Celtic Southern Cross
Australian Song

In 1983 Australian musician and singer/songwriter Chris Kempster published a collection of musical settings of Henry Lawson's poetry. The tunes cames, said Chris, from politicians to post hole diggers, from all over Australia and beyond its shores. The fascination with the uniquely Australian perspective Lawson pioneered, along with his singable lyrics, continues today.
This second edition of the Songs of Henry Lawson contains all the settings from the earlier edition, along with 45 new settings collected in 2007.
This book is amazing value and should be on every coffee table and music stand in Australia.
Size A4, 268 pages with wire binding. Contains musical notation and chords for each song, and there are explanatory notes and evocative photographs throughout. This edition retains the introduction by Manning Clarke
     Book Price $35    Now available from Folk Federation of NSW  www.jam.org.au

Verandah Music : roots of Australian Tradition
Edited  by Graham Seal and Rob Willis
Written with warmth and passion, the combination of candid interviews, historical photographs and two compact discs, brings to life the traditions, contexts, working lives and family connections of a remarkable community of musicians.
This book features two CDs of selected verandah music archival and performance pieces, mastered by the National Library of Australia.
Book size A5, contains 160 pages and two CDs

Classic Bush Yarns
by Warren Fahey
This is a collection of the folk lore that forms the basis of Australian culture and humour. Although similar to jokes, yarns are quite different. They are descendents of a tradition of story-telling that has all but disappeared. They spin a tale, drawing listeners in and inviting them to meet people like Lazy Len, Dad and Dave, and Sandy the Shearer - the characters who are keys to our past and unique culture.
Size A5, 224  pages, contains yarns.

Back Country Celts
by Wild Trout Downunder
John O'Brien's poems from Around the Boree Log, published in 1921, and read by Kevin Brennan from early recordings. These readings are accompanied by Irish music played on the Uilleann Pipes, the Dord Iseal (Irish bronze age horn), the Gordon Church Pedal Organ and cellos and a viola. Patrick Carroll provided exquisite paintings for the booklet, and there are photos from Trisha Dixon's "Banjo Paterson's High Country".  The tunes included on the CDs wrap themselves around the poems in a complementary manner, while the paintings evoke the bygone time of John O'Brien's poetry. A magical book, well worth having.
Size A5, over 120 minutes of poems and tunes, plus art work, photos,. Tunes include She Moved Thru the Fair, Lagan Love, Fair Cassidy, Leaving Ireland, and Waltzing Matilda played as an air on the viola. Beautiful music.

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