Singabout - Journal of Australian Folksong, Volume 4(4), July 1962

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ABC TV 1966 - Simmy (Simon McDonald) and the Lumsden Family  Simon McDonald (Simmy) was a traditional singer and storyteller from near Creswick, Victoria, and this short footage is from a 1966 ABC TV program which documented folk singers of the time. The second half of the program features David Lumsden, his parents and grandmother. (posted Feb 2023 by Neil Adams who received the video from David Lumsden)

1.  Singabout, Volume 4(4), July 1962 - cover - Keith Antill

2.  Singabout, Volume 4(4), July 1962 - NEWS AND VIEWS - Editorial. John Meredith, the Editor of SINGABOUT since it's inception in 1957 (sic - should be 1956) has resigned after a sudden illness ... Sad news since our last issue was the death of Stan Wakefield ... CALLING ALL FOLKNIKS The Workers Educational Association has arranged a weekend school on Australian Folk Song ...  CONTENTS 

3.  Singabout, Volume 4(4), July 1962 - THE ALBURY RAM . Another version of the fabled ram. Collected by Arthur Lumsden and Norm O'Connor for the Folk Lore Society of Victoria, from Tom Newbound of Rutherglen, who died in 1960 aged 79.

4.  Singabout, Volume 4(4), July 1962 - From letters to the Editor (see also page 20) Dame Mary Gilmore says - SINGABOUT no.3. bought back a long-lost memory: - Frank Adams the one armed fiddler ... about 1870-72. I remember the fiddle tuned the wrong way ... You are doing the best kind of historical work with your Society and SINGABOUT - the people's history. 
From Mark Lewis, Cheltenham, Vic, who enclosed an article describing the "bottle-horn" which consists of a whiskey or similar shaped and sized bottle with the bottom knocked out ... Mr Lewis also says  - the more elaborate relation of the lagerphone - the bumbass - is still in use in Germany ... SOME PERFORMERS FROM VICTORIA. David Lumsden & Tom McNoy

5.  Singabout, Volume 4(4), July 1962 - OUR FATHERS CLEARED THE BUSH sent by Joy Durst, of the Victorian Bush Music Club ... written by Mick Hughes

6.  Singabout, Volume 4(4), July 1962 - THE KNICKERBOCKER LINE we reprint this song from English Dance and Song, the magazine of the English Folk Dance and Songs Society ...  Peter Kennedy first heard this version from Stanley Slade the Bristol Shantyman ... A similar version was also collected by Cecil Sharp at Shipton in 1911. Sally Sloane also sings this version.
OME TO A WORKSHOP NIGHT IN SYDNEY. Every Tuesday

7.  Singabout, Volume 4(4), July 1962 - THE GREAT NORTHERN LINE in contrast to THE KNICKERBOCKER LINE on the page opposite, we print a song sung by Duke Tritton to a variant of this tune. 

8.  Singabout, Volume 4(4), July 1962 - RECORD REVIEW. ALP RECORD - Australia's short history has produced many songs of protest and complaint, union songs and rebel songs, and it's good to see that this tradition is being kept alive and extended to the field of politics.  TOM MOREY CAMPAIGN SONGS ...  the group that made this record (they are not named on the label) achieves good accompaniment, clear diction, and blending of voices in all the songs. After the re-distribution of boundaries ... Tom Morley did win the election, this record could be considered to have had a big influence  (Alan Scott)

http://www.warrenfahey.com.au/early-sydney-part1/  Daw, Hood & Henderson ... The trio  ... released two EPs ... one for the ALP in support of left-wing Sydney politician Tom Morey ...  

Ad for WEA & University of Sydney courses.

9.  Singabout, Volume 4(4), July 1962 - RECORD REVIEW You Can't Win Ballads by Peter Cape with Don Toms (Kiwi) ... I regard Peter Cape as a talented song writer and singer, possessing terrific ability in the telling of a yarn worth hearing ... Alan Scott. Ad for Melodia and HOHNER bush accordion

10.  Singabout, Volume 4(4), July 1962 - Obit - Stan Wakefield ... (2 pages)

11.  Singabout, Volume 4(4), July 1962 - Stan Wakefield, Battler and Song Maker  (Len Fox) 

12.  Singabout, Volume 4(4), July 1962 - IRELAND OVER HERE. Stan Wakefield collected this from an Irishman at Whyalla "who brought it out from Ireland with him". He sent it to us shortly before his death ...

