waltzing matilda

     

"Waltzing Matila" is Australia's most widely known folk song, and has been referred to as 'the unofficial national anthem of Australia'.

Trivia about waltzing matilda

  • Bush poet A.B. Paterson, who died in 1941, wrote the words to this internationally famous song
  • Andrew Paterson wrote this ballad that begins "Once a jolly swagman camped by a billabong"
  • "Banjo" Paterson, known for his "bush ballads", wrote this song, 1st published in 1917
  • This Australian song says, "Once a jolly swagman camped by a billabong, under the shade of a coolibah tree"
  • Title of this song, which actually means "to tramp the roads with a backpack"
  • In the second verse of this Australian song, a jumbuck, or sheep, comes to drink at a water hole
  • This Aussie song mentions "a jolly swagman" "under the shade of a coolibah tree"
  • Rachel Griffiths' son Banjo is named for the man who wrote this song of her native Australia
  • The title of this popular song refers to wandering with a blanket roll, not a dance or a lady