Buddy Williams (5 September 1918 – 12 December 1986),[1] born as Harry Taylor and also known as Harold Williams, was a pioneering Australian country music singer-songwriter, known as "The Yodelling Jackaroo".[2]
Country Music was conceived in the southern USA, but Williams was the first Australian to record country music in Australia, three years after the New Zealander Tex Morton made his first recording in Australia.
Williams recorded his songs about life and times in the Australian bush and it was with Williams that the bush ballad was first born. Williams's recording of "Give A Little Credit To Dad", complete with trademark yodel, was added to the Sounds of Australia project by the National Film and Sound Archive.
Williams was an inspiration for numerous country stars that followed like Slim Dusty.
Early life
Buddy Williams was born Harry Taylor[1] in the Sydney suburb of Newtown and was soon placed in Glebe Point Orphanage. After many failed escape bids as a child, he was fostered out as a young boy to a dairy-farming family at Dorrigo on the north coast of New South Wales (NSW). It soon became apparent that rather than looking for a new child to bring up, the family was more interested in an unpaid laborer. This was not uncommon in the Depression and post-Depression era where rural child slavery was a fact of life. Times were hard, and life on the farm was tough for young Williams, but it also allowed freedom he never had in the orphanage. He would listen to recordings on an old gramophone of his favourite singers such as Jimmie Rodgers and fell in love with this new music that would become known as country music. At age 15, he ran away from his foster home and began working for other families in the district. He worked at many jobs and started busking around the north coast of NSW, dodging the police who at the time frowned upon such activities.[3]
Career
Buddy Williams made his first recordings in 1938, a Private Process disk. The two songs recorded at this session were "Where The Jacarandas Bloom" and "They Call Me The Clarence River Yodeller". The latter song was re-worked, called "They Call Me The Ramblin' Yodeller" and recorded during his first EMI session on 7 September 1939. These two long-lost recordings were later released on a Kingfisher Records collection in the early 1990s as part of an early Buddy Williams catalogue re-release, which is no longer available.
Williams first sang professionally in 1936 at the Grafton Jacaranda Festival in northern NSW. He also did a guest spot on Grafton's radio station 2GF at the time. He left the town of Grafton and busked his way down the NSW coast before approaching EMI records in Sydney where he gained an audition.
The Page family from Newcastle, who had befriended the young Williams, bought him a black Gibson L-00 acoustic guitar which he used on all his recordings during the 1940s. This guitar was accidentally destroyed while on tour in the late 1940s. Williams later recalled that he had spent his entire life trying to find a replacement guitar that had the same sound quality of his old Gibson, but he never found one. Some of the guitars Williams used during his career included Gibson Hummingbird, Gibson Country and Western, Gibson J-200, and Martin D 28.
On 7 September 1939, he recorded six songs for the Regal Zonophone label. In September 1939, Australia entered WWII and Williams enlisted in the army. During the war years, many of Williams's recording sessions were done while on leave from active service. In the final days of WWII he was seriously wounded during the battle of Balikpapan and was not expected to live. He was recommended for the Military Medal and carried the mass of scars from his injuries for the rest of his life.
In 1948 Williams starred in a short film titled He Chased The Chicken which featured live performances of two of his recordings, "The Overlander Trail" and "The Chicken Song". The studio versions of these songs had been recorded in 1946. Another live song in the film titled "Dear Little Lady of Mine" was never recorded nor released on record. Williams was also meant to appear in the 1946 Australian movie "The Overlanders" with Chips Rafferty, but was unable to obtain leave from the army at the time.
After the war was over and he had recovered from his injuries, he set about forming a travelling rodeo tent show. He eventually wound back his rodeo and tent show after many years and then toured for 11 months of each year with the Buddy Williams Variety Show.
Though Williams performed mostly in country towns and outback communities, having once commented that during his long touring career he had performed in just about every country town in Australia, he also performed a small number of shows in major cities. During 1940 he played the Theatre Royal, Sydney alongside Roy Rene and Evie Hayes. He also did an eight-week stint at Brisbane's Theatre Royal. In 1973 he played Sydney's Hordern Pavilion for the UNICEF concert alongside big-name American acts such as Tex Ritter and Wanda Jackson. In the early 1980s, Williams did a small number of Sydney shows including shows at the Auburn Baseball Club, the Seven Hills RSL Club, and a show at the Star Hotel in the heart of China Town Sydney attended by Australian 1950s and 1960s rocker Col Joye.
Williams suffered the first of two massive heart attacks while on stage in the late 1970s. During one of these hospital stays, he received a call from a lifelong fan called Bert Newton, an Australian television icon. The pair became firm friends and Williams later appeared on live Australian TV on the Bert Newton Show, singing "The Overlander Trail" with guitar accompaniment.
