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Songs for Anzac Day

In Memoriam

Vic MacDonald 1998

In recent times, children have been encouraged to attend the Anzac Day dawn parade at one of New Zealand's 460 World War One memorials.
Guitar capo on 3rd fret, play these chord shapes
Em
Fires burned in Europe, 
    D                  Em
Our young men gathered round,
     C
They emptied out our cities
        G                 D 
And our farms and country towns:
   C                     
We gave them 3 months training
      G                 D
And a farewell hometown dance
        Em
Then we sent them off to battle
      D           Em
in Gallipoli, and France.

        C                                D
And the man from Naseby saw the Angel of Mons
    Em                D             Em
The boys from Mosgiel bled into the Somme
       C                                     G
"We'll fight for home and freedom" was their cry
        Em             D              Em
As they sailed away to battle, and to die.

Another generation, 
Another bloody war
The sons of the survivors
Came from Oamaru and Gore
They fought across the ocean
On land and air and sea,
They fought with muscle, bone, and blood
To keep our country free.

Now as you go from town to town
In our lovely, empty land
See proudly in the heart of town
A soldier's statue stands.
Memorial in granite stone
It tears against the sky.
Around its base the names of sons
And brothers who have died

The man from Naseby saw the Angel of Mons
The boys from Mosgiel bled into the Somme
"We'll fight for home and freedom" was their cry
As they sailed away to battle, and to die.

We have no unknown soldier
These are not forgotten men
But cousins, uncles, neighbours
Who will never laugh again. 
But they'll not be forgotten
For the price they had to pay. 
For their children's children's children
Will still march on Anzac Day
No, they'll not be forgotten
For the price they had to pay. 
For their children's children's children
Will still march on Anzac Day.  
     
Glenorchy, Otago





     
Santha Holland,
at the Dawn Parade on Anzac Day,
Henderson 2003




The Tune of In Memoriam

Here is the first verse in a 170k MP3 of Vic McDonald singing this song.

And here is the full length 650k MP3
It will take about 2 minutes to download with a 56k modem.

Vic McDonald

Vic McDonald is a Dunedin school teacher. He is member of the pub band Shiner.

Other members of the band are Steve Barkman, Adrian Higgins and Kevin McLaughlin. In the year 2000 they released the CD Kiss the Kilkenny. They have just relased a new CD. For more information phone Kevin at 03 476 335.

Soldier War Memorials

Now as you go from town to town
In our lovely, empty land
See proudly in the heart of town
A soldier's statue stands

In 1914, at the beginning of the Great War, there were one million people living in New Zealand. Then 100,000 of them, mostly young men, went away to war, at the other end of the earth. Of these, 18,000 died and failed to return home, and 40,000 returned home wounded.

This gave great impetus to the building of memorials. They were a tangible sign of the dead whose graves were so remote or non-existent. Communities of all sizes, from large cities to remote settlements, built memorials to those young men who haddied in the war. Over 450 memorials were put up during the 1920s. About 35 of these were statutes of soldiers, mostly carved in Italy, from marble.

       
Memorial in granite stone
It tears against the sky.

These soldier memorials are at Palmerston (Cental Otago), Wanganui, and Murchison.
Many more can be seen at NZHistory.net.nz and at Greatwar.org.nz


This next Anzac song is more complex and you need more resources to perform it, but it is beautiful to listen to.

Promises to keep

Brendan Connor 2002

New Zealand's largest World War I training camp was in Featherston.
30,000 men were trained there during World War I.

Play a short 170k MP3 sample of Brendan and Wild Geese singing this song.
Or listen to the full length 790k MP3 from their CD Promises to Keep.
Rain on the wind
Norwester on the break
Snow-clad distant mountains
Shadows on the lake
Safe haven
Safe haven for young men

You are all gone
And the flags no longer crack amid the cheers
It's been so long
And the memories are dulled by passing years
But here amongst these stony fields
Winter's weary shadow steals
And your voices linger on the breeze

March on march on
March on march on
Promises to keep
But miles to go before you sleep
March on march on


Gallant heroes all good men
Drilled and honed in Featherston
March stoic ripe and eager for their fate
Brothers cousins husbands sons
Wagons horses bugles drums
Trooping to the summit like a snake

Rain on the wind
Norwester on the break
Snow clad distant mountains
Shadows on the lake
Safe haven
Safe haven for young men

You are all gone
And your tents and wooden barracks stand no more
It's been so long
Each passing day a closing door
But here beneath this sallow sky
Now and ever sanctified
Your voices will linger on the breeze

March on march on
March on march on
Promises to keep
But miles to go before you sleep
March on march
March on march on
March on march on



But here amongst these stony fields...

