The Spoken Word in Bush Poetry

Discussion of any bush poetry topic.
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Gary Harding
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Re: The Spoken Word in Bush Poetry

Post by Gary Harding » Sat Jul 17, 2021 5:36 am

Waltzing Matilda

The Banjo Paterson Cultural Centre, re-titled now as The Australian Cultural Centre, has a comprehensive section devoted to Waltzing Matilda (A. B. Paterson) covering pretty much all aspects. Lots of little known stories and anecdotes are developed as displays.

Here is one of them :

On 28th January 1968 as a tribute to Australia Day, a three minute film lauding Australia was televised introduced by Brian Henderson. (Bandstand, Newsreader etc)

The short film's music was Waltzing Maltilda (original version by Marie Cowan) and incorporated the words of God Bless Australia.
It was produced and presented by Ampol and it also served as a tribute to Jack O'Hagan who wrote the patriotic words (1967).

Pictured here from the Collection is :

1. The scarce vintage sheet music of God Bless Australia. A true Australian National Anthem.

Here in this god-given land of ours Australia
This proud possession, our own piece of earth,
That was built by our fathers, who pioneered our heritage
Here in Australia, the land of our birth.


2. The flexi-record version of God Bless Australia produced by Ampol

3. A grab from the very moving video, that can be seen here on Youtube :

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=htLn41erNSg

Actually I had missed seeing it and it was Ampol themselves who kindly directed me to it.

Karen remarked "I found that it emphasised the difference in Australians of its day to the Australians of this day. The patriotism really came through and this is what seems to be sadly missing in today’s society. The Aussies represented in the film were “real fair dinkum” types. "

Together this record, sheet music and video form a delightful and sentimental Waltzing Matilda item in our Waltzing Matilda section. I believe God Bless Australia was submitted as a National Anthem.... and there is a story about that but we are not history lecturers and I do not want posts to degenerate into a cavalcade of boring facts.

Anyway.... Good for Ampol!

Waltzing Matilda by itself is a Popular Song and sensibly never an "Unofficial National Anthem"... obviously. However, use the well-known tune and add some words that celebrate Australia (rather than a rogue swagman) and bingo!... A true and popular National Anthem.

The good old Aussie compromise at its best perhaps??

Banjo Paterson might have appreciated the twist?
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Re: The Spoken Word in Bush Poetry

Post by Gary Harding » Sun Jul 25, 2021 6:55 am

As an aside.....

CRICKET forms an important part of Australian Sporting Culture. It is one of several sports that we choose to feature at what will eventually be The Australian Cultural Centre (formerly The Banjo Paterson Cultural Centre).
One of the items in our Don Bradman Exhibition is a selection of some 25 beautiful books about "The Don" purchased from a cricket collector.
Seen all together on our specially designed revolving display stand, they carry the message of his popularity and enormous sporting contribution. It makes you proud to be an Australian!

Also on display will be our autograph book from the late 1930's with the autographs of two past Australian Cricket Team members, including Sir Donald Bradman himself. Very impressive! There is a major story associated with this and it will be presented later.

There is even a vintage Marlebone Cricket Club (England) published book entitled The Laws of Cricket. (Laws, not rules!).

We try and sample cricket/sport from a cultural aspect and, where possible, try and bring it to life for Visitors... which is different to being a cricket museum etc (there is a Don Bradman Museum already in Bowral). Memorabilia is good for sure but it is the human side and the fact that Australia is one of only a few countries that play cricket that is our focus. It is all part of Australia and presenting it to Visitors is a privilege.
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Re: The Spoken Word in Bush Poetry

Post by Gary Harding » Fri Jul 30, 2021 2:51 pm

The latest edition of Beacon Magazine has our timely article about Fred Lane, Australia's first swimming Olympic gold medallist. (1900 Paris)

https://thebeacon.com.au/magazine-publications/
Edition 21, page 34-35

I hope it is interesting to read. These magazine articles take some time to produce.

