Songbooks
about our Kiwi way of life
Some of the songs in these books are
ballads crafted and sung by workers, others have been
written by educated city people in imitation of these
folk ballads, and many started out as commercial
entertainment on dance floors, radio and TV.
Maori
Songbooks
I'm
a Pakeha, and most familiar with the 20th century Maori
action songs that are performed almost every
day in concerts, using Western tunes. For 90 years the
most popular of these songs have been published in books
and on recordings. When we compare versions of the
same song from different decades, we can see the
folk-process of composition, selection and modification
transforming the songs in response to the social changes
that have occurred over the decades, eg Po
Atarau, Hoea Ra, He
Puru Taitama, Matangi.
And
here are some books about traditional Maori song,
although my knowledge of Maori language and literature
is not good enough for me to study of the folk process
in them, except to observe the origin of some
Rugby haka, eg Ruaumoko
=> Ko Niu Tireni
=> Kapa o Pango.
My
suggestions for beginners to buy
Kiwi songs of the twentieth century - Spittle's Counting
the Beat
Folk ballads of New Zealand life from the 1930s to the
60s - The Life & Songs of Peter Cape
Old
songs about the work of colonial Pakeha men
- Worsfolds' Colonial Heritage Songs
Women's
songs, sung in Maori but familiar to Pakeha
- Taewa's He Koha.
Counting
the Beat,
A History of New Zealand Song
Gordon
Spittle
 GP
Publications 1997
This
book started out as a collection of local songs
to be used as a guitar tutor, so it has the
lyrics and guitar chords of fifty popular New
Zealand songs, from the ancient but enduring
Maori stick game chant E
Papa and the old rugby anthem On
The Ball, through Opo
the Dolphin and Cheryl
Moana Marie, to the Finn brothers' Always
Take the Weather with You and the
Muttonbirds' Dominion Road.
But beyond that Gordon discusses the when and
why of the songs and their composers. It is an
eclectic collection of revealing biographies and
interviews.
You get to meet people like Maewa Kaihua (Po
Atarau, Now Is the Hour), Tex
Morton, Ruru Karatiana (Blue
Smoke), Johnny Devlin, Willow
Macky, Howard Morrison, Peter
Cape, Ray Columbus, Dave
Jordan, Dave McArtney (Hello Sailor),
Sharon O'Neill, Dave Dobbin, Patsy Riggir and Davanius
Prime. You can buy it online HERE
It
has no music scores in it, and no CD, so if you
are not a New Zealander who grew up with these
songs, then you may have problems.
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An
Ordinary Joker
The Life & Songs of Peter
Cape
compiled
by Roger Steele
108
pages, plus enclosed CD
Steele
Roberts 2001
I'm
an ordinary joker, growin' old before my
time
For
m' heart's in Ta'm'ranui, on the Main Trunk
Line...
 Peter
Cape spent his 1930s childhood in the valleys
between Taumarunui and Whangarei, constantly
travelling with his Yorkshire immigrant
parents selling farmhouse necessities from a
small van.
In
1950s Wellington, he wanted to become a poet,
but the rural Kiwi voices in his ballads
caught the attention of a former English
colony looking for its own national identity.
As
well as the iconic Cape songs that we have
been singing for decades -- Taumarunui,
Down the
Hall, She'll
be Right, Stable
Lad, Okaihau
Express, Black
Matai, Rainbird
in the Tea-tree, -- there are some
gems more rarely sung -- Nativity,
Taumata...,
Talking
Dog, Charlies'
Bash, Spell-Oh, You Can't Win,
Inter-island Steamer Express, Coffee Bar
Blues -- and some that are quite new to
me -- Monde Marie, Gumdigger, Old Joe
Becher, Scotty the Roadman, Mary the
Drover's Daughter, Tramcar, She's a Great
Little Town and The A & P Show.
Arthur
Toms has transcribed the tunes of these songs
in their original format, artist Barbara
Hefford has drawn wry illustrations for her
former husband's songs, Roger Steele has
written a thorough study of Cape's fragmented
life -- backblocks kid, university arts
student, poet, minister, journalist, arts
editor, small farmer -- and Cape's family have
provided a host of photographs.
This
is a cultural treat for all New Zealanders,
whether singers, CD enthusiasts, poetry
readers, or those searching for their cultural
and spiritual identity.
This book is a collective work of love; for a
way of life now past, and for the man himself.
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 Colonial
Heritage Songs
Bill
& Kath Worsfold
Gumdiggers
Press, 1999
For
five years Bill and Kath travelled aound New
Zealand schools re-creating our colonial past
with these songs. Some of the songs are about
whaling, goldmining and shearing and have been
culled from other colonial song collections
emphasizing South Island experiences.