In addition to constant touring, Williams continued to record. During 1965, he moved to RCA records where he became a Gold Record recording artist[specify] and recorded a large number of albums. In 1977, Williams was inducted into the Australian Roll of Renown[4] In 1980, he won the first Heritage Award at the Tamworth Country Music Festival for his song "What A Dreary Old World It Would Be".[citation needed]
In 1978, Buddy Williams was the subject of a documentary titled The Last of the Fair Dinkum Outback Entertainers, narrated by his good friend John Singleton. It had a film crew travel with Williams during one of his far North Queensland tours. At the time, Singleton was a well-known radio station disk jockey and advertising executive. Singleton regularly featured Williams's songs on his radio shows in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Singleton also became a regular face in the crowd at many of Williams's shows.
Williams's last recordings were made months before his death in 1986, when he was sick with terminal cancer, and released posthumously.
A number of artists have recorded Williams's songs, including Rick and Thel Carey who recorded an album of his songs. The Le Garde Twins who toured with Williams also recorded a number of his songs, as did Rex Dallas, Slim Dusty, Nev Nichols, Lindsay Butler and more recently Ashley Cook, who recorded a complete album of Williams's songs.
During the 1970s, North American country music superstar Wilf Carter also recorded a number of Williams's songs on an album of Australian songs. A number of tribute songs have been recorded by many artists including John Williamson whose song "The Last of the Pioneers" is a tribute to Williams and his contribution to Australian music.
In the early 1970s Williams gave the young Australian guitarist Tommy Emmanuel a start in his band. Emmanuel toured with Williams and was a regular session musician for him.
Williams died in 1986 and is buried in Brisbane's Lutwyche Cemetery[5] along with his second wife Grace and their daughter Donita, who had died in 1948 after being accidentally run over by a truck driven by one of the rodeo riders in Williams's show.[1]
Personal life
Williams married Bernie Burnett in 1940.[6] They met at the Grafton Jacaranda Festival when Burnett was 13 and Williams was 17. They made several recordings together, including "Stockmen in Uniform" and "Let's Grow Old Together". They later divorced.[7][8]
He died on the 12th of December, 1986, and was laid to rest beside his infant daughter in the Lutwyche Cemetery, Brisbane.
"That Dapple Grey Broncho Of Mine" / "They Call Me the Rambling Yodeler"
7 Sep 1939
Regal Zonophone
G23854
"Lonesome for You Mother Dear" / "Give a Little Credit to Your Dad"
7 Sep 1939
Regal Zonophone
G23855
"The Orphan's Lament" / "My Moonlight Lullaby"
7 Sep 1939
Regal Zonophone
G23856
"Happy Jackaroo" / "Dreaming of My Mother"
14 May 1940
Regal Zonophone
G24026
"A Cowboy's Life Is Good Enough for Me" / "Under the Old Wattle Tree"
14 May 1940
Regal Zonophone
G24027
"The Australian Bushman's Yodel" / "There's an Empty Bunk in the Bunkhouse"
14 May 1940
Regal Zonophone
G24028
"The Shearer's Goodbye" / "Memories of Home"
25 Nov 1940
Regal Zonophone
G24187
"The Newsboy's Message" / "Going Home"
25 Nov 1940
Regal Zonophone
G24221
"The Wandering Gambler" / "Happy Cowboys"
25 Nov 1940
Regal Zonophone
G24326
"Headin' for the Warwick Rodeo" / "Can a Black Sheep Be Forgiven?"
