Australian History
Book Details

Once a Jolly Swagman

The Ballad of Waltzing Matilda

Matthew Richardson

Once a Jolly Swagman takes readers off the score sheet into the story of the one song that belongs to all Australians.

Opinion

Matthew Richardson's account of the history and culture from which
Waltzing Matilda arose, and then of how the song was adopted as a
perverse national hymn will grip many Australians with its grace, its
insights and its newness of perception.
– TOM KENEALLY

About this Title

'The voice from the billabong is a reminder that Australian life has been going on for generations; that Australia is our home, the inland as much as the coast …’

‘Banjo’ Paterson’s ‘Waltzing Matilda’ is the one song that has been bringing people together spontaneously since 1895, and the one song that belongs to all Australians.

Generations of experts have argued about the original story that Paterson immortalised, about the origins of the tune, and about what Paterson meant by his almost parodic over-use of Australian colloquialisms.

Once a Jolly Swagman takes readers off the score sheet into the story of the song, and tells of its evolution up until the twenty-first century. It tries to answer the riddles within the song, and unpick its inherent contradictions: where's the heroism in a suicidal thief? What was jolly about the jumbuck? Is 'Waltzing Matilda' the key to Australian values? What does it mean that a beloved song about Australia's pioneering past is written by a city lawyer?

In this age of economic rationalism and a globalised world, how does a voice from the billabong saying, 'You'll come a waltzing matilda with me' still matter, and what does it tell us about ourselves?

About the Author

Matthew Richardson is an author and researcher who learnt 'Waltzing Matilda' as his second song, after 'Happy Birthday', at the age of twoish. As an editor he has published new editions of a range of Australian classics. His other books include the Penguin Book of Firsts and Imagination: 100 Years of Bright Ideas in Australia. Born in Canberra in 1958, he now lives in the Blue Mountains with his wife and children.

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978-0-522-85308-7