But Bill & Kath live in Northland - Bill's
ancestry includes a Portuguese whaler who
married a local Nga Puhi girl - and there are
also songs they have collected with a Northern
flavour, about gum-digging, timber-milling and
coastal shipping, like Gumdiggers in 1899,
Timber I want to go and The Ancient
Mariner.
This
little booklet has the words, chords, music and
background details of 18 songs. It will fit
happily into your guitar case, and a CD comes
with it.
Some, especially South Islanders,
may prefer to buy Phil Garland's larger book,
The Singing Kiwi.
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He
Koha
 Blossom
Taewa
Raupo Publishing 2001
A scrupulously edited book of ten longtime
popular singalong Maori songs, each with an
English translation, guitar chords and a
simplified music score, plus some background
information.
Most older Pakeha women will know these songs,
and will respond to the emotions expressed in
them: Pokarekare Ana, Tomo Mai
(Hoki Mai), Pa Mai, Me He Manu Rere,
He Putiputi Koe, Hoea Hoea Ra, Hoki Hoki Tonu
Mai and Putiputi Kaneihana.
Pianists and choirmasters might prefer the full
piano scores of the similar Inia Te
Wiata's Maori Songbook, with
singable English lyrics (though not accurate
translations).
Backing musicians who want a compact little
booklet with the first verse, melody lines and
guitar chords for fifty or so of the most
popular Maori songs, might prefer Keith
Southern's Century of Maori Song.li
New visitors to marae will
find Kare Leathem's Waiata Mai: 35 Maori
Songs most useful.
All
four of these songbooks have companion CDs to
help you learn the songs.
Full details of all available Maori Action Song
books are HERE
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2009
- Coming Soon
'The
Phil Garland Songbook'
this will bring all Phil's work up to
date....mostly his original songs.
- to be published by Kiwi Pacific Records in
the very near future.
Neil
Colquhoun has updated 'Songs of a
Young Country'
and he has added a further 23 songs
- this will be published sometime this year by
Steele Roberts. |
Faces
in the Firelight
Phil
Garland
Steele
Roberts Publishing Ltd, Wellington, NZ 2009
An in-depth look at Kiwi history
through a swag of songs about sealers,
whalers, pioneers, goldminers, drifters,
rogues and scoundrels, shearers, stockmen,
gumdiggers, hard drinkers and
moonshiners in company with a
colourful collection of tall stories, bush
verse, yarns, toasts and ditties.
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Hear
Our Voices, We Entreat
Max
Cryer
 Exisle
Publishing Ltd, Titirangi, Auckland, 2001
Max correctly describes his book as "the
extraordinary story of New Zealand's
national anthems," (plural). And it
is an extraordinary journey through the
mindset of 19th century New Zealand
colonists as they competed to find anthems
and symbols of their identity.
As well as the story of Bracken's "God
Defend New Zealand," which you can read in
part on this website HERE
there is the history of other competing
lyrics and sheet music covers dedicated to
Maoriland, Zealandia, Dominion of Beauty and
Sons of Motherland.
Kiri
Te Kanawa's comment in the foreward is
perceptive: she notes how when she was
young, it was played as a mournful brass
band tune. But gradually it came to be sung
by New Zealanders with pride. "The song has
identity - and the identity is ours."
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The Singing Kiwi
Willie
Wag Productions 1996
 Printed
in Australia by a desktop publisher, with a
useful spiral binding, it rounds off the
collections of Neil Colquhoun and Les
Cleveland with 120 more on-the-edge-of-New
Zealand songs.
About 60 of these are either written by Phil
himself, or are other people's rhymes Phil
has put a tune to. It is solid evidence of
Phil's lifetime of effort collecting,
singing, writing and recording
folksongs. In most of these songs you hear
the voices of sailors, gold-miners, swaggers
and high-country shepherds, isolated men on
the edge of their world.
These songs are best experienced at a
bush-band dance, while you are stomping
around a back-country hall and singing along
to lively bush-dance songs like Wool
Away Jack, and The Wool Commandeer.
Then, while you are slumped exhausted on the
plank-seating, a massive, bearded singer
with a 12 string guitar regales you with a
stirring rendition of The Stable Lad,
Farewell to Geraldine, or Smoko!
Spello!.
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The Great New Zealand Songbook
Les
Cleveland
 Godwit
Press 1991
Very
nicely produced in the style of Song of
a Young Country and contains several
songs from that earlier songbook. Lyrics,
melody, guitar chords, lots of documentary
photographs and scholarly notes.
Les Cleveland (bushman, soldier, balladeer,
photographer, university lecturer) has
special knowledge of World War II army
songs, and post-war tramping songs: I love
his inclusion of the poignant Rolling
Wheels and Dear Mr Fraser, and
the boisterous No Boots, and No
More Double-Bunking.
