsumo chiisaku saite iru
Hana wa kitto setsuna karou
Iro mo kasunda ame no naka
Usu momo-iro no hanabira wo
Medete kureru te mo nakute
Kokoro wo nani ni tatoe you
Hana no you na kono kokoro
Kokoro wo nani ni tatoe you
Ame ni utareru setsuna sa wo
Hitokage taeta no no michi wo
Watashi totomo ni ayunderu
Anata mo kitto samishi karou
Mushi no sasayaku kusahara wo
Tomo ni michiyuku hito dakedo
Taete mono iu koto mo naku
Kokoro wo nani ni tatoe you
Hitori michiyuku kono kokoro
Kokoro wo nani ni tatoe you
Hitoribocchi no samishi sa wo
sung by, Aoi Teshima
Teru no Uta (Therru’s song)
Music by Hiroko Taniyama – Lyrics by Miyazaki Goro
words in English, arranged and sung by Saskia Kusrahadianti
ENGLISH
Far, far above the clouds
Soaring with the wind
A falcon flies alone
Silent as the sky
I hear his lonely cry
Never can he rest
I walk with you alone
An empty winding road
We’re far from
The ones we love
Never can they turn
Never can we see again
Countries of our birth
When will I ever find
A place to call my home
Sadness circling
Like a falcon in the sky
When will I ever find
A way to speak my heart
To someone who knows
What it is to be alone
Far, far above the clouds
Against the setting sun
A falcon flies alone
Silent as the sky
I hear his lonely cry
Never can he rest
I long to spread my wings
And fly into the light
Open this lonely heart
To one who understands
When will I ever find
A way to speak my heart
When will I ever find
A place to call my home
Sadness and loneliness
A falcon in the sky
When will I ever find
A way to speak my heart
To someone who knows
What it is to be alone
sung and arranged by, Saskia Kusrahadianti
If you are interested in more information about this song, how I came to hear it and a higher quality mp3 audio file in Japanese, please start at the following page and click through:
Note: The mp3 file is located at http://dahni.com/DahniDaily/Japan6.htm and is intended for HIGH SPEED Internet users, otherwise, it may take some time to download and hear it.
Her name is Miyoko Shida [Rigolo]. She is Japanese and presently lives in Paris, France. She is approximately 52 years old. She has taken the last name of her mentor, Rigolo. Her art is called, The Sanddorn Balance.
The Sanddorn balance began over 15 years ago when Swiss theatre producer Mädir Eugster Rigolo developed a balancing act for the stage production SANDDORN. The play is set in knee-deep sand; the only props are the withered ribs of date and coconut palm leaves, which Maedir Eugster collected from the most beautiful beaches in the world. After many years it now enjoys worldwide success on vaudeville, museums, galas, exhibitions, circuses, and Cirque du Soleil among many other venues.
The Sanddorn balance astonishes nearly everyone it touches and has received the highest awards.
In February 2013, Mädir Eugster Rigolo was presented with the Kamiwaza award in Japan. In Japan, Kamiwaza is the title given to a master with superhuman abilities. The award of Kamiwaza meant that the art of Sanddornbalance had truly arrived in the land of Zen: concentration, mindfulness and conscious perception in search of absolute reality convene in the 15-minute-long performance.
This honour solidified the decision Mädir Eugster had made shortly beforehand: For more then 15 years, he was the only person to perform his fragile piece of art. He now teaches his two daughters and consults and trains and inspires many others.
“Now I will pass on this knowledge. I am very happy that I have found people who now share my experiences and will develop them further,” Maedir Eugster explains. “I trust my successors: They will guard this treasure, develop it further and give it a life of its own. The Sanddornbalance bears many secrets, and every single performer can draw one of them out and present it in their own way.”
Mädir Eugster Rigolo
Some sit in disbelief as the art unfolds. Some refuse to suspend that disbelief and mock such with stupid remarks as, I can think of better things to do with my time or with a feather.” Some think it is a mere trick or ‘magic.’ Though it can be explained by the laws of physics, it negates the concentration, the focus, balance, grace, physical strength and the actor’s ability to pull in the audience, absolutely required to MAKE THIS ALL HAPPEN! And if I have left anything else necessary to do this, I sincerely apologise!
