''A Swag of Aussie Poetry'', originally ''Out of the Bluegums (150 Years of Australian Verse)'', is a mid-1980s recording project with celebrity voices reciting or singing Australian poetry. The compilation consists of 53 works of prose and verse from writers across Australia's literary landscape, and features 31 narrators delivering a mix of folk ballads and bush poetry from the 1800s through to 20th century prose, and lyrical songs reflecting on life in their country. It was released originally as a

double album A double album (or double record) is an audio album that spans two units of the primary medium in which it is sold, typically either records or compact disc. A double album is usually, though not always, released as such because the recording i ...

and a double

cassette Cassette may refer to: Technology * Cassette tape (or ''musicassette'', ''audio cassette'', ''cassette tape'', or ''tape''), a worldwide standard for analog audio recording and playback ** Cassette single (or "Cassingle"), a music single in the ...

on J&B Records in 1984 with 50 tracks. The compilation was produced by

Gene Pierson Gene Pierson (born Giancarlo Salvestrin, 29 April 1946) is a musician, who had an early solo career in New Zealand and then in Australia. His 1960s and early 1970s songs, "Love, Love, Love", "You Got to Me" and "Reach Out", achieved local chart ...

– born as Giancarlo Salvestrin,. In 2010 the material was digitally re-mastered as a 2-CD set on the Lifestyle Music label which was released on 2 August 2010. Pierson lamented the death of many contributing artists since the original album, "the fact this compilation has been re-mastered 25 years after they made their contributions means this is not only a memorial to our great poets but to those people who bought their words alive again for listeners in the 21st century". The cover art was by Australian outback painter,

Pro Hart Kevin Charles "Pro" Hart, MBE (30 May 192828 March 2006), was an Australian artist, born in Broken Hill, New South Wales, who was considered the father of the Australian Outback painting movement and his works are widely admired for capturi ...

. In Australia it appeared in September the following year. The CD cover art is by Jenny Glaze and is based on ''The Swagman'', circa 1908.

Poets and writers

Nancy (Nan) May McDonald,

Douglas Stewart Douglas Stewart may refer to: *Douglas Stewart (poet) (1913–1985), Australian poet *Edward Askew Sothern (1826–1881), English actor who was sometimes known as Douglas Stewart * Douglas Stewart (equestrian) (1913–1991), British Olympic equestri ...

, Kate Llewellyn, A.D. Hope, Ronald McCuaig, R.F. Brissenden, Spike Milligan, P.J. Hartigan (John O’Brien), Dame Mary Gilmore, Jack Moses, Judith Wright, Les Murray, Henry Kendall,

Mary Durack Dame Mary Durack (20 February 1913 – 16 December 1994) was an Australian author and historian. She wrote ''Kings in Grass Castles'' and ''Keep Him My Country''. Childhood Mary Durack, born in Adelaide, South Australia, to Michael Patrick ...

-Miller,

Norman Lindsay Norman Alfred William Lindsay (22 February 1879 – 21 November 1969) was an Australian artist, etcher, sculptor, writer, art critic, novelist, cartoonist and amateur boxer. One of the most prolific and popular Australian artists of his genera ...

, Vivian Smith, David Campbell, Henry Lawson,

James McAuley James Phillip McAuley (12 October 1917 – 15 October 1976) was an Australian academic, poet, journalist, Australian literature, literary critic and a prominent convert to Roman Catholicism. He was involved in the Ern Malley poetry hoax. Life ...

Rhyll McMaster Rhyll McMaster (born 1947 in Brisbane) is a contemporary Australian poet and novelist. She has worked as a secretary, a nurse and a sheep farmer. She now lives in Sydney and has written full-time since 2000. She is a recipient of the Barbara Je ...

, A.B. (Banjo) Paterson, R.D. Fitzgerald, Peter Lawson, Kenneth Slessor,

John Blight Frederick John Blight (30 July 1913 – 12 May 1995) was an Australian poet of Cornish origin, his ancestors having arrived in South Australia on the ''Lisander'', in 1851. In the 1987 recording ''John Blight'', he describes his Cornish backgro ...

, Dorothea Mackellar,

Victor Daley Victor James William Patrick Daley (5 September 1858 – 29 December 1905) was an Australian poet. Daley serves chiefly as an example of the Celtic Twilight in Australian verse. He also serves as a lyrical alternative to his contempora ...

Ray Mathew Raymond Frank "Ray" Mathew (14 April 192927 May 2002) was an Australian author. Mathew wrote poetry, drama, radio plays and filmscripts, short stories, novels, arts and literature criticism, and other non-fiction. He left Australia in 1960 and nev ...

Kath Walker Oodgeroo Noonuccal ( ; born Kathleen Jean Mary Ruska, later Kath Walker (3 November 192016 September 1993) was an Aboriginal Australian political activist, artist and educator, who campaigned for Aboriginal rights. Noonuccal was best known for ...

, Kenneth Mackenzie, Alwyn Lee, Alisha Salvestrin, Ron Jones, Peter Allen, Charles Perkins and Dame Edna Everage.

Narrators

Barry Humphries, Spike Milligan, Dame Joan Sutherland, Bobby Limb, Ron Jones, John Meillon, Bert Newton, Dame Edna Everage, Rolf Harris, Sir Robert Helpmann, Ita Buttrose, Peter Allen, Thomas Keneally,

John Newcombe John David Newcombe AO OBE (born 23 May 1944) is an Australian former professional tennis player. He is one of the few men to have attained a world No. 1 ranking in both singles and doubles. At the majors, he won seven singles titles, a fo ...

, Judy Stone, Smoky Dawson, Terry Willesee, John Waters, Dawn Lake,

Judy Morris Judith Ann Morris (born 17 February 1947) is an Australian character actress, as well as a film director and screenwriter, well known for the variety of roles she played in 58 different television shows and films, starting her career as a child ...

, Diane Cilento,

Simon Townsend Simon Townsend (born 27 November 1945) is an Australian journalist who became a popular television host during the 1980s. He is now retired. Vietnam War conscientious objector In the mid-1960s whilst living in Woy Woy and working as a colum ...

, Eddie Charlton, Charles Perkins, Dawn Fraser,

Rowena Wallace Rowena Wallace (born 23 August 1947) is an English-born Australian stage and screen actress, most especially in the genre of television soap opera. She is best known for her Gold Logie-winning role as conniving Patricia "Pat the Rat" Hamilton/M ...

, Michael Edgley, Peter Lawson,

Ron Haddrick Ronald Norman Haddrick (9 April 1929 – 11 February 2020) was an Australian actor, cricketer, narrator and presenter. In 2012, he received the Actors Equity Lifetime Achievement Award for his long and distinguished career in media, spanning s ...

, Rev. Roger Bush and Alisha Salvestrin.

Track listing

References

External links

Guide to Australian poetry

Early Australian ''bush poems''

Keith Newman
{{DEFAULTSORT:Swag of Aussie Poetry Australian poetry collections 1984 albums