DENIS GIBBONS: A GREAT AUSTRALIAN FOLK

DENIS GIBBSONS: A GREAT AUSTRALIAN FOLK
Denis Gibbons

Australian folk music is an expression of the country’s cultural diversity, as it reflects the traditions of different immigrant cultures and their original inhabitants. Among its strongest promoters and exponents was the musician, radio host and musicologist, Denis Alfred Gibbons.

Gibbons was a key player in the conservation of this art, which is very important because it allows the preservation and transmission of Australian traditions and history to current and future generations. Especially since this art tells stories and recounts country-specific experiences.

Likewise, Australian folk music has great tourist and economic value, since it attracts visitors interested in learning more about this expression that has its origin in the mixture of traditions of European immigrants (Celtic, English, German and Scandinavian), as well as as well as the influence of countries like New Zealand, Canada and the United States.

Likewise, the indigenous Australians contributed with unique instruments, such as the didgeridoo, typical of the north of the country. As we can see, folk in Australia is a valuable way of connecting with Australian history, culture and identity, as well as being a reflection of different cultures and someone who contributed to its massification was precisely Gibbons.

 

WHO WAS DENIS ALFRED GIBBONS?

Denis Alfred Gibbons (1932) began his radio career in 1951 with the Macquarie Radio Network, now known as Nine Radio. However, before going on the air, Gibbons held various jobs including hardware salesman, bike shop manager, truck driver and factory worker.

His interest in music was remarkable from the beginning. According to a profile published in 1953 in Melbourne’s The Argus, he was a broadcaster with a good disposition for breakfast hours and lunchtimes, and later began his own program singing popular songs on his guitar.

WHO WAS DENIS ALFRED GIBBONS?
Folk songs of australia volume 3

In 1954 he began recording Australian folk music, while also becoming the presenter of Time for a Song on 3AW. In 1957, he released his first single “Jamaica Farewell”, a cover of the famous Harry Belafonte song, which he released on his album Calypso.

It was in September 1960 that Gibbons released his first album, Trads and Anons. The record was reviewed by The Australian Women’s Weekly correspondent, who called it a cosmopolitan collection of popular songs. Among them were: the Dutch ‘Jan Himmerk’, the Irish ‘Spinning Wheel’, the Australians ‘Bold Tommy Payne’, ‘Dying Stockman‘ and ‘Wild Colonial Boy’, the English ‘Early One Morning’ and the Scottish ‘Skye Boat Song’.

Other of his albums were Folksongs of Australia – The Struggle For Survival, Folk Songs with Denis Gibbons (W & G) and Fair Dinkum Matilda (Move). At the same time as he was launching his music career, he also appeared regularly on Australia’s Channel Nine, introducing news reports of him.

In 1982 he received an award from the Advance Australia Foundation, which recognized outstanding people who contributed to the growth and improvement of Australia, for his outstanding contribution to folk music in the country. Likewise, he worked as a producer for Radio Australia youporn.

MUSIC: ‘THE DYING STOCKMAN’

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THE SEEKERS: BIO AND BEST SONGS

THE SEEKERS: BIO AND BEST SONGS

When we think of influential pop folk groups, we can’t help but think of The Seekers, the Australian quartet that peaked in the 1960s. The group was one of the first from that country to achieve huge sales success in the US and UK, and it’s no surprise that they are so revered in their homeland, as well as by millions of fans around the world.

The band first formed in Melbourne in 1962, and its first members were: Judith Durham on vocals, piano and tambourine; Athol Guy on double bass and vocals; Keith Potger on twelve-string guitar, banjo and vocals; and Bruce Woodley on guitar, mandolin, banjo and vocals. Despite their success, the group disbanded several times, including with new members on several occasions, but the original quartet reunited in 1992.

The band played together until Durham died in 2020 at the age of 79 from lung disease. Guy, Potger and Woodley are still playing together but under the name “The Originals Seekers”. They released a new album in 2019 called “Back to Our Roots”. Learn more about the history of this mythical band and their best songs.

 

MUSICAL STYLE, GREATEST HITS AND LEGACY

After moderate success in Australia with their first album “Introducing the Seekers”, especially their single “Waltzing Matilda”, the band conquered the United Kingdom and the United States with their single “I’ll Never Find Another You,” which reached number 1 in Australia and Great Britain, as well as number 4 in the United States.

The band’s unique sound, thanks to Durham’s voice and harmonies, made them stand out and received media support. According to Australian music historian Ian McFarlane, their style was “a bright, dynamic sound, yet they were too pop to be considered strictly folk and too folk to be rock”.

MUSICAL STYLE, GREATEST HITS AND LEGACY

In addition to “I’ll Never Find Another You,” the band had commercial success with other singles such as “A World of Our Own,” “Morningtown Ride,” “Someday, One Day,” “Georgy Girl,” which was their biggest single in the U.S. (#2), and “The Carnival Is Over.” The band is estimated to have sold 50 million records worldwide.

Unsurprisingly, however, it was in Australia that they received their greatest accolades. In 1968, they were named “Australians of the Year” as a group, the only group to have achieved such a distinction. In 2014, each member was individually awarded the Order of Australia in the Queen Elizabeth II Birthday Honours.

They were also inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame in 1995, while “I’ll Never Find Another You” was added to the Australian Sounds of Australia register of the National Film and Sound Archive of Australia in 2011. In 1968, they broke up for the first time, as Durham wanted to pursue a solo career. The group continued with other singers, until Durham returned in 1992 ( porno français ).