What is this thing, this Sanddorn balance, you are about to see for yourselves? For one thing, it is beautiful! It is as much of a dance as any dance. It is being in the NOW. You can see this in the eyes, expressions, and movements of the dance. There are no doubts, no hesitations, no questions. Every moment is purposed and purposeful, and NEW and NOW, though the same dance has been performed countless times. There is a reason and a purpose for every movement, every expression, and every stick. Not only is the dancer drawn into their own dance, the audience is drawn in as well. Her breathing becomes our breathing; her heartbeat, our heartbeat. It is music. It is a story unfolding and we are not only on the same page, we each are its words.Time is suspended! We are not thinking about what’s for dinner or what we will put on tomorrow or do tomorrow. We are in the now!
Watching this will center you; anchor you into the moment of sublime beauty. Briefly, our ego is lost to the wonder of this poetry in motion.
What else can this teach us? Everything and everyone is connected in some way or another. As this drama unfolds, we can see how fragile and yet how vitally important each of these connections really are or we will collapse. This point is illustrated clearly, at its conclusion. But also, not one of us will be quite the same at the end as we were at the beginning. Ahh, yes, every moment of life is unique, to be enjoyed, savored; lived! Thus a great truth is reveled to us or re-revealed within us.
No matter what you may think or believe, life, all of life is, spiritual. Who among us does NOT desire peace and harmony? Zen masters, Buddhist priests, yoga practitioners and many others, spend often, years developing the ‘tuning.’ And yet who among us are also not deeply affected by some measure of peace and harmony, by being drawn into the very ballet of it, by those who have reached some measure of it?
It all starts with a feather and all we have that we bring into the dance, our sticks and the gravity-glue of all our stuff we use to prop ourselves up with. Then we let it all go. It is only the feather that remains! I am certain you will understand this more fully, when you get into the dance!
“All the master dancer Miyoko Shida required from me was the technique for the Sanddorn Balance; the expression and interpretation she brings to it is pure Miyoko Shida. I am proud that Miyoko Shida has also now taken the name Rigolo.”
If you have not already sent in your RSVP, got your passport in order, have your Visa for Australia and you are not packed and ready to go to Japan and Australia, then all I’ve got to say to you is…
Like most everyone, here at The Gathering Place, we love music, many different kinds!
Celebrate!
“Music is the universal language of mankind.”
― Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Musica
What follows are a collection of YouTube videos of some extraordinary musicians. Enjoy! 🙂
Various instruments – by Pedro Eustache.
By the way, it is Pedro playing the duduk on Paul McCartney’s song ‘Jenny Wren’ in 2005. This was heard on this blog recently. You can hear it at:‘Little Jenny Wren’[scroll to the bottom of the post]
Samvel Yervinyan -Violin
Victor Espinola, harp
You must hear the Victor’s last song!!!
Bogdan Alin Ota, composer and pianist
(was a copy machine deliverer by day and dreamed of composing and performing the rest of the time)
Need or want ‘music?’ Shop and get cash back for shopping for what you were going to purchase anyway AND, recommend others AND not only will they get the same deal as you, you will get paid for their purchases as well! Get what you want and need, save money, make money, help others AND PASS it ON! It’s the NEW trend, the NEW ‘WHAT’s HAPPENING NOW!! It’s truly a ‘No-Brainer!’
Today, there are many social media sites and applications for our smart phones, maybe hundreds? But some of the most popular sites (with corresponding apps for our smart phones) are: Twitter, FaceBook, Google+, Pinterest, Quora (for Questions and answers), YouTube, LinkedIn and Tumbler (at least this one is popular with many young people).
We use these sites and applications primarily because, we want to connect to family, friends, associates and others we would like to be connected with. How many of us use just one of these? How many of these do we use, two or more? Well, even just one requires some investment of our time. Add other sites and apps and we add or multiply our investment of time. Would it be beneficial to us if we could SAVE TIME?
Taking a clue from Twitter, the following is an introduction to Social Media Basics, on navigating through all this ‘stuff’ as expediently, effortlessly and efficiently as possible. Twitter was based on the exchange of quick communication by allowing, only 140 characters per ‘Tweet.’ If we did the same thing with all the rest, we could certainly SAVE TIME!