Fred Lane was also a Master Printer and friend of Norman Lindsay, excellent yachtsman, boxer, philatelist and founder of the Mona Vale Golf Club plus a founder of the Mona Vale Surf Life Saving Club.
On his passing in 1969 he was apparently residing at Darley Street in Mona Vale (NSW), his previous house having sadly burnt down.

I recall Mona Vale where on a family holiday my father taught me to shell prawns and I swam in the beach rock-pool which I presume is still there? Mona Vale is doubtless proud of all of its talented residents, especially Fred.

Forbes Carlile MBE wrote Fred's excellent eulogy and I am pleased to have what I believe is the original and the only copy of it in existence.

Another famous eulogy comes to mind...

"Here lies Fred, who was alive and is dead:
Had it been his father, I had much rather;
Had it been his brother, Still better than another;
Had it been his sister, No-one would have missed her;
Had it been the whole generation, So much better for the nation.
But since 'tis only Fred, Who was alive and is dead,
There is no more to be said."

Fred Lane, although probably capable of writing was never a bush poet as far as I can tell.
However, as a quality printer of that time who mixed in artistic circles in Sydney, doubtless he would have had connections to A. B. Paterson and Henry Lawson. A true Australian.

Pictures:

1. and 2. Article, and Fred photographed timing himself!? A superb high-res original photo from his estate that I have had projected life-size on a wall with no loss of detail. No idea how they managed to do that, with Photoshop not around then as far as I know.

3. This photo is of a sterling silver stopwatch, hallmarked 1888 as I recall, collected years ago. It would be something like the one being used in the photo around 1900.

Fred C. V. Lane. (1880 - 1969)
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Re: The Spoken Word in Bush Poetry

Post by Gary Harding » Mon Aug 02, 2021 8:04 am

The Man From Kangaroo and Other Verses (see pic attached)

"Now, Kangaroo's a hamlet
You'll find upon the map;
Way towards the Mulga, where
The mountains overlap.
A cove went up from Sydney,
To teach them how to vote.
A squibby sort of fellow
With a red bow on his coat.
"We are the mob to help you,
If you can understand.
We're the dinkum comrades of
The men upon the land."

This 1927 scarce pamphlet (in excellent condition) is by Mr. William Freame (1867 - 1933) who was a published historian of the Parramatta and Liverpool districts in particular. His "An Amateur Tramp .. Rambles with Pen and Camera" contains lots of interesting anecdotes. In it he refers to his "anecdotage"; a humorous reference to his advanced years I think?

An internet search failed to turn up any "hamlet" or small settlement called Kangaroo, but then I probably missed it. :)
Anyway, William is one of those minor Bush Poets that we will enjoy deservedly having on display. Great fun!

What I like is that those old poets took the trouble to present (and preserve) their poetry like this. The same with ABPA members now who produce modest booklets of their writing. Don't worry about whether you think it is not good enough verse; let others and posterity judge that. Just do it!!

I will post more on this subject of publishing your own work in various forms soon... and hope to get some constructive thoughts on the subject from Members' own experience.

Some vintage poets (like Bannerman) who wrote extremely well, contributed only to local papers and thus their work tends to get lost to the public today.

However, as a result of Mr. Freame's diligence, the famous Man From Kangaroo is still around nearly 100 years later for us to appreciate. :)

I hope these posts are interesting. Gary
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Re: The Spoken Word in Bush Poetry

Post by Gary Harding » Wed Aug 04, 2021 7:51 am

For quick interest, I would like to highlight for fellow ABPA Members the enormous strength of the market today for unique material relating to Banjo Paterson.

The following book in particular (see pics) is just one example :

The Man From Snowy River and Other Verses by A B (Banjo) Paterson. Sydney Angus & Robertson

1. It's the same size as the earlier WW1 trench editions of similar books by Dennis and Paterson.
2. Being a later 1921 edition, it is not a first edition by more than 20 years. Title page has some mild foxing.
3. This copy has two dustjackets and that fact makes it very uncommon. One is a printed inner wrapper and the outer one is illustrated.
4. The 100 year old book has a colour frontispiece and vignette by Norman Lindsay.
5. The illustration on the front of the jacket is unsigned but from what I can gather from another book that I have referencing this particular artwork, it is definitely by Norman Lindsay.