Soldiers parading on one of the stony fields at Featherston Military Camp, 1918
(Turnbull Library)


Trooping to the summit like a snake...

The 9th Reinforcements marching over the Rimutaka Ranges Dec 1915
(Turnbull Library)

But I have promises to keep . . .

Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening

Whose woods these are I think I know.
His house is in the village though;
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow....

The woods are lovely, dark and deep.
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep

Robert Frost, 1923




This gentle and achingly poignant song for Anzac day is from the early 70s and is part of Dave's UK repertoire - hence he talks of Remembrance Day (Nov 11th) rather than Anzac Day

Goodnight Ruby

Dave Jordan 1974

Dave has been a professional songwriter for 30 years. He has written vivid ballads (Hills of Coromandal, Gutboard Blues). But now he is no longer able to sing his own songs, due to a chronic illness. So here are his lyrics, and his computer-generated tune. It is up to you to do them justice.

Play Dave's 740k MP3 and sing his lyrics to bring this song alive for him.
C                 F   G     C
Heading home on remembrance day
         Am          D      G
Slowing down in the autumn cold
C  G    C              F     G Am
In your scarf and your green beret
        Em             F      Dm          G        C
And you can't help but wonder how you've grown so old


              F       G    C
		Called away by a waking dream
     C/c  C/b Am/a C/g D              G
		Brave old soldier running out of steam
             F              G    Am
		Blows a kiss to the evening skies
      F          C   D        G            C
		Good night Ruby with the stars in her eyes

There's a face in a photograph
That you've treasured the long years through
Just a trace of her distant laugh
And you pray there's a heaven and she waits for you

		Called away by a waking dream
		Brave old soldier running out of steam
		Blows a kiss to the evening skies
		Good night Ruby with the stars in her eyes
		(And then an instrumental interlue here ??)

Set 'em up for the whole damn crew
Raise a glass to your absent friends
Just a ghost of the gang you knew
And you can't help but wonder will you meet again

		Called away by a waking dream
		Brave old soldier running out of steam
		Blows a kiss to the evening skies
		Good night Ruby with the stars in her eyes

(Repeat chorus at end, as indicated in melody of mp3
 with final lines 
'Goodnight Ruby, Goodnight Ruby, 
Goodnight Ruby with the stars........in her eyes')


Brave old soldier
running out of steam...


Alec Campbell of Hobart, Australia,was the last Anzac.

He was aged 16 when he landed at Gallipoli in 1915,

Here he is on Anzac Day in 2001.

More details

 


Mr Turnbull wrote this after visiting his uncle's grave at Monte Cassino in 2005.

For That Tomorrow

Nigel Turnbull © 2006

I stand here alone with loved ones to hand
My tributes to lay on this salient land.
The voices within as mem'ries unfold
Of a comrade at peace now who shall grow not old.

A tree gives me shade in gardens so fine
A stone with inscription that goes beyond time.
The headstones are neat in rows marching past
And the names of the fallen, forever will last.

A son kneels to touch his father's cold stone
A tear in his eye for a friend long since gone
A woman stands proud, with medals on show
For a husband who died that his children might grow

Recorded in stone and gun metal grey
Those heroes in silence look down as we pray
The standard is dip't, the flowers are laid
Then the music is sounded and homage is paid.

They left us a torch to carry with pride
And hope for a future where peace can abide.
I dream of a life, that's lived without fear
It is for that tomorrow our people lie here.

Cassino War Cemetery
Cassino War Cemetery, Italy

"Dedicated to my uncle, Private James Cram Turnbull, who was killed in action in 1942 at the age of 22 years"

Nigel J.C. Turnbull ..............
remembrancedaysong.com


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Published on web April 2004