Talk:Waltzing Matilda

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officially recognised "National Song" . This sounds like a statement of fact. Is this verified anywhere? Graham Chapman

Of course it's not... but it IS one of the most widely recognised songs in the world :) btw, why can't the lyrics be quoted? Banjo Patterson wrote the darned thing, and he died almost a hundred years ago.

I've put the full text of Waltzing Matilda into the article. I can't see why the lyrics can't be quoted, it says right there in the article that no copyright has ever applied on it. I also fixed the "national song" - it's a folk song, and has no official status, despite its popularity. I also reworded the final words of the first paragraph, to remove ambiguity and highlight the fact that Advance Australia Fair is actually the current National Anthem. - User:Mark Ryan

An explanation is needed of the meaning of "waltzing Matilda" -- Error

Essentially, it means carryng a swag or bag. I think the term's of German origin. Arno 07:48 25 Jun 2003 (UTC)

Talking of German origin: Walz means the medieval to 19th C costum of craftsman working their way through the world for a few years before finally settling down, after they had finished their apprenteinceship (sorry if I got it misspelt). immanently, people who were "auf der Walz" (on Waltz) where pennyless travellers. I guess there never was such a tradition in the Anglo-Saxon countries, but it was quite strong all over Central Europe. User:Jakob Stevo

I seem to remember reading years ago that Waltzing Maitlda was based on a historical event involving a swag man called, possibly, Frederick Hofstetter. Can anyone confirm this confidently enough to put it into the article? Ping 08:29 25 Jun 2003 (UTC)

Really? I thought that his name was Andy - "Andy sat, as he watched , as he waited till his billy boiled..."
Seriously, though, he was fictitious. Arno 08:31 25 Jun 2003 (UTC)

So who was Frederick Hofstetter? Middle name Andy maybe? Ping 08:35 25 Jun 2003 (UTC)

Don't you think it's worth mentioning that Tom Waits did an interpretation of the song which was probably the first time people outside Anglo-Saxon world (like myself) got to hear it, and which I still think is a great piece of music? User:Jakob Stevo

I think so. I will add it to the article. CyborgTosser 03:55, 15 Jun 2004 (UTC)
The Tom Waits song, 'Tom Traubert's Blues (Four Sheets To The Wind In Copenhagen)', is more of an 'inspired by' than a strict cover; it combines the chorus of WM with a lot of original material. See lyrics here' for some idea of its nature. I've clarified the entry accordingly.--Calair 00:09, 23 Aug 2004 (UTC)

Not being from an English-speaking country, I have never heard "Waltzing Matilda" performed. In fact, before reading this article I didn't even know it existed. I read the lyrics though, and although I have no idea of how it sounds when set to music, it appeared to me that it would not make such a good national anthem. I mean, I'm sure the song must be beautiful, but I really do think that "Advance Australia Fair" was indeed the better choice — how nice it is to hear a national anthem that doesn't allude to war, death or vengeance, Australians are to be commended for chosing that song! Redux 23:16, 17 Aug 2004 (UTC)

The original version actually did contain mention of war, along with a couple of other things not often sung today. See Advance Australia Fair for the unexpurgated version. --Calair 00:09, 23 Aug 2004 (UTC)

Removed the following section:

On Channel 7 on Saturday, 31 December 2005 at 11:55PM, Waltzing Matilda was sung with a slight modification of the words. Rather than saying 'once a jolly swagman camped by a billabong', the words jolly and Chinese were changed, hence 'once a Chinese swagman camped by a billabong'. The song was sung by a white Australian and intentions have not yet been understood, whether it was accidental, or to build links between China and Australia, as Australia did integrate Chinese lion-dancing in their 2005 end-of-year festival in Melbourne.

I'm not sure this is terribly significant. --Robert Merkel 05:23, 1 January 2006 (UTC)

Contents

[edit] Richard Magoffin

An obituary of Richard Magoffin in The Times has some interesting details.[1] His books sound like decent sources for pinning this article down a little. -- ALoan (Talk) 15:14, 24 May 2006 (UTC)


[edit] Matilda no more

What about Matilda no more, which is a song sung by Slim Dusty? I believe like "And the band played Waltzing Matilda", it deserves a mention.


To be sure - why don't you include it? Slac speak up! 23:34, 24 August 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Australia's most widely known song?

