Harry Robertson (folk singer)
Harry Robertson (1923 - 15 May 1995) was a Scottish-born, Australian folk-singer/songwriter, poet and activist, who became a key figure in the development of the Australian folk music tradition.
Robertson emigrated from Scotland in 1952 where he worked in the whaling industry and wrote a number of songs and poems about the lives of the whalers without glorifying the industry. Among them were "Queensland Whalers",[1] "Ballina Whalers"[2] and "Wee Dark Engine Room"[3] (the latter two covered by Nic Jones as "The Humpback Whale" and "The Little Pot Stove" respectively). He also worked with the Welsh-born, Australian folk-singer, Declan Affley.
Robertson and others established the Moreton Bay Folk Festival, also regarded as the 3rd National Folk Festival, in 1969, and the Maleny/Woodford Folk Festival in 1987, both in Queensland.
Discography
- Whale Chasing Men: Songs of Whaling in Ice and Sun (1971)
- Harry's Legacy (Evan Mathieson 2008)
- Tribute to Harry Robertson 1923-1995 (Evan Mathieson 2009)
References
- ↑ Digital Tradition lyrics for Queensland Whalers.
- ↑ Digital Tradition lyrics for Ballina Whalers.
- ↑ Digital Tradition lyrics for The Wee Pot Stove.