13.  Singabout, Volume 4(4), July 1962 - THE CANECUTTER'S LAMENT. Sent in by Jimmy Laycock of Ravenshoe, North Queensland, who says "When I try to think back, some of the words eluded me, but this is a pretty close approximation" It is sung to the tune of "My bonnie lies over the ocean".

14.  Singabout, Volume 4(4), July 1962 - COLLECTOR'S NOTEBOOK. Noreen Grunseit writes - Seeing WHEN JONES' ALE WAS NEW in SINGABOUT reminded me of another version of the song in England ... 5 jovial fellows  ... the tune does seem somewhat different ...

15.  Singabout, Volume 4(4), July 1962 - COLLECTOR's NOTEBOOK - When Jones' Ale Was New (cont) 
Dr Russel Ward of Armidale writes: A couple of months ago I was lucky enough to meet Mr Bill Mann of Yarrowich who remembers the tunes and a few words of two ballads about the New England bushranger THUNDERBOLT (Frederick Ward) ... One night in Uralla scrub I lay, Strange fancies came o'er me and I thought it was day  (later known as Thunderbolt's Dream)  ... and My name is Frederick Ward, I'm a native of of this isle, I rob the rich to feed the poor, and to make the children smile ... Mr Mann has remembered also fragments of another song .... Oh, my name is Alma Chandler, I'd have you all to know/ To make a bit of money, boys, a-shooting I did go ... (2 verses) 

The complete words of THUNDERBOLT'S DREAM were later collected by Barry McDonald & recorded on a CD issued by UNESCO, 1998. Australia : music from the New England tablelands of New South Wales, 1850-1900
Recordings collected by Barry McDonald. Collection conceived and created by Barry McDonald, Mark Rummery and Cathy Ovenden.
track note for Thunderbolt's Dream - Mark [Rummery], button accordion - Barry, voice
Bill Mann of Walcha sang this, the only complete song about the Tablelands bushranger yet recovered in the field, although fragments of other songs do survive. All are cast in the first person, lending weight to the tradition that Thunderbolt, a skilled dancer and musician, himself composed them for circulation amongst his friends. Thunderbolt was the subject of a very strong noble-robber cult from the early 1860s. He was renowned for his non-violent resistance to authority, his horsemanship, his chivalrous attitude to women, and for evading capture for seven years - longer than any other bushranger.

16.  Singabout, Volume 4(4), July 1962 - Dr Russel Ward (cont.)  Vera Duncan of Dee Why sent us a poem called "Let's be Australians" I first heard these verses from a BHP company watchman I'd known  since I was a school-kid living on Moscheto Island in the Hunter  River ...

17.  Singabout, Volume 4(4), July 1962 - Impressions from Queensland's BALLAD NIGHT 1962. It was too big a field this year for any detailed review. Three teams scratched and eighteen performed, three Junior, five Intermediate and ten Senior. Both evenings were on the long side. groups - Greenhide-&_Stringybark, Pineapple Polls, Narangi, Men Friday, Karoos, Krontjongs, University, Morton Bay Bushwhackers, Bandicoots - A & B, Hall's Gang, Realist Writers.  It was clear the veteran teams were doing a fair bit of collecting in the field as well as arranging and even composing ... Taken all round, the standards were fairly high ... John Manifold. Ad for NORTH AUSTRALIAN MONTHLY.

18.  Singabout, Volume 4(4), July 1962 - THE IRISHMAN'S GOLD MINE Recorded by John Meredith from the singing of Duke Tritton

19.  Singabout, Volume 4(4), July 1962 - THE IRISHMAN'S GOLD MINE (Cont)

20.  Singabout, Volume 4(4), July 1962 - x From LETTERS TO THE EDITOR (see also page 4) From Pete Seeger , New York - Mr O'Connor of the Folk Lore Society of Victoria protests about your printing THE PUB WITH NO DIKE  ... it seems to me to me that it is not only your right but your duty to print from time to time songs that may be be offensive or controversial. The revival of interest in folklore has suffered for many years by being bowderlized and emasculated ... It should be perfectly possible to present many songs in your magazine which might be inappropriate to sing upon this or that occasion. After all, even a hymn is a very controversial song. Just try singing one in the wrong church ...
SINGABOUT. Edited and produced by Gay Scott, Alan Scott and Brian Loughlin.  Artist, Rod Shaw. Cover, Keith Antill.

