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And the Band Played Walzting Matilda


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Now when I was a young man, I carried me pack
And I lived the free life of the rover
From the Murray's green basin to the dusty outback
Well, I waltzed my Matilda all over
Then in 1915, my country said "son
It's time you stopped rambling, there's work to be done"
So they gave me a tin hat, and they gave me a gun
And they marched me away to the war

And the band played Waltzing Matilda
As the ship pulled away from the quay
And amidst all the cheers, the flag-waving and tears
We sailed off for Gallipoli

And how well I remember that terrible day
How our blood stained the sand and the water
And of how in that hell that they called Suvla Bay
We were butchered like lambs at the slaughter
Johnny Turk, he was waiting, he'd primed himself well
He showered us with bullets and he rained us with shell
And in five minutes flat, he'd blown us all to hell
Nearly blew us right back to Australia

But the band played Waltzing Matilda
When we stopped to bury our slain
We buried ours, and the Turks buried theirs
Then we started all over again

And those that were left, well we tried to survive
In that mad world of blood, death and fire
And for ten weary weeks, I kept myself alive
Though around me the corpses piled higher
Then a big Turkish shell knocked me arse over head
And when I woke up in me hospital bed
And saw what it had done, andl I wished I was dead
Never knew there was worse things than dyin'

And I'll go no more waltzing Matilda
All through the green bush far and free
To hump tent and pegs, a man needs both legs
No more waltzing Matilda for me

They collected the crippled, the wounded, the maimed
And they shipped us back home to Australia
The legless, the armless, the blind, the insane
Those proud wounded heroes of Suvla
And as our ship pulled into Circular Quay
I looked at the place where me legs used to be
And thanked Christ there was nobody waiting for me
To mourn and to grieve and to pity

But the band played Waltzing Matilda
As they carried us down the gangway
But nobody cheered, they just stood and stared
Then they turned all their faces away

And so now every April, I sit on me porch
And I watch the parade pass before me
And I see my old comrades, how proudly they march
Reviving old dreams of past glories
But the old men march slowly, old bones stiff and sore
They're tired old men from a tired old war
And the young people ask, "what are they marching for?"
And I ask myself the same question

But the band plays Waltzing Matilda
And the old men still answer the call
But year after year, more old men disappear
Someday no one will march there at all

 

 

 

 

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"Where are yer legs that used to run,

   when first you went to carry a gun?

Ah, Johnny we hardly knew ya!

 

"Yer an eyeless, boneless, chickenless egg,

   An' you'll have to be put with a bowl to beg!

Ah, Johnny we hardly knew ya!"  :(

To the tune of "When Johnny Comes Marching Home Again, Hurrah, Hurrah!"

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8 hours ago, Cyrus Cassidy #45437 said:

Now when I was a young man, I carried me pack
And I lived the free life of the rover
From the Murray's green basin to the dusty outback
Well, I waltzed my Matilda all over
Then in 1915, my country said "son
It's time you stopped rambling, there's work to be done"
So they gave me a tin hat, and they gave me a gun
And they marched me away to the war

And the band played Waltzing Matilda
As the ship pulled away from the quay
And amidst all the cheers, the flag-waving and tears
We sailed off for Gallipoli

And how well I remember that terrible day
How our blood stained the sand and the water
And of how in that hell that they called Suvla Bay
We were butchered like lambs at the slaughter
Johnny Turk, he was waiting, he'd primed himself well
He showered us with bullets and he rained us with shell
And in five minutes flat, he'd blown us all to hell
Nearly blew us right back to Australia

But the band played Waltzing Matilda
When we stopped to bury our slain
We buried ours, and the Turks buried theirs
Then we started all over again

And those that were left, well we tried to survive
In that mad world of blood, death and fire
And for ten weary weeks, I kept myself alive
Though around me the corpses piled higher
Then a big Turkish shell knocked me arse over head
And when I woke up in me hospital bed
And saw what it had done, andl I wished I was dead
Never knew there was worse things than dyin'

And I'll go no more waltzing Matilda
All through the green bush far and free
To hump tent and pegs, a man needs both legs
No more waltzing Matilda for me