Oh, before this begins, I should point out a few things about Tumbler. Young people like Tumbler for two primary reasons. For one, they believe it is about as secure as anything can be online. Tumbler allows its users to be basically, anonymous. Be honest, had you ever heard of Tumbler or knew anything about it until now? Pretty effective at being unknown yes? That’s why young people like it. In fact, it is the most popular platform for those under the age of 25. And there are several well-knowns that use it like, Lady Gaga. It was the first platform to publish the blog of President Obama.
Tumbler supports animated .gifs. when other sites like FaceBook do not. Also, gifs are far easier to view on mobile devices than video. Ten seconds of reaction shot — or a PEE act — make a big difference in expressive power! Sounds pornographic no? Yes, Tumbler has it and they will not release exactly how much. Tumbler is kind of anti-blog. Users are not looking to spend a lot of time developing content or looking for an audience. Whereas our use of other social media platforms are to find each other, Tumbler users don’t want to be known so much or found. They just want to connect with their real friends and their real friends know who they are.
On FaceBook, we may find that our parents, other family, friends and associates are all connected. Maybe we have a son named Jack and a Daughter named Jill? Just as long as they check in once in awhile, everything seems OK. Jill, for example, might post a picture of herself studying with the text that simply reads: ‘Studying.” While everyone else is chatting among themselves as if Jill is still participating (listening), Jill could open another tab on her browser and log onto Tumbler as: Alice or say, ‘Love Princess.’ On Tumbler, son Jack might be known only to his friends as Fred or maybe as, ‘Stud of Studs.’ Anonymity, OMG YES (except to their real friends)! That’s how they like it!
So, if you are a parent or a caregiver, know where you kids are, where they connect, with whom they connect and what they are sharing! And also know that they understand how to be in two places at the same time! If they are logged onto Facebook, you’ll know. You can mention their name or send them a message and they will most likely respond. But what you cannot know, see and hear is, what you can’t know, see and hear!
For more information, you can always check the several search engines or just Google: PEE.
If you are well informed and you would like to help others, you can publish content to the popular online reference such as: Wiki-PEE-dia. 🙂
If you are interested in sharing your original content with the world or your world (whatever size of an audience it might be), you might try blogging, a.k.a., weblogs or just call them, online journals. A working title might be:
My Journey of a 10 Million Pees, Begins with a Single Drop
by I.P. Freely
or
Outback Footprints to the Outhouse
by Willy Makeit
with illustrations by Betty Dont
If you desire even more, nearly-instant-connections, there is always ‘the video chat’ online or by way of smart phones. There are such apps as: Line, Google Chat, Skype, FaceTime and others. These will allow one or more to share a visual pee with others, in digital-time.
Then again, there is this last possibility. Do you know what? I have never, ever found a bathroom that did not have a door! 🙂
Please do not misunderstand me. I like social media. I use social media. I’m all about freedom of expression and freedom of speech. We all should pee freely! 🙂
But those doors on the bathrooms are there for two reasons:
1. Some things are meant to be private and should remain private. I don’t want to watch you pee and I don’t want you watching me either!
2. Bathroom doors lead to something personal and satisfying. No technology or no amount of ‘on-line,’ can match the personal satisfaction of real-time! Ahhhhhhhh! 🙂
Google +, YouTube, FaceBook, Twitter, Pinterest, Tumbler, all my other social media peeps and my blogs,
Ordinarily, you are my first go-to to check with, for everything relevant and important to my life. Yes, you are often first on my list when I wake (even while waiting for my first cup of coffee). And you are many times the last on my mind when I go to bed. But I have decided to do something NEW, IMPROVED and DIFFERENT!
Instead of finding out from you first or telling you first, I’m going to concentrate on the old-school methods of communication. I’m going to pick up the phone and call my family and friends that live too far to visit. Instead of calling people too close to call, I’ll actually go see them. And instead of sending an email, text message or some social media message to my wife Susan that is in the room right next door to me, I’m going to actually walk over there and tell her I love her first, before everyone else finds out about it. We can like social media, our gadgets and technology, but they are all really just things. Things are made to be used, but people are made to be loved.
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