Singabout - Journal of Australian Folksong, Volume 4(2), May 1961

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ABC TV 1966 - Simmy (Simon McDonald) and the Lumsden Family  Simon McDonald (Simmy) was a traditional singer and storyteller from near Creswick, Victoria, and this short footage is from a 1966 ABC TV program which documented folk singers of the time. The second half of the program features David Lumsden, his parents and grandmother. (posted Feb 2023 by Neil Adams who received the video from David Lumsden)


1.   Singabout, Volume 4(2), May 1961 -  artist not named

2.  Singabout, Volume 4(2), May 1961 -  NEWS AND VIEWS. Editorial - The Victorian Bush Music Club and the Folk Lore Society of Victoria have always been co-operative in contributing material to SINGABOUT. In this issue we make a special feature of some of their work ... Simon McDonald ... field work being done by F.L.S.V ... Gippsland, Shepparton, Omeo and Dargo ... 
GUMSUCKERS' GAZETTE - It's nice to se the two Victorian organisations working together so well (something we couldn't manage in to do in Sydney).Their latest combined effort in an 8 page monthly journal ... available from Victorian Bush Music Club. The Bush Music Club in Sydney now issues a  newsletter also.   (contd. page 20)  INDEX

3.  Singabout, Volume 4(2), May 1961 -  THE LOST SAILOR, sung by Simon McDonald of Creswick, Vic. and collected in 1957 by N. O'Connor & H. Pearce of the Folk Lore Society of Victoria. 

4.  Singabout, Volume 4(2), May 1961 -  The Songs of Simon McDonald of Creswick. Simon McDonald is a woodcutter and gold prospector. His family were among the earliest settlers in the district, his great-grandfather J. Gannon coming out from Ireland about 1850 ...  Some six or seven of his songs will be included in a disc being brought out by Wattle Records, in conjunction with the Folk Lore Society of Victoria, of traditional singers from Victoria.

5.   Singabout, Volume 4(2), May 1961 -  Simon McDonald  (cont) Ad for NORTH AUSTRALIAN MONTHLY. Ad for Melodia and HOHNER Bush Accordions.  TUESDAY NIGHT IS WORKSHOP NIGHT at the BUSH MUSIC CLUB. 
 
6.  Singabout, Volume 4(2), May 1961 -  THE OLD MAN KANGAROO, sung by Simon McDonald of Creswick, Vic. and collected by N. O'Connor & H. Pearce of the Folk Lore Society of Victoria in 1957. 

7.  Singabout, Volume 4(2), May 1961 -  THE ROUSEABOUT. Sent to us by the Folk Lore Society of Victoria, with this note  "From Mrs Alma Burge, 100 Jubilee St, Dubbo, NSW. An old shearer passed it on to her husband some years ago. By courtesy of Bill Wannan who printed two verses in Australasian Post."  ON A LONELY WESTERN STATION. Irene Cameron of West Wallsend is looking for the rest of this ballad. Can any reader help? 

8.   Singabout, Volume 4(2), May 1961 -  NEW DISCS - Queensland Centenary Record (Wattle C9) ...13 items all collected in Queensland, and played and sung by the BANDICOOTS CONCERT PARTY and the MORTON BAY BUSHWHACKERS ... (A.S.)  Songs of Early Victoria.  This is a 7" 45-rpm from OPAL in Melbourne and features the BILLABONG BAND  in what will probably be regarded in the future as a landmark in the performance of Australian folk songs ... (A.S.)  Canada's Story in Song by Edith Fowke and Alan Mills ... Published by W.J. Gage Ltd, Toronto. (book) Let me say at the onset this is a beauty. 

9.   Singabout, Volume 4(2), May 1961 -  NEW BOOKS -  Canada's Story in Song cont (A.S.) The Colonial Minstrel by Hugh Anderson (Cheshire, Melbourne, 30/-) ... biography of Charles Thatcher ... The Thatcher songs, many of which are quoted in full ... (J.M.)
 
10.   Singabout, Volume 4(2), May 1961 - WHEN JONES'S ALE WAS NEW As sung by Simon McDonald of Creswick, Vic. and collected by N. O'Connor & H. Pearce of the Folk Lore Society of Victoria in 1960. 

11.    Singabout, Volume 4(2), May 1961 - WHEN JONES'S ALE WAS NEW (cont) 

12.    Singabout, Volume 4(2), May 1961 - THE GOLDEN VANITY Sung by Simon McDonald of Creswick, Vic. 1957-1960. Collected by N. O'Connor & H. Pearce of the Folk Lore Society of Victoria.

