by Paul #7
The Settlers "Songs of the Snowy Mountains"
CD rip 1999 VBR 160-224.
In 1949, the Australian Government commenced The Snowy Mountains Scheme in the Australian Alps primarily to divert water into the inland and for the production of hydro-electricity. It involved the construction of 16 dams, 7 power station and 225 km of tunnels, pipelines and aqueducts. Over 100,000 people worked on the scheme and 120 workers died during construction. The greater majority of those workers were migrants coming from many parts of the world and included many persons displaced in Europe during the Second World War.
Three of the workers were Ulick O'Boyle (a first-aid officer from Ireland); his wife Anne Rutherford (English); and Peter Barry (also English). They formed a singing group called "The Settlers" to perform songs written by Ulick O'Boyle.
Ulick wrote his songs from within the context of the Scheme and the Australian Alps touching on the earlier settlers in the area and the people and towns displaced by the dams and chronicled the lives and, sometimes, the deaths of the workers. Their original audience target was their fellow workers and so many of these songs reflect on the lives and the music of the migrant workers. It all started out as a bit of a hobby and grew from there. Their first album "sings Songs of the Snowy Mountains" was released in 1966 and their subsequent album "sings More Songs of the Snowy Mountains" followed on the success of the first.
As part of the 50th anniversary celebrations of the Scheme in 1999, these two albums were re-released on the one CD under the title "Songs of the Snowy Mountains" which is the rip I present here.
CD rip 1999 VBR 160-224.
In 1949, the Australian Government commenced The Snowy Mountains Scheme in the Australian Alps primarily to divert water into the inland and for the production of hydro-electricity. It involved the construction of 16 dams, 7 power station and 225 km of tunnels, pipelines and aqueducts. Over 100,000 people worked on the scheme and 120 workers died during construction. The greater majority of those workers were migrants coming from many parts of the world and included many persons displaced in Europe during the Second World War.
Three of the workers were Ulick O'Boyle (a first-aid officer from Ireland); his wife Anne Rutherford (English); and Peter Barry (also English). They formed a singing group called "The Settlers" to perform songs written by Ulick O'Boyle.
Ulick wrote his songs from within the context of the Scheme and the Australian Alps touching on the earlier settlers in the area and the people and towns displaced by the dams and chronicled the lives and, sometimes, the deaths of the workers. Their original audience target was their fellow workers and so many of these songs reflect on the lives and the music of the migrant workers. It all started out as a bit of a hobby and grew from there. Their first album "sings Songs of the Snowy Mountains" was released in 1966 and their subsequent album "sings More Songs of the Snowy Mountains" followed on the success of the first.
As part of the 50th anniversary celebrations of the Scheme in 1999, these two albums were re-released on the one CD under the title "Songs of the Snowy Mountains" which is the rip I present here.
posted by Lizardson at 10:03 PM
7 comments