The selling price was (all up) $780. (Wow!) That's the market!

To me with my garage sale mentality, that is a LOT of money for what it is! It is not something I would ever buy because the public are generally not into such things. (I have what I DO think they would be interested in and will post that shortly).

**** Karen Christensen, my neighbour and hard-working curator, who does all the heavy lifting by making displays, co-writing articles, and correcting my correspondence has suffered a mini stroke. Temporary partial loss of vision in one eye put her in hospital overnight for a string of tests. Very tough. Comes as a shock but will need a re-think all round now. The implications of this little setback are yet to be sorted.. but a slowdown is likely in order.

I try and share the ups and downs of this important Australian Cultural Project with ABPA Members... mostly upbeat posts!... but things like this can come from left-field and deal a nasty blow as well.

It also emphasises the need to find a Partner of Means to seriously carry some of the load by employing people to assist us. One might think that the very wealthiest people in Australia would see the vital National importance of The Australian Cultural Centre, not only to the Australians of today but future generations as well. To date my (naive) presumption that personal financial wealth (typically of tens of thousands of millions of dollars) must go hand-in-hand with a genuine love of Australia seems WRONG.

That has caused me to also start looking overseas for a Partner in countries where I have worked and know that nationalism really is important to them. A disgrace for Australia but that's how it is ...

Patriotism .. the REAL thing, not empty words.... is proving harder to find than expected. :)

What could be more important than one's own culture and presenting it? Not chasing that of other countries, that's for sure!!!

If you do not love your country .. well, what do you love??

Still plenty of doors to knock on yet though... :) :)
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Re: The Spoken Word in Bush Poetry

Post by Maureen K Clifford » Fri Aug 06, 2021 12:23 pm

Sorry to hear of Karen's illness Gary - I know she has been a wonderful help with your project. All best wishes to her for a good recovery.

Sharing some snippets from here over to the ARP page as well
Check out The Scribbly Bark Poets blog site here -
http://scribblybarkpoetry.blogspot.com.au/


I may not always succeed in making a difference, but I will go to my grave knowing I at least tried.

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Re: The Spoken Word in Bush Poetry

Post by Gary Harding » Fri Aug 06, 2021 4:11 pm

Thanks Maureen for genuinely caring! :)

When life taps you on the shoulder like that, it's a warning to ease work-pressure. As we know, less fortunate folk don't get a warning and pass into obscurity too early.

Today, I understand Karen's tests indicate nothing serious detected thankfully. Family and everyone relieved! Low dose aspirin now to thin blood and minimize clotting risk, plus close monitoring, plus etc.

Making sure that Australia's National Identity and consequently National Pride, is saved and presented to current and future generations is the most important thing that anybody can possibly do. It is what all those past men and women fought so bravely for isn't it?

THEIR fight is OUR fight... and it is a BIG fight.

More important even than... making money; or in the case of useless governments.. cynically chasing votes. :)

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Re: The Spoken Word in Bush Poetry

Post by Gary Harding » Tue Aug 10, 2021 6:24 am

The Man from Snowy River is of course Banjo Paterson's most well known poem.

Here is an item from the display devoted entirely to this popular subject. (see pic)

It is a heavy, lockable, wooden Campaign Chest with key from the late 1800's time period. This chest is an actual prop that was used on the set of the film "The Man From Snowy River" (released March 1982). Such items are notoriously expensive (as this was for me) and much sought after by specialist Collectors of movie memorabilia. I was lucky to come across it, and now consider myself privileged to have it for public display.
Being a genuine antique, it simply oozes character and could tell lots of stories. The myriad of scratches and general marks of wear and handling give it a bold presence that only time can produce.

This one holds a special place for me because it is a bridge to that time period in Australia when The Man performed his brave ride, rounding up the wild horses.

Kirk Douglas (Harrison and Spur in the film) may even have used this chest?
Maybe even Banjo Paterson himself during The Boer War??