13.  Singabout, Volume 4(2), May 1961 -  THE GOLDEN VANITY (cont)

14.   Singabout, Volume 4(2), May 1961 -  COLLECTOR'S NOTEBOOK The Hat Ned Kelly Wore. Alan Scott collected this interesting fragment ... from the singing of Mr A. Argus of Gumly Gumly, NSW.  The Pub with no Dike. We print this song by public demand! To our knowledge it was first published in the N.A.P.S.A. Song Book which was compiled by Peter Hickey and Kevin Power. 

15.  Singabout, Volume 4(2), May 1961 -  The Pub with no Dike. (cont)  The Big Fish in Brisbane Waters. "Ironbark" of Ettalong, who gave us this ballad of his own writing, said that if he'd  caught the famous bream of Anson's Bay he'd have thrown it back as undersized! This will fit to quite a few bush ballad tunes if you want to sing it. You try!

16.  Singabout, Volume 4(2), May 1961 -  RECITER'S CORNER. The Bristol Rat. Matt O'Connor, from out at Border Fence, has sent us some good ones from time to time, but we think this is about his best so far.

17.  Singabout, Volume 4(2), May 1961 - The Bristol Rat. (cont) 

18.  Singabout, Volume 4(2), May 1961 -  What Bill Lewis Told his Grandson  from John Manifold  in his forthcoming book, Nightmares and Sunhorses (Overland, 15/-)

19.  Singabout, Volume 4(2), May 1961 -  The Maid and the Magpie as sung by the late "Hoopiron" Jack Lee of Auburn, NSW.

20.  Singabout, Volume 4(2), May 1961 -  NEWS AND VIEWS (cont from page 2) University Song Books. These items are always keenly sought after by singers ... University of New South Wales Song Book & National Association of Pharmaceutical Students of Australia Song Book is wisely known as NAPSA, compiled by Peter Hickey and Kevin Power. VIVE LA CANADIENNE (TOPIC record) by Perry Friedman, available from Wattle Records. SINGABOUT Edited and produced by John Meredith, Alan Scott and Brian  Loughlin.  

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Singabout - Journal of Australian Folksong, Volume 4(3), September 1961

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1.   Singabout, Volume 4(3), September 1961 -  artist not known

2.   Singabout, Volume 4(3), September 1961 -  NEWS AND VIEWS - Editorial ... the 7th anniversary of the Bush Music Club which will be celebrated with a special Singabout night on Sat Saturday 18th September ... 15 issues of SINGABOUT magazine, and the printer has been paid promptly for each issue ... special publications have been well received, Songs from the Kelly Country, Songs from Lawson, and Authentic Australian Bush Ballads ... (cont. page17) CONTENTS 

3.   Singabout, Volume 4(3), September 1961 -  The Fair Young Jockey ... sung for John Meredith by Mrs Skuthorpe 

4.   Singabout, Volume 4(3), September 1961 -  BALLAD NIGHT UP NORTH  - Smaller field, larger house ... lasted for two whole nights ...teams - Armidale First Airborne, Karroos (junior offshoots of the Krontjongs), Narangi, Winbirra, Greenhide-and-Stringybark, A.D.D. (dance group), Jackaroos, Uni B, Realist Writers B, Brisbane People's Chorus, Bandicoots B, Southern Cross Wind Trio, University A, 

5.   Singabout, Volume 4(3), September 1961 -  BALLAD NIGHT UP NORTH  (cont) Realist Writers A,  Bandicoots A ... Lacking the Morton Bay Bushwhackers, the Con Students, the Whiteoaks, and the F.A.W., besides other scratchings, we had a very small but very keen band of only thirty players for our Free-for-alls  ... (J.M. Brisbane)   ad for NORTHERN AUSTRALIAN MONTHLY   Ad for Melodica and HOHNER bush accordions.

6.   Singabout, Volume 4(3), September 1961 -  DON THE DOGGER - With this song and THE NEW-CHUM SHEARER we introduce a new contributor to SINGABOUT, Joe Daley from Hungerford.  Joe works on Moombidary station, way out on the NSW-Qld border ... 40 of his own compositions ... Joe is not able to read or write music, so cannot send us the tunes of his songs, but since they are written in the ballad meter, singers should be easily able to fit them to other traditional tune. 

