The Drover's Boy

"'''The Drover's Boy'''" is a song by Ted Egan. : Songs on the album (all composed by Ted Egan): {| class="wikitable" border="1" |- !Song title!!Performer(s) |- |1. The Drover's Boy || Ted Egan |- |2. A Bunch of Damned Whores || Nerys Evans, Margret Roadknight, Geraldine Doyle, Margot Moir |- |3. Mary Broad || Nerys Evans |- |4. God's Police || Ted Egan |- |5. Truganini || Nerys Evans |- |6. Kitty Buchanan || Nerys Evans |- |7. Alyandabu || Ted Egan |- |8. A Song for Grace || Nerys Evans |- |9. Bush Woman || Ted Egan |- |10. The Shearer's Wife || Nerys Evans |- |11. She's Australian || Ted Egan |- |12. The Rouseabout || Nerys Evans |- |13. Granny || Ted Egan |- |14. Survivors || Ted Egan |}

==Book== Egan wrote a book based on the story of the song; ''The Drover's Boy''.<ref>{{Citation | author1=Egan, Ted | author2=Ingpen, Robert, 1936-, (author.) | title=The drover's boy | publication-date=1997 | publisher=Lothian | edition=reprinted 1998 | isbn=978-0-85091-840-3}}

</ref> The jacket description reads: :"Based on a song of the same name and set in the 1920s, The Drover's Boy recalls the time when it was illegal for Caucasians and Aborigines to marry, and the death of an Aborigine went unnoticed by the white community. This popular and moving Australian folk song comes from a true story about a Caucasian drover (the Australian name for a cowboy or sheep herder) who is forced to pass off his Aboriginal wife as his "drover's boy". Ted Egan wrote this song as a tribute to the Aboriginal stockwomen, in the hope that one day their enormous contribution to the Australian pastoral industry might be recognized and honored. Ages 11+."

==Compilations and cover versions== *Amanda Palmer performed ''The Drover's Boy'' on her 2020 Album ''Forty Five Degrees Bushfire Charity Flash Record''. *{{Citation | author1=Poole, Reg | title=Women of the west | publication-date=1980 | publisher=Selection Records | url=http://trove.nla.gov.au/work/11877118 | accessdate=21 January 2015 }} ''The Drover's Boy'' (Ted Egan singer) was one track on this compilation album. *John Williamson performed ''The Drover's Boy'' on his 1989 album ''Warragul''. This track won for him the 'Heritage Award' at the Country Music Awards of Australia in 1990.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://country.com.au/golden-guitars/award-winners/1990s/|title=Country Music of Australia Awards - 1990s|publisher=Country Music Australia, Tamworth NSW 2340|accessdate=21 January 2015}}</ref>

==Bibliography== ''The Drover's Boy'' has been collected in: *{{Citation | author1=Newton, Dobe | author2=Corbett, Roger | author3=Bushwackers (Musical group) | title=The Second Bushwackers Australian song book | year=1983 | publication-date=1983 | publisher=A. O'Donovan | isbn=978-0-908476-12-1 }} *{{Citation | author1=Egan, Ted | author2=Forrest, Peter, 1941- | author3=Egan, Ted | title=The Overlanders songbook | year=1984 | publication-date=1984 | publisher=Greenhouse Publications | isbn=978-0-909104-74-0 }} (text by Peter Forrest; foreword by Dame Mary Durack; musical notation by Erik Kowarski; cover illustration, Bill Gwydir on the Birdsville Track, by Robert Wettenhall, 1983.) It has also inspired a series of paintings and a stage production: *{{Citation | author1=Marchant, Bob | author2=Evans, Nerys | author3=Egan, Ted, 1932-. Drover's boy | title="The Drover's Boy" series of paintings | date=1995 | publication-date=1995 | publisher=B. Marchant | isbn=978-0-646-24821-9 }} Bob Marchant was winner of Sir John Sulman Prize in 1988 and joint winner in 1987. *{{Citation | title=The Drover's Boy, Athenaeum Theatre Two, Melbourne, VIC, 29 July 1998 [Event description] | publication-date=1998 | url=http://trove.nla.gov.au/work/180966804 | accessdate=21 January 2015 }}

==Movie== Egan saw a potential movie in the story of ''The Drover's Boy'' and commissioned Cinevest Limited to find potential backers. A prospectus was issued in 1995<ref>{{Citation | author1=Cinevest Limited | title=Ted Egan's the drover's boy : an Australian feature film. Prospectus | publication-date=1995 | publisher=Cinevest Limited] | url=http://trove.nla.gov.au/work/31599243 | accessdate=21 January 2015 }}</ref> The funds raised by Cinevest and Egan personally, after pre-production costs were sufficient to capture extensive footage of outback cattle movements on high quality film, but insufficient to guarantee completion of the full-length movie, so the project was abandoned.

In 2015 a hybrid-documentary based on ''The Drover's Boy'' song was released. The short-film, with a run time of 11 minutes, was directed by Margaret McHugh and produced by Lyn Norfor and has been screened at numerous film festivals.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Internet |first=Chirp |title=DROVER'S BOY, THE - Ronin Films - Educational DVD Sales |url=https://www.roninfilms.com.au/feature/14176/drovers-boy.html |access-date=2024-02-22 |website=www.roninfilms.com.au |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=The Drover's Boy (2014) - The Screen Guide - Screen Australia |url=https://www.screenaustralia.gov.au/the-screen-guide/t/the-drovers-boy-2014/34176/ |access-date=2024-02-22 |website=www.screenaustralia.gov.au |language=en}}</ref>

==References== {{Reflist}}

==External links== * [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ZV2eoULEqw Ted Egan singing the song on youtube]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Drovers Boy}} Category:John Williamson (singer) songs Category:1993 songs