But can a book that omits the Chesdale
Cheese Song really claim to be
the great New Zealand songbook?
Read
more about Cleveland and his work with
folksong and other popular NZ artforms in "
Les Cleveland: Six Decades" (Victoria
University Press 1998)
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The Metsers Songbook
 Publisher
unknown 1987
Paul brought out this book after leaving NZ
and working as a professional folk singer in
the UK for several years. The book, complete
with melodies, lyrics, chords, illustrations
and photographs, contains about 50 of his
songs, including the NZ folk standards Farewell
To The Gold, The
Seal Children and The Swag
and the Shiner.
For
those who revel in such guitar tunings as
DADGAD or CGCGCD, or finely crafted songs
with ecological spirituality, this should be
a goldmine.
For copies of the songbook, or just to send
Paul cheery NZ folkie greetings, write or
phone:
Mint Cottage, Gilthwaiterigg lane, Kendal,
Cumbria (Lakes District)
LA9 6NT, United Kingdom. Phone 44 (0) 1538
724707.
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A Homestead in New Zealand
Kiwi
Pacific, 1987
It describes itself as "The music of the
settlers and pioneers from the early days to
today." It is notable for including a song
writen and sung by Barry
Crump, "A Dog Called Blue. A
useful little booklet of words, chords, and
music of a dozen songs, plus tourist
information, included with a cassette issued
by Kiwi Pacific
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 NZ
Folk Foundation
'Scrub
and Blackberry'
Cityfolk Music Company 1981
A
selection of songs from the NZFF's 1981 folk
songwriting competition. Lyrics, melody and
guitar chords.
A nice little paperback with songs mainly by
Paul Bond (Scrub and Blackberry),
Kath Tait (Song For an Old Lady),
Rudy Sunde (Seasons in the Valley),
John Archer (Super-man),
and Val Neimann (Flop yer Belly).
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Black Billy Tea,
New Zealand Ballads
Joe
Charles
 Whitcoulls
1981
Joe
Charles was a South Island farmer who wrote
bush ballads, lively ones, telling stories
which create vivid pictures in your head.
This is is happy book to read, and to hum
along to. It is beautifully produced, with
lots of illustrations, and notes about the
origin of his songs.
And
a challenge to musicians! You must put your
own tunes to most of the lyrics. There
are no melody lines or chord sequences, and
few recordings available. (McKenzie
and his dog, Around the Coleridge run,
The phosphate flyers, Black
billy tea on Les Cleveland's 1950s
45 record - Wool away Jack on Phil
Garland's 1975 LP - Wool away Jack, Billy
on the boil on Graeme Wilson's 1982
LP - Billy on the Boil on Cats
Been Spayed's 1993 CD - Black billy
blues on Phil Garland's 2001 CD)
But no worries; each song has its own unique
rhyme and rhythm, perfectly suited to the
content of the ballad. The tunes practically
jump out at you as you read the words.
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Song of a Young Country,
New Zealand Folksongs
 Neil
Colquhoun
AH
& AW Reed Ltd 1972
Beautifully
produced. Lyrics, melody, guitar chords, and
notes for 50 songs, mostly old 19th century
ballads.
It sings of whalers and sealers (including
the much-recorded Davy
Lowston ), settlers, gumdiggers,
gold prospectors and rogues. In the early
20th century we meet the swaggers and rural
farm workers, and it concludes with union
songs.
You can listen to all the songs on a
companion LP, Songs of a Young Country.
Neil
Colquhoun and Roger Steele are currently
preparing a revised and extended version of
this book.
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Shanties By The Way
 Rona
Bailey & Herbert Roth
Whitcombe & Tombs, Christchurch 1967
A
collection of 79 songs and recitations,
ranging from whaling, sealing and goldmining
days to contempory ballads, with some
musical arrangements and brief supporting
notes.
This
was a ground-breaking piece of research. A
most useful book, and many of the songs in
it have been repeatedly recorded. From the
19th century come David Lowston, Come
all you tonguers, The New Chum, Bright
fine gold, The Wakamarina, The shanty by
the way, The digger's farewell, Waitakauri
everytime, I've traded with the Maoris, He
came from Maoriland and Shearing's
coming round.
And
songs written closer to 1967 have also
flourished: Old Billy Kirk, The magpies,
Down the Hall, By the wild Cardrona., and
Down on my luck.
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Tararua Song Book
TTC PO Box 1008 Wellington 1971
 This
notebook-sized songster has the words of
about 80 of the songs that were sung by
young office and factory workers when they
headed away for a weekend of exercise and
socializing with the opposite sex in the
mountains behind Wellington. The songs tell
of their adventures, both alpine and sexual.
Away,
away with billy and pack, a rollicking
down the mountain track,
we'll
all get lost and never come back, in the
Tararua Ranges.
