Songs

Waltzing Matilda

• Oh there once was a swagman camped in the billabong,
• Under the shade of a Coolibah tree,
• And he sang as he looked at the old billy boiling,
• Who'll come a waltzing Matilda with me?

Chorus:

• Who'll come a waltzin' Matilda my darling,
• Who'll come a waltzin' Matilda with me?
• Waltzing Matilda and leading a water bag,
• Who'll come a waltzing Matilda with me?

• Down came a jumbuck to drink at the water hole,
• Up jumped the swagman and grabbed him in glee,
• And he sang as he put him away in the tucker bag,
• You'll come a waltzin' Matilda with me."

• Up came the squatter a-riding his thoroughbred,
• Up came the troopers one, two, three.
• "Whose is the jumbuck you've got in the tucker-bag?
• You'll come a waltzing Matilda with we."

• Up sprang the swagman and jumped in the waterhole,
• Drowning himself by the Coolibah tree.
• And his voice can be heard as it sings in the billabongs,
• Who'll come a waltzing Matilda with me."

swagman: a man who travelled the country looking for work. The swagman's "swag" was a bed roll that bundled his belongings.

waltzing: derived from the German term auf der Walz, which means to travel while working as a craftsman and learn new techniques from other masters before returning home after three years and one day, a custom which is still in use today among carpenters.[6]

Matilda: a romantic term for a swagman's bundle. See below, "Waltzing Matilda."

from the above terms, "to waltz Matilda" is to travel with a swag, that is, with all one's belongings on one's back wrapped in a blanket or cloth. The exact origins of the term "Matilda" are disputed; one fanciful derivation states that when swagmen met each other at their gatherings, there were rarely women to dance with. Nonetheless, they enjoyed a dance, and so they danced with their swags, which was given a woman's name. However, this appears to be influenced by the word "waltz", hence the introduction of dancing. It seems more likely that, as a swagman's only companion, the swag came to be personified as a woman. Another explanation is that the term also derives from German immigrants. German soldiers commonly referred to their greatcoats as "Matilda", supposedly because the coat kept them as warm as a woman would. Early German immigrants who "went on the waltz" would wrap their belongings in their coat, and took to calling it by the same name their soldiers had used.

billabong: an oxbow lake (a cut-off river bend) found alongside a meandering river.

coolibah tree: a kind of eucalyptus tree which grows near billabongs.

jumbuck: a large, difficult-to-shear sheep, not a tame sheep. Implies that the sheep was not 'owned' by the squatter or regularly shorn, thus not able to be stolen by the swagman.

billy: a can for boiling water in, usually 2-3 pints.

tucker: food

troopers: policemen

squatter: Australian squatters started as early farmers who raised livestock on land which they did not legally have the right to use; in many cases they later gained legal use of the land even though they did not have full possession, and became wealthy thanks to these large land holdings.

I Points To Myself

• I points to myself, vas is das here;
• Das ist mein top-notch-er, ya mama dear.
• Top-notch-er, top-notch-er, ya mama dear.
• Das wass I learnt in die school, boom-boom!

As you sing this action-song, point to the proper body part when you mention it. For example, point to the top of your head when you sing Topnotcher. Continue singing and add another part of your body for each verse and repeat the others going backwards in reverse order. Try as many verses as you want, using the list below. For the boom-boom, clap hands, bang tables, or stamp your feet.

Point To: Sing: Top of Head Topnotcher Brow Sweat browser Eye Eye Winker Nose Horn Blower Mustache Soup Strainer Mouth Food Chomper Chin Chin Chowser Neck Rubber Necker Stomach Bread Basket Foot Foot Stomper

point to -| sing

to popf