George Lambert's Anzac, the landing 1915, depicting the landing at Anzac Cove.

"And The Band Played Waltzing Matilda" is a song, written by Eric Bogle in 1972, describing the futility, gruesome reality and the destruction of war, while criticising those who seek to glorify or promote war. This is exemplified in the song by the account of a young conscript soldier of the battle of Gallipoli between Australian, New Zealand Great Britain and Newfoundland(Allies) and Turkish (Central Powers) forces during the First World War. The song is a vivid recount of the memories of a young Australian man who, in World War I, had been sent to Gallipoli -- who "for ten weary weeks" kept himself alive as "around me the corpses piled higher". He recalls "that terrible day" ... "in the hell that they called Suvla Bay we were butchered like lambs at the slaughter" ... "in that mad world of blood, death and fire". In its clear and stark retelling of the events of the battle and its aftermath, it is a passionate indictment of war in general. Painting of Anzac, the landing 1915 by George Lambert, 1922. ... Painting of Anzac, the landing 1915 by George Lambert, 1922. ... A number of people are named George Lambert: George Lambert (Australian rules footballer), played for Fitzroy Football Club in the early 20th century George Lambert (baritone) (1900–1971), Canadian baritone player George Lambert (English painter) (1700–1765), English landscape painter George Lambert (tennis player), real tennis world champion (1871–1885... Combatants Australia, New Zealand Ottoman Empire Commanders William Birdwood Mustafa Kemal Strength 2 divisions 1 battalion 1 div. ... Eric Bogle (born September 23, 1944) is a Scottish-born Australian singer and songwriter. ... Combatants British Empire Australia India Newfoundland New Zealand United Kingdom France Ottoman Empire Commanders Sir Ian Hamilton Otto von Sanders Mustafa Kemal Atatürk Strength 5 divisions (initial) 14 divisions (final)[] 6 divisions[] Casualties 284,000[] 251,000[] The Battle of Gallipoli took place at Gallipoli from April 1915 to... For other uses, see Newfoundland (disambiguation). ... Look up ally in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Triple Alliance. ... Ypres, 1917, in the vicinity of the Battle of Passchendaele. ... Combatants Allied Powers: Russian Empire France British Empire Italy United States Central Powers: Austria-Hungary German Empire Ottoman Empire Bulgaria Commanders Nikolay II Aleksey Brusilov Georges Clemenceau Joseph Joffre Ferdinand Foch Robert Nivelle Herbert H. Asquith D. Lloyd George Sir Douglas Haig Sir John Jellicoe Victor Emmanuel III Luigi Cadorna... Combatants British Empire Australia India Newfoundland New Zealand United Kingdom France Ottoman Empire Commanders Sir Ian Hamilton Otto von Sanders Mustafa Kemal Atatürk Strength 5 divisions (initial) 14 divisions (final)[] 6 divisions[] Casualties 284,000[] 251,000[] The Battle of Gallipoli took place at Gallipoli from April 1915 to... Suvla is a bay on the Aegean coast of the Gallipoli peninsula in Turkey, south of the Gulf of Saros. ...