14 Nov 1941
Regal Zonophone
G24382
"The Crepe Upon the Little Cabin Door" / "The Maple on the Hill"
14 Nov 1941
Regal Zonophone
G24409
"When the Candle Lights are Gleaming" / "Let's Grow Old Together"
14 Nov 1941
Regal Zonophone
G24482
"The Dying Soldier's Prayer" / "I'll Be Back Never Fear"
20 Nov 1941
Regal Zonophone
G24506
"The Face On the Bar Room Floor" / "Wingie the Railway Cop"
20 Nov 1941
Regal Zonophone
G24545
"Down By the Old Beaten Trail" / "The Australian Hillbilly"
20 Nov 1941
Regal Zonophone
G24554
"What a Pal My Mother Might Have Been to Me" / "Where the White Faced Cattle Roam"
18 May 1942
Regal Zonophone
G24596
"My Pretty Quadroon" / "Wonder Valley"
18 May 1942
Regal Zonophone
G24632
"Blazin' the Trail" / "A Mother's Plea"
18 May 1942
Regal Zonophone
G24670
"Where the Roly Poly Grass Rolls O'er the Plain" / "Music in My Pony's Feet"
22 Dec 1942
Regal Zonophone
G24822
"Stockmen in Uniform" / "Sunny Australian Sweetheart"
22 Dec 1942
Regal Zonophone
G24851
"Riding Home At Sundown" / "Bushland of My Dreams"
22 Dec 1942
Regal Zonophone
G24883
"Brown Eyed Sweetheart Of Mine" / "The Bushman's Rodeo"
16 March 1945
Regal Zonophone
G24929
"The Drover's Song" / "Where The Lazy Murray River Rolls Along"
16 March 1945
Regal Zonophone
G24947
"Bushland Paradise" / "Rhythm In The Saddle"
16 March 1945
Regal Zonophone
G24963
"The Overlander Trail" / "Over Hill Top And Hollow"
19 Sep 1946
Regal Zonophone
G25052
"Riding Down the Valley" / "The Mountain Barbecue"
19 Sep 1946
Regal Zonophone
G25069
"Chain Lightning the Outlaw" / "The Orphan Boy and His Dog"
19 Sep 1946
Regal Zonophone
G25078
"Down the Old Bush Track" / "Pioneering Days"
25 Mar 1948
Regal Zonophone
G25224
"The Stockman and the Outlaw" / "My Sunny Southern Home"
25 Mar 1948
Regal Zonophone
G25237
"The Chicken Song" / Eureka"
23 Apr 1948
Regal Zonophone
G25218
"Dear Old Aussie Blues" / "Beneath the Queensland Moon"
21 Sep 1950
Regal Zonophone
G25284
"Riding Down the Wallaby Trail" / "Always Call Me Darling"
21 Sep 1950
Regal Zonophone
G25286
"My Darling River Rose" / "Little Jackeroo"
21 Sep 1950
Regal Zonophone
G25287
"Wedding Bells" / "Murrumbidgee Blues"
18 June 1951
Regal Zonophone
G25305
"The Black Sheep" / "Freight Train Blues"
18 June 1951
Regal Zonophone
G25306
"I'm Gonna Tear Down the Mailbox" / "Beyond the Setting Sun"
18 June 1951
Regal Zonophone
G25307
"The Flying Doctor" / "A Mother As Lovely As You"
30 Oct 1951
Regal Zonophone
G25323 45-DO-4047
"There's Another Angel In Heaven" / "Too Many Parties And Too Many Pals"
30 Oct 1951
Regal Zonophone
G25341
"I Can't Stand Sitting in a Cell" / "Gambling Polka Dot Blues"
30 Oct 1951
Regal Zonophone
G25342
"Too Old to Cut The Mustard" / "Back Street Affair"
18 Nov 1952
Regal Zonophone
G25344
"My Mother Must Have Been a Girl Like You" / "I Love You a Thousand Ways"
18 Nov 1952
Regal Zonophone
"Christmas Bells" / "Dear Old Dorrigo"
18 Nov 1952
Regal Zonophone
G25356
"Somebody's Stolen My Honey" / "Blue Since You've Been Gone"
18 Nov 1952
Regal Zonophone
G25357
"Death of Hank Williams" / "Missing In Action"
3 July 1953
Regal Zonophone
G25368
"Pentridge Jail" / "Spirit of Progress"
3 July 1953
Regal Zonophone
G25383
"I Can't Forget My Memories" / "Swagman's Friend"
3 July 1953
Regal Zonophone
G25391
"The Old Sundowner" / "Australia's Kitty Gill"
3 July 1953
Regal Zonophone
G25392
"Honeymoon on a Rocket Ship" / "The Ring"
2 Oct 1953
Regal Zonophone
G25376
"The Blacksheep's Return to the Fold" / "The Kelly Gang"
2 Oct 1953
Regal Zonophone
G25387
"In Daddy's Footsteps" / "I'd Rather Have a Pony Than a Girl"
2 Oct 1953
Regal Zonophone
"I've Mortgaged the Farm Again" / "Sailor Boy"
22 June 1955
Regal Zonophone
G25416
"Away Out On the Plain" / "Ben Hall the Bushranger"
22 June 1955
Regal Zonophone
"Busy Buzzin' Round" / "A Yellow Dog's Love"
22 June 1955
Regal Zonophone
"There's Sunshine On My Side of the Street" / "She Left Me for the Joys of Gold"
22 June 1955
Regal Zonophone
"Little Red Bonnet" / "Kings Cross Boogie"
5 Oct 1956
Regal Zonophone
"Answer to Missing in Action" / "The Ringer"
5 Oct 1956
Regal Zonophone
G25462
"Mareeba Rodeo" / "Poison Darts"
5 Oct 1956
Regal Zonophone
G25463
"Mummy Didn't Tuck Me Into Bed Last Night" / "Lest We Forget"
5 Oct 1956
Regal Zonophone
"Flynn of the Inland" / "My Dream of Hank and Jimmie"
29 Aug 1958
Regal Zonophone
45-DO-3987
"I'll Stroll Down Memory Lane With You" / "Don't Forget Me Little Darling"
29 Aug 1958
Regal Zonophone
45-DO–3988
"The Prisoner's Song" / "On an Ocean of Broken Dreams"
29 Aug 1958
Regal Zonophone
45-DO-3989
"In the Doghouse" / "Bowlegged Stockman"
29 Aug 1958
Regal Zonophone
45-DO-3990
"Hank, It Will Never Be The Same Without You" / "Aren't I Lucky"
18 Sep 1959
Regal Zonophone
45-DO-4104
"Rocking Alone in an Old Rocking Chair" / "Rhythm of the Roundup"
18 Sep 1959
Regal Zonophone
45-DO-4105
"Polling Day" / "Dave Sands"
18 Sep 1959
Regal Zonophone
45-DO-4106
"Anybody's Lover" / "The Nightmare"
24 March 1960
Regal Zonophone
45-DO-4133
"Christmas Blues" / "What's the Use?"