The article begins, "Waltzing Matilda" is Australia's most widely known song. Is there any evidence for that claim? I propose rewording that sentence, e.g. by inserting the word possibly. Rocksong 00:48, 13 September 2006 (UTC)

[edit] A Waltzing Matilda reference in a Terry Pratchett work.

Is the following extract from The Last Continent by Terry Pratchett worthy of a mention under the 'Covers and derivative works' section? It can be found at the beginning of a section approximately three-fifths of the way through the book (page 248 of the Corgi paperback edition ISBN 0-552-14614-5).

"Once a moderately jolly wizard camped by a dried-up waterhole under the shade of a tree that he was completely unable to identify. And he swore as he hacked and hacked at a can of beer, saying, 'What kind of idiots put beer in tins?'"

John

[edit] Lyrics

I'm sure the lyrics on the page at the moment are wrong ("SAT by a billalong"??), but finding correct official lyrics is proving difficult. The National Library of Australia site http://www.nla.gov.au/epubs/waltzingmatilda/2-Vers-Changing_character.html provides a lyrics download [2], but then the ANU site has the modern lyrics here http://www.anu.edu.au/people/Roger.Clarke/WM/WMText.html , and even these two differ in at least six places:

  • 1. NLA has "shoved that jumbuck", ANU has "stuffed that jumbuck" (I think NLA is right);
  • 2. NLA has "down came the troopers", ANU has "up rode the troopers" (I think NLA is right);
  • 3. NLA has "whose that jumbuck", ANU has "Where's that jolly jumbuck" (I think ANU is right);
  • 4. NLA has "you've got in the tuckerbag", ANU has "you've got in your tuckerbag" (I think ANU is right);
  • 5. NLA has "sprang into the billabong", ANU has "sprang into that billabong" (not sure);
  • 6. NLA has "you'll never catch me alive", ANU has "you'll never take me alive" (I think NLA is right).

Anyway, if anyone can find an authoritative source of the lyrics, it'd be helpful. Rocksong 11:17, 20 November 2006 (UTC)

I have discovered like many folk songs the variations of lyrics seem to be mutliplying. I haven't tried to change the lyrics as written here, becaseu all I could do is teh very POV act of changing them to the way I sing the song.
Instead of trying to put down definitive original lyrics and getting it wrong, perhaps the article can reflect the uncertainty - I think User:Rocksong's post, edited and tightened a bit, would be an excellent addition to the article. - DavidWBrooks 19:02, 21 November 2006 (UTC)
So where do the "original Banjo Patterson" lyrics come from, does anyone know? - DavidWBrooks 15:46, 25 November 2006 (UTC)
Agree that the article could reflect uncertainty until certainty is established. I tend to agree with user Rocksong, except perhaps on the first and third points. The third point because, on the face of it, it doesn't seem to make sense to say "Where is the jumbuck in your tuckerbag?" (seems to be answering one's own question) — although the "jolly" part does sound familiar, and I notice the article has a mixture of both....
Secondly, what's with the spelling of 'coolabah' using an 'i'??? Surely this is wrong?
DIV 128.250.204.118 00:57, 2 January 2007 (UTC)

[edit] The Song's Appeal

This entire section was added by User:Just nigel on 15-Nov. Though I'd agree with some of it, this section should cite a source, or be considered Wikipedia:Original Research and removed. Rocksong 04:47, 4 December 2006 (UTC)

[edit] The term "Waltzing Matilda"

I thought that "Waltzing Matilda" could mean "go travelling" or "be hung", and in several lines of the song it was referring to hanging (the sentence for stealing sheep), which is why the song is sung with a sad air. http://www.mamalisa.com/?p=53&t=es&c=19 Sad mouse 15:45, 6 December 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Swagman = Hobo?

As an Australian I find the term "hobo" and it's connotations offensive. I believe that the term "swagman" is better defined as an itinerant and vagrant. Also, by using the term "hobo" analogically, one assumes an American only reader. With due respect to the author.

Good point. I've removed it. Rocksong 23:08, 28 January 2007 (UTC)

[edit] America the Book

Waltzing Matilda is mentioned (and made fun of) in the Austrailia section of America the Book. Do you think it's worth mentioning in the article? --Fez2005 06:30, 24 March 2007 (UTC)

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