7.   Singabout, Volume 4(3), September 1961 -  The New Chum Shearer by Joe Daly 

8.   Singabout, Volume 4(3), September 1961 -  The elusive TAMBAROORA GOLD. In a recent SINGABOUT we appealed for the song known by the above title. Dr Russel Ward of the University of New England has responded with an almost complete text ...  Mr Harry Holder of Lionsville near Bar Yugal ... on the NSW north coast ... To me it seems on internal evidence that the song probably originated in music hall or travelling tent-show... sung January 1961.

9.   Singabout, Volume 4(3), September 1961 -  TAMBAROORA GOLD (cont) Variant Versions. The following fragment was sung to the editor by Mrs Muriel Whalan now living in Katoomba ... Both Tom Byrnes of Parramatta and Duke Tritton of Concord, can remember only the last couple of lines ...

10.   Singabout, Volume 4(3), September 1961 -  TWO SONGS OF '91 - The Struggle in the West. On April 18, 1891, the Brisbane WORKER, edited by William Lane published this song with the footnote:  From several sources copies of this song have been sent to the WORKER ... The tune is 'Let us speak of a man as we find him'.  

11.   Singabout, Volume 4(3), September 1961 -  The Struggle in the West. Contributed by Len Fox (cont)  The Ballot is the Thing  This song was written by W. Kidson in 1891. Kidson was originally active in the Labour movement, but later he "crossed the aisle" and was for five years Premier of Queensland ... Contributed by Merv. Lilley

12.   Singabout, Volume 4(3), September 1961 -  Gordon's Great Leap. An original song by William. L. Laver, who is a grandson of that grand old horseman, Lance Skuthorpe. It may be sung to the tune of Villikins and his Dinah .. . (All rights reserved)

13.   Singabout, Volume 4(3), September 1961 -  The Whip and the Spur sung to John Meredith by Mrs Violet Skuthorpe, senior of Bankstown, Sydney and learned from her father, Terry King.  The chorus is only sung after verses 2 and 5

14.   Singabout, Volume 4(3), September 1961 -  COLLECTOR'S NOTEBOOK - He Never Blamed the Booze. Clarence Strochnetter  found this in a little booklet of verse by the late G.A. Finn of Queenstown, Tasmania, which was published in the 1930s. 
Photo - Frank Adams the one armed fiddler from Wundeyer, on the old Turon goldfields.

15.   Singabout, Volume 4(3), September 1961 -  I'm the Best - collected by Ron Edwards from P. J. Trezise, December 1960 and attributed to Bob Dunbar, C.P.S. NORMANTON. It is sung to the tune of RING THE BELL WATCHMAN, better known these days, perhaps as CLICK GO THE SHEARS.
BOLD TOMMY PANE - corrections.  ANGLER'S PRAYER. Found by Clarence Strochnetter in a fisherman's shack at Ansons Bay, Tasmania

16.   Singabout, Volume 4(3), September 1961 -  The Stockman's Last Bed. As sung to John Meredith by Mrs Violet Skulthorpe, Senior, of Bankstown, NSW. This song is fairly well-known throughout the bush and was well known at least as far back as the 1860s ...

17.   Singabout, Volume 4(3), September 1961 -  The Stockman's Last Bed. (cont)  NEWS AND VIEWS - Editorial, (contd. from page 2) QUEENSLAND NEWS - The Workers' Music Association (London) have accepted THE MORTON BAY DANCE-BOOK for publication and it will be ready shortly.  Schott & Co (London) have accepted and will soon publish a booklet of BUSH TUNES FOR BEGINNERS, selected from material used by the junior bands of the Brisbane Federation of Bush Music Clubs.   TAPE EXCHANGE WANTED - Michael P. Sherrick of California would like to exchange American folk recordings ...

18.   Singabout, Volume 4(3), September 1961 -  RECITER'S CORNER - The Bullocky's Tale collected by Stan Wakefield. 

19.   Singabout, Volume 4(3), September 1961 -  The Bullocky's Tale (cont) Ad for WEA & University of Sydney ... 200 courses ...

20.   Singabout, Volume 4(3), September 1961 -  NEWS AND VIEWS (contd. from page 17) Pub with no Dike upsets - letter from N. O'Connor President Folk Lore Society of Victoria - This subject is open to discussion ...  COME TO A WORKSHOP NIGHT - Every Tuesday. SINGABOUT  Edited and produced by John Meredith,  Alan Scott and Brian Loughlin.

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