The
first forty are mostly lyrics that Tony
Nolan and Harold Gretton set to well-known
tunes like Rio Grande, Isle of Capri and The
Workers Flag (I used to be a mountaineer,
but now I sit and guzzle beer) Some of
them have become classics: Good Keen Man, No
More Double-Bunking, No Boots at All, Anna
Hooch. A
selection of these lyrics, and their tunes,
are HERE
The
second half of the book are singalong songs,
some old, some bawdy, all with good
choruses: Green grow the Rushes O, Tavern in
the Town, Klondyke Kate, Home on the Range,
Keyhole at the Door, Oh You Can't get to
Heaven.
Others big tramping clubs in the same era
produced similar songsters.
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The Songs We Sang
 Editorial
Services Limited: Wellington 1959
Les
Cleveland served with the 25th Battalion in
Italy, and collected songs Kiwi soldiers
were singing there. In this collection he
also includes songs from North Africa
collected by Jim Henderson.
Mafeesh
hasheesh, I have no hubbly bubbly,
I'd love to do what all good Kiwis do,
I'd like to take you by the river, in my
V8 army flivver,
My little Gyppo bint, you're kwise
kateer.
 Some
have been borrowed from the British Army - O'Reilly's
Daughter, I Don't Want to be a Soldier, My
A25 etc - while others use tunes of
hymns and popular songs to express the
Kiwis' feelings: frustration in Trentham and
Waiouru, coping with the sand and flies and
German shell fire in North Africa, nostalgia
in Italy, Dear Mister Fraser, won't you
take us home? And songs of bitterness
in Fiji, being poorly equipped there, and
away from the real fighting.
Though they had no ammunition, they
were chock full of ambition,
As they waited in their camps beside the
sea.
Les
took the best of these songs and made a
couple of LPs in wartime bar-room style.
Sample MP3s from these are now on a
university folklore website.
The
Songs we Sang LP - More
Songs We Sang LP
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Boomerang
Songsters
When I was a boy at Mangamahu in the 1940s and 50s, we
did a lot of singing, mostly of the songs we had
learnt from the hit parade on the radio. The words of
the latest of these songs were in the latest Boomerang
Songster, published every six months by Albert's
in Australia.
Children
Song of Maoriland
Beside my Aunty May's piano was an Irish songbook and
the sheet music of Now is the Hour, Sons of the
Anzacs, Come oh Maidens and Blue Smoke, and my aunt
taught me Dulcie and the Moa that she had learnt from
the Children Song of Maoriland. But there was
no book of New Zealand men's working songs. The rough
pub songs of working men were kept at a distance from
women's prim parlour songs.
Songsheets
for special occasions
At
anniverary and farewell dinners the hostess
distributed cyclostyed songsheets of verses praising
the honoured guests, set to tunes everyone knew. "It's
a long way to Whakatane, and we're sad to see you
go..." But these verses were not published: the
women composed them fresh for every new occasion.
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Reference
Books
When
The Pakeha Sings of Home,
A Source Guide to the Folk
& Popular Songs of New Zealand
Godwit
Press 1992
Mike spent several years in libraries and
the Radio New Zealand record archives
researching NZ songs. This book contains
marvellous lists of locally made songs:-
colonial songs, around-the-piano songs,
wartime songs, tramping songs, and all those
songs we heard on the hit parades and at
parties and thought we had forgotten.
He also has them cross-indexed to other
lists of all the records and songbooks where
you can still find the songs. Or you can
hear Mike himself; he now travels the
country singing the best of these songs
live.
And
for the academically inclined, he also has
an exhaustive bibliography of books.
articles and songbooks.
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 Mervyn
McLean
Auckland
University Press, 1996
480 pages.
This is a study of ancient Maori musical
tradition and knowledge, and an exploration
of the impact of European music on this
tradition. It draws on diverse written and
oral sources, and includes some 1300
recorded songs, interviews with singers and
numerous eyewitness accounts.
McLean went all over New Zealand with a
Grundig tape recorder in the 1950s and
recorded over 800 tribal songs. He seems to
have spent the next 40 years analysing those
tapes and building on the knowledge he
gained.
There are lots of interesting anecdotes as
well as musicological information. It is
well illustrated with many musical examples.
His description of the communal folk process
that was used to craft and shape a new Maori
song is especially interesting.
Mervyn McLean was until recently an
associate professor of Ethnomusicology and
head of the Archive of Maori and Pacific
Music at the University of Auckland, New
Zealand.
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More
NZ Folk Music Books
See
Harding, or the
bibliographies at the back of the
Spittle and Cleveland
songbooks.
More Maori songbooks and the titles of the songs
in them, with brief descriptions of the books,
can be found here at Maori
Songbook contents
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