by simplyoz | Apr 17, 2019 | Music, People, Poetry
© Jim Low Jim Harper was born in Coonabarabran in May, 1878. As a child, he moved to Angledool in northern New South Wales with his parents James and Lillias Harper. This area was first settled by Europeans in the late 1840’s, after Sir Thomas Mitchell’s exploration... 
by Jim | Apr 5, 2018 | Music, People
with Gary Shearston It was the last day of 2008. I was enjoying a leisurely stroll around the historic township of Windsor, one of ‘Macquarie’s Five Towns’, in the New South Wales Hawkesbury region. While stopping to explore a second-hand shop which reclaimed the... 
by simplyoz | Feb 25, 2016 | Music
Three pieces on the life and death of Ben Hall While the legend of Ned Kelly and his gang is a subject of fascination for many Australians (including myself), the remarkable deeds of Frank Gardiner, Ben Hall, Johnny Gilbert and their scores of associates remain a true... 
by simplyoz | Sep 18, 2015 | History
In 1972 I purchased a copy of Alex Hood’s Boomerang Songster No 1, Australian Folk Songs. It contained songs from Alex’s LP recording The First Hundred Years, which included the song The Exile of Erin. This convict lament, its setting the foot of the Blue...