They collected the crippled, the wounded, the maimed
And they shipped us back home to Australia
The legless, the armless, the blind, the insane
Those proud wounded heroes of Suvla
And as our ship pulled into Circular Quay
I looked at the place where me legs used to be
And thanked Christ there was nobody waiting for me
To mourn and to grieve and to pity

But the band played Waltzing Matilda
As they carried us down the gangway
But nobody cheered, they just stood and stared
Then they turned all their faces away

And so now every April, I sit on me porch
And I watch the parade pass before me
And I see my old comrades, how proudly they march
Reviving old dreams of past glories
But the old men march slowly, old bones stiff and sore
They're tired old men from a tired old war
And the young people ask, "what are they marching for?"
And I ask myself the same question

But the band plays Waltzing Matilda
And the old men still answer the call
But year after year, more old men disappear
Someday no one will march there at all

 

 

 

 

Its been several decades since I was involved but this year it hurts more than before.

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Look up Terry Kellys and A Pittance Of Time.  The first time I heard this I was in a mall in California and I found myself standing alone with tears running down my face.  

 

An old man came over and said, "It's alright son.  I've been there, too."

 

I still get misty hearing some of these old songs.

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8 hours ago, Forty Rod SASS 3935 said:

Look up Terry Kellys and A Pittance Of Time.  The first time I heard this I was in a mall in California and I found myself standing alone with tears running down my face.  

 

An old man came over and said, "It's alright son.  I've been there, too."

 

I still get misty hearing some of these old songs.

 

 

 

 

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12 minutes ago, Forty Rod SASS 3935 said:

Thanks, Joe.  That still gets me every time I hear it.

 

Ditto.  While it was written about an incident that happened on Armistice Day, it is still appropriate for our Memorial Day.

The back story:


On November 11, 1999 Terry Kelly was in a drug store in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia. At 10:55 AM an announcement came over the stores PA asking customers who would still be on the premises at 11:00 AM to give two minutes of silence in respect to the veterans who have sacrificed so much for us. Terry was impressed with the stores leadership role in adopting the Legions two minutes of silence initiative. He felt that the stores contribution of educating the public to the importance of remembering was commendable. When eleven oclock arrived on that day, an announcement was again made asking for the two minutes of silence to commence. All customers, with the exception of a man who was accompanied by his young child, showed their respect. Terrys anger towards the father for trying to engage the stores clerk in conversation and for setting a bad example for his child was channeled into a beautiful piece of work called, A Pittance of Time. Terry later recorded A Pittance of Time and included it on his full-length music CD, The Power of the Dream. Thank You to the Royal Canadian Legion Todmorden Branch #10 and Woodbine Height Branch #2 for their participation in the Video.

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13 hours ago, Subdeacon Joe said:

 

Ditto.  While it was written about an incident that happened on Armistice Day, it is still appropriate for our Memorial Day.

The back story:


On November 11, 1999 Terry Kelly was in a drug store in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia. At 10:55 AM an announcement came over the stores PA asking customers who would still be on the premises at 11:00 AM to give two minutes of silence in respect to the veterans who have sacrificed so much for us. Terry was impressed with the stores leadership role in adopting the Legions two minutes of silence initiative. He felt that the stores contribution of educating the public to the importance of remembering was commendable. When eleven oclock arrived on that day, an announcement was again made asking for the two minutes of silence to commence. All customers, with the exception of a man who was accompanied by his young child, showed their respect. Terrys anger towards the father for trying to engage the stores clerk in conversation and for setting a bad example for his child was channeled into a beautiful piece of work called, A Pittance of Time. Terry later recorded A Pittance of Time and included it on his full-length music CD, The Power of the Dream. Thank You to the Royal Canadian Legion Todmorden Branch #10 and Woodbine Height Branch #2 for their participation in the Video.

It's still Armistice Day at your house, too?

 

Yeah, I know, but it is a song with patriotic meaning and it still makes me choke up and get misty-eyed when I hear it.  Too bad Kelly couldn't see those around him and can't see what it means to so many.  

 

He's been blind since childhood, but he's wiser than many who see.

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57 minutes ago, Forty Rod SASS 3935 said:

It's still Armistice Day at your house, too?

 

All the members of the VFW at the Post my dad went to called it that, into the early '70s at least.  That is what I grew up with, so it sticks.

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