24 March 1960
Regal Zonophone
45-DO–4134
"The Snowy Mountains" / "Ten Years"
24 March 1960
Regal Zonophone
45-DO-4135
"Under Western Skies" / "When The Cactus Is In Bloom"
22 Sep 1960
Regal Zonophone
45-DO-4160
"The Panther" / "The Spice of Life"
22 Sep 1960
Regal Zonophone
45-DO-4161
"My Sleepy Valley Home" / "Roley"
22 Sep 1960
Regal Zonophone
45-DO-4162
"Mother Went A-Walking" / "Crazy"
1 Dec 1961
Regal Zonophone
DO-4163
"I Went Home to Mother" / "Teardrops"
1 Dec 1961
Regal Zonophone
45-DO-4252
"Journey's End /
Gonna Ride Till the Sun Goes Down"
1 Dec 1961
Regal Zonophone
45-DO-4253
"True Friends Are So Few" / "Rockin' Cowboy"
1 Dec 1962
Regal Zonophone
45-DO-4384
"Gonna Ride Till the Sun Goes Down" / "My Sleepy Valley Home" (Recut)
1 Dec 1962
Regal Zonophone
"Please Light the Darkness for Me" / "I've Forgotten How to Cry"
20 May 1963
Regal Zonophone
45-DO-4381
"Snow On the Mountain" / "Back to Alice Springs"
20 May 1963
Regal Zonophone
45-DO-4383
"When Jesus Calls" / "The Cross of Jesus"
20 May 1963
Regal Zonophone
45-DO-4382
"The Rules of Love" / "Horse Teams"
1979
Regal Zonophone
"Way Up North" / "Pal Of My Heart"
26 Feb 1964
Regal Zonophone
45-DO-4462
"I'm Moving Out" / "Pretty Girl"
26 Feb 1964
Regal Zonophone
DO-4463
"I've Been Around" / "A Letter to Slim"
26 Feb 1964
Regal Zonophone
DO-4464
"Chapel Bells" / "We're Both Sorry Now"
RCA
101604
"Lofty" / "My Windflower State"
RCA
101682
"Les Dingo" / "Lucky Horseshoe"
RCA
101724
"Wild River" / "This Particular Baby"
RCA
101597
"That Old Gum Tree" / "Black Diamond"
RCA
101605
"The Big Banana Land" / "Who Can Make a Flower"
July 1969
RCA
101855
"The Sounds Of The Bush At Night" / "The Sad Eyed Zebu Steer"
RCA
101857
"Back O' Bourke" / "Spider From The Gwydir"
RCA
102097
"Buddy Williams At the Opera House" / "Mighty Moonbi Range"
1974
RCA
102399
"The Wreck of the Tasman Bridge" / "35 Wonderful Years"
RCA
102748
Compilation albums and special releases
List of compilation albums and special releases, with selected chart positions
Title
Released
Label
Cat.
Buddy Williams Sings Jimmy Rodgers
1962
EMI
330SX 7665
Buddy Williams Sings Outback Ballads
unknown
EMI
330SX 7644
Buddy Williams "I'll Stroll Down Memory Lane With You"
1978
EMI
EMB.10402
Buddy Williams "Bushland Of My Dreams"
1979
EMI
EMB.10441
Buddy Williams "Blazin' the Trail"
1983
EMI
EMB.10509
Buddy Williams "Over Hilltop and Hollow"
1985
EMI
AX 701217
The Immortal Buddy Williams "Away Out On The Plain"
1987
EMI
AX 701370
Buddy Williams "Under Western Skies"
1991
EMI
8380202
Buddy Williams Regan Zonophone Collection – Vol 1
1997
EMI
Buddy Williams – Last Outback Entertainer
12 July 2011
Rocket Group Party
Awards and nominations
Australian Roll of Renown
The Australian Roll of Renown honours Australian and New Zealander musicians who have shaped the music industry by making a significant and lasting contribution to Country Music. It was inaugurated in 1976 and the inductee is announced at the Country Music Awards of Australia in Tamworth in January.