The song incorporates the melody and a few lines of "Waltzing Matilda's" lyrics at its conclusion. Cover versions of the song have been performed and recorded by the Clancy Brothers, June Tabor, Slim Dusty, John Williamson, The Dubliners, Joan Baez, Skids, Christy Moore, Mike Harding, John McDermitt, The Fenians, Jolie Holland, and the Pogues. Midnight Oil has a live version of the song which has circulated on the Internet. The Pogues cover is perhaps the best-known version; critic Robert Christgau wrote that Pogues vocalist Shane McGowan "never lets go of it for a second: he tests the flavor of each word before spitting it out." [1] Waltzing Matilda is usually sung in informal settings, but it was played with a 90 piece orchestra and the 100 voice Melbourne Chorale at the 2005 Classical Spectacular Waltzing Matilda is Australias most widely known folk song, and one that has been popularly suggested as a potential national anthem... In popular music, a cover version, or simply cover, is a new rendition (performance or recording) of a previously recorded song. ... Irish folk music band, most popular in the 1960s, who are often credited with popularizing Irish traditional music in the United States. ... June Tabor (born 1947) is an English folk singer. ... David Gordon Slim Dusty Kirkpatrick, AO, OBE (June 13, 1927—September 19, 2003) was an iconic Australian country music singer-songwriter. ... John Williamson was born in 1945 and was raised in Mallee, Victoria, Australia. ... The Dubliners are an Irish folk band founded in 1962, making them one of the older bands still playing music today. ... Joan Chandos Baez (born January 9, 1941) is an American folk singer and songwriter known for her highly individual vocal style. ... Punk band from Dunfermline, in Scotland founded in 1977 by Stuart Adamson (1958-2001, ON guitar, vocals), [[Richard Jobson (1960- vocals), Tom Kellichan (drums) and Willie Simpson (bass). ... Christy Moore (born on May 7, 1945, in Newbridge, County Kildare) is a popular Irish folk singer and guitarist, well known as one of the founding members of Planxty. ... Mike Harding (born 23 October 1944) is a British singer and comedian. ... Former member of The Be Good Tanyas, Texas native Jolie Holland records country music and folk music in a manner that conveys the spontaneous nature of her performance. ... The Pogues were a popular Irish folk/punk band of the 1980s. ... Midnight Oil was an Australian rock band active from the early 1970s until 2003. ... Robert Christgau (2006) Robert Christgau (sometimes abbreviated in print to Xgau), born April 18, 1942, is an American essayist, music journalist, and the self-declared Dean of American Rock Critics[1] His first reviews were published by Esquire in 1967. ... Shane Patrick Lysaght MacGowan (born December 25, 1957) is an Irish musician. ...

The song is often praised for its haunting imagery of the devastation at Gallipoli. The protagonist in the story loses his legs in the battle, and after the war notes the passing of other veterans with time, as younger generations become apathetic to the veterans and their cause. The song, written in 1972, has also been interpreted as paralleling with the Vietnam War. The song rails against jingoism and the romanticising of war. As the old man sits on his porch, and watches the veterans march past every ANZAC Day: "The young people ask what are they marching for, and I ask myself the same question". Gallipoli peninsula (Turkish: , Greek: ) is located in Turkish Thrace, the European part of Turkey, with the Aegean Sea to the west and the Dardanelles straits to the east. ... Former crewmembers of the battleship Missouri pose for photos shortly after the Anniversary of the End of World War II ceremony, held aboard the famous ship. ... Combatants Republic of Vietnam United States Republic of Korea Thailand Australia New Zealand The Philippines National Front for the Liberation of South Vietnam Democratic Republic of Vietnam People’s Republic of China Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea Strength US 1,000,000 South Korea 300,000 Australia 48,000... Jingoism is a term describing chauvinistic patriotism, usually with a hawkish political stance. ... ANZAC Day Dawn Service at Australian War Memorial, 25 April 2005, 90th anniversary Australia and New Zealand commemorate the ANZAC Day public holiday on 25 April every year to honour the bravery and sacrifice of the members of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC), and of all those...

American Vietnam veteran and Medal of Honor winner Senator Bob Kerrey sang the song to his supporters at the end of his Presidential campaign in 1992, and borrowed the first line for the title of his autobiography, When I Was A Young Man: A Memoir. Joseph Robert Bob Kerrey (born August 27, 1943) was the Democratic Governor of Nebraska from 1983 to 1987, and a U.S. Senator from Nebraska (1989–2001). ...

Larrikin Publishing is the copyright holder of the song.

Factual Inaccuracy

The second verse of the song describes an amphibious assault by Australian troops at Suvla Bay. The landing at Suvla was actually carried out entirely by British soldiers and was only lightly opposed. Bogle has said that he included the reference to Suvla partly because most Australians connect it with Gallipoli, and partly because it made for an easier rhyme. [2] Additionally, the reference to tin hats is anachronistic - they were in fact not issued until 1916.

See also

• No Man's Land (Eric Bogle song)

The grave of a Willie McBride, died 1916. ...

External links

• Eric Bogle's Lyrics page at ericbogle.net, the author's official website
• Audio of 'And the Band Played Waltzing Matilda' - sung by Eric Bogle and played by the Franklyn B. Paverty Bush Band
• A version by Just Dan
• A 2002 interview with Eric Bogle about the song from the Sydney Morning Herald