Campaign Furniture like this chest is ruggedly built and often specifically made to break down or fold in order to be packed up easily and carried on the march. According to Wikipedia, campaign chests' primary wood was often mahogany, teak, or camphor. I think this one is camphor.
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Re: The Spoken Word in Bush Poetry

Post by Shelley Hansen » Tue Aug 10, 2021 3:34 pm

Hi Gary

Been away with the caravan, enjoying the delights of western Queensland (Matilda country), so am just catching up on your posts. Looks like things are moving on well. Sorry to hear about Karen's illness - all best wishes for her full recovery. Can't afford to lose willing helpers!!

Cheers
Shelley
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http://www.shelleyhansen.com

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fer 'atin' never paid no dividends."
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Re: The Spoken Word in Bush Poetry

Post by Gary Harding » Sun Aug 15, 2021 7:11 am

Jack Sorensen Bush Poet

An acquaintance of mine who many years ago played in The Mucky Duck Bush Band recently alerted me to a W.A. bush poet, Jack Sorensen (1907 - 1949).
I recalled having come across Jack before and thus I was vaguely aware of him and his writing.

His positive comments made me curious and I determined to have a closer look. I elected to obtain an inexpensive copy of the later 1950 edition, Jack Sorensen, The Collected Poems (1907 - 1949) with its nice foreword by Mary Durack (Kings In Grass Castles) who was his friend.

Mary said after his death :

"He was an unusual personality with a keen practical perception of contemporary life, yet in some sense oddly out of step with it.
Jack went on his way undaunted, composing and simultaneously reciting his sometimes sentimental, sometimes humorous verse.
In these collected poems, the Australian reader will, I believe, recognise those qualities he demands of a writer of ballad verse today. Although, owing to the spontaneous nature of their composition, some poems are less finished than others, all bear the hallmark of genuine feeling and experience, representing as they do, some phase of the poet's life, some facet of his emotional personality."

1. That "emotional personality" is perhaps an indirect reference to Jack dying by his own hand on board a ship! He apparently was a bit subject to that old enemy depression and on this final occasion it got the better of him. I note that there are a few accomplished Bush Poets in history who gave themselves the chop! Life is too good...the sunset is still beautiful. No Australian Bush Poet should be a Jack Sorensen, Adam Lindsay Gordon, or Barcroft Boake... even if one runs out of subjects to write poems about or people don't like your poems!

2. Mary Durak's tactful description of his verse being "spontaneous" and "less finished" is kind. A harsher critic might have said "a bit rough in (most) places" (i.e. needs much polishing). Jack was a champion boxer and he was commonly known to quickly fell any smarty in a pub who made a derogatory remark about his reciting.

The Lost Shanty (an extract) by Jack Sorensen

They closed the little shanty by the crossing years ago,
For the motor trucks are speedy and the camel teams are slow.
- The bar-room door stands open as it was in days gone by,
Though the roof that rang when bushmen sang, no more shuts out the sky.

They've closed the crossing shanty and the shanty-keeper's dead
While the ruin stands forsaken by the river's sandy bed.
The modern shearers pass it in their modern motors fast,
And they chip at it with tawdry wit - that "relic of the past".

'Tis said that in the moonlight when the shapeless shadows creep
That the shanty-keeper wakens from his never-ending sleep
And gliding to the bar-room door with his complaisant grin
He takes his stand to wave a hand and beckon bushmen in.

- And sometimes in the twilight, weary stockmen pass that way.
Rugged veterans of the inland; living in their yesterday.
The shanty brings them memories of good old times long gone
So they pause a while to sigh and smile, and smiling - journey on."

Jack was both contemptuous and mocking of Modern Free Verse

"The "gifted" poets of my time
Have cast aside the staff of rhyme
And in a mood of youthful pride
Have laid the laws of song aside!" etc

Karen Christensen said to me, "Yesterday I took Jack's book, along with a glass of wine, and sat out in the garden. I started to read a poem. It did not impress me so I kept turning the pages hoping for a better one and never found it. A ballad needs to move me, I need to get something out of it. You are more into the technical side.. for you it has to have correct meter and rhymes. It just wasn't very good."

Fair enough.

The above best lines are perhaps an epitaph. Jack tried. His heart was in it, even if the result was.. "less finished"?
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