The Life and Times of the Star-Spangled Banner

Waltzing Matilda

Waltzing Matilda is on the edge of being a folk song. We know who wrote the words and music. It was in oral circulation for only a short time, but that was a long enough time for varying versions to develop.

The tune was written by Christina McPhearson. It was based on a Scottish song called Thou Bonnie Wood of Craigielea. McPhearson was not a musician, and a comparison of Waltzing Matilda to the Craigielea tune suggests that she misremembered it enough to create a different tune. One evening, she played the tune on an autoharp for a young lawyer friend, who was something of a poet, Banjo Paterson. He wrote words for it. The occasion of the song was apparently a skirmish that took place during a sheep-shearers strike.

The version usually sung today was written by Marie Cowan. A copy of the sheet music was packed with Billy Tea, which helped to spread the song. Cowan's tune and words differed somewhat from McPhearson and Paterson. Cowan's version is a little more swaggering than the McPhearson/Paterson version, possibly to emphasize the supposed invigorating qualities of Billy Tea.

Waltzing Matilda is not the national anthem of Australia. The national anthem of Australia is Advance Australia Fair. Referendums were held twice in modern times on what song should be the national anthem, and the result was the same both times. Like Yankee Doodle, some voters may have felt that Waltzing Matilda is too frivolous of a song to be a national anthem. Others may have been afraid that people would sing this school yard parody:

Waltzing Matilda, who bloody killed her

Laid her in the grass with a shovel up her arse.

Along comes granny and shoves it up her fanny

Who'll come a waltzing Matilda with me?

But it is a national song and has been played as such when the occasion demanded.

An elderly swagman



Waltzing Matilda

Tune

Once a jolly swagman [swagman: man carrying a swag (pack)]

Camped by a billabong [billabong: watering hole]

Under the shade of the coolabah tree [coolabah tree: eucalyptus tree]

And he sang as he watched

And he waited while his Billy boiled [billy: kettle]

You'll come a-waltzing Matilda with me. [waltzing Matilda: on walk-about]

Waltzing Matila, waltzing Matilda,

You'll come a-waltzing Matilda with me.

And he sang as he watched

And he waited while his Billy boiled

You'll come a-waltzing Matilda with me.



Down came a jumbuck [jumbuck: sheep]

To drink at that billabong

Up jumped the swagman and grabbed him with glee.

And sang as he shoved that

Jumbuck in his tuckerbag [tuckerbag: foodbag]

You'll come a-waltzing Matilda with me.

Waltzing Matila, waltzing Matilda,

You'll come a-waltzing Matilda with me.

And sang as he shoved that

Jumbuck in his tuckerbag

You'll come a-waltzing Matilda with me.



Up rode the sqatter [sheep farmer]

Mounted on his thoroughbred

Down came the troopers one, two, three,

Whose that jolly jumbuck

You've got in your tuckerbag

You'll come a-waltzing Matilda with me.

Waltzing Matila, waltzing Matilda,

You'll come a-waltzing Matilda with me.

Whose that jolly jumbuck

You've got in your tuckerbag

You'll come a-waltzing Matilda with me.



Up jumped the swagman

And sprang into the billabong

You'll never catch me alive said he

And his ghost may be heard

As you pass by that billabong

You'll come a-waltzing Matilda with me.

Waltzing Matila, waltzing Matilda,

And his ghost may be heard

As you pass by that billabong

You'll come a-waltzing Matilda with me.