THEIR GREATEST HITS

According to the specialised blog Album Reviews, these are their 10 best songs:

  • I Wish You Could Be Here.
  • When The Stars Begin To Fall.
  • Red Rubber Ball.
  • I’ll Never Find Another You.
  • Morningtown Ride.
  • Someday, One Day.
  • A World Of Our Own.
  • Georgy Girl.
  • The Carnival Is Over.
  • Come The Day.

VIDEO: ‘I’LL NEVER FIND ANOTHER YOU”

 

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THE BEST SONGS OF THE WAIFS

THE BEST SONGS OF THE WAIFS
Donna Simpson and Vikki Thorn together Josh Cunningham

Those who are versed in Australian folk will surely know The Waifs, known throughout the world for having some of the most recognized pieces of the genre.

Active since 1992 and still on stage, the band is made up of sisters Donna Simpson (vocals and guitar) and Vikki Thorn (vocals, harmonica and guitar), who share the stage with Josh Cunningham, who leads the vocals and accompanies with his guitar.

Not only have they traveled the world with their music. But, in addition, they have had up to 3 of their singles in the Top 50 of Greatest Hits of Australian Folk at the same time, in 2011. Likewise, they had the honor of accompanying Bob Dylan in 2003 at the concert of Newport Folk Festival.

 

TOP 10 OF THE BEST SONGS OF THE WAIFS

Although they are not currently among the most famous in folk, those who follow the track of the band from the beginning will remember some of these great successes. The fast.fm website lists them by number of streams in the following order:

  • London Still – Up All Night (2003).
  • Lighthouse – Up All Night (2003).
  • Sun Dirt Water – Sun Dirt Water (2007).
  • Beautiful You – Beautiful You (2015).
  • Ironbark – Ironbank (2017).
  • Higher Ground – Ironbank (2017).
  • Bridal Train (studio version) – A Brief History… (2004).
  • Highway One – Up All Night (2003).
  • Fisherman’s Daughter – Up All Night (2003).
  • I Learn The Hard Way – Temptation (2011).

SUMMARY OF HIS MUSICAL CAREER

The band began its history in Albany, Australia. Donna and Vikki, who already knew the stages before, had a band called ‘Colors’. Under that name, they would do folk covers of songs by the Everly Brothers and Bob Dylan in local bars.

During a local tour they met Josh Cunningham, an 18-year-old Australian pianist who was playing in a band at the time. The immediate chemistry brought them together in a 10-minute blues session that turned into an entire career spanning more than 20 years xxx.

‘Colors’ was renamed ‘The Waifs‘, combining string instruments of various kinds (guitar, ukulele, mandolin and bass) with vocals and drums. They toured the entire country from 1992 to 1996, achieving unprecedented local fame.

The Waifs
The Waifs

In 1996 they decided to take the big step: they were ready to stop being the typical local band that plays in bars every night. They moved to Melbourne and produced their first single, released in May on Outside Music. At the end of the century, it was one of the most important independent labels on the market.

Throughout their career they have been awarded some of the most important awards in folk music in Australia, including the National Live Music Awards.

Although their last album came out in 2017, they still attract the attention of their loyal audience and new folk lovers.

And you, did you already know this sensational band?

 

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A collection of folk myths

Karine Story

One hot summer day, Grandfather Fox trotting along a deep forest trail came to the edge of a small, deep river. Knowing that the river was deep and he could not see under the surface of the water; he decided to rest on the bank in the cool shade and figure out how he was going to safely cross.
In the nearby bushes, many rabbits were watching the old fox. Soon their curious minds got the best of them so they slowly approached the resting fox. When they neared the fox they asked the wise old fox why he was sitting by the river and staring at it? “I’m sitting here using my wisdom to come up with a plan to cross the river,” he said. “One must have a plan. If you do not have a plan, then one can not build a strong bridge to safely cross the river.” This made sense to the rabbits and who was going to challenge a wise old fox. So the rabbits sat with the old fox waiting for the answer to his question. For many days they sat there waiting.
One day, a jaguar came to the river’s edge. This jaguar was huge. The jaguar walked to the edge of the river and then swam across the river.
A few minutes later, a tiny mouse came to the river. The tiny mouse first looked upstream, then downstream. Finding a thin tree branch that reached over the river the tiny mouse climbed the tree and crossed the river without getting one tiny foot wet.
The rabbits saw the jaguar swim the river and the tiny mouse cross the river so they wondered why they couldn’t swim or find a strong tree branch to cross the river. So they continued to wait until the wise old fox had a plan.

This story starts with a Jackrabbit.

Well, Jackrabbit was walking down the street until he saw a snake, named Slippers.

Together, Slippers and Jackrabbit continued to walk until they came to an empty flowerpot. They picked up the flowerpot and put it on Jackrabbit’s back.

Well these two friends, with their pot, were walking down the trail when they decided to stop because they saw an Alaskan Bull Moose. The Bull Moose said, “Put the pot on my back and tell me where we are going.”

Walking together they came to a rainforest, and of course it was raining. The empty pot on the back of the moose filled with water.

So they stopped for a minute to rest and guess what they saw? They saw two deer.

Again, the group started walking and were joined by the two deer. They walked until they came to some rocky hills and caves.

In the hills, they found a large bone and put it on the back of the two xxx videos deer.

They began to walk again and came to a house. This house was so nice they wanted to stay for a year.

Deciding to stay, they removed the full pot of water and the bone from the backs of the two deer and moose. And, they rested.

The children who lived in the house came outside and saw the animals lying on the lawn so they told their mother.

The children’s mother put dirt into the pot with the water. Then she planted a seed.

The bone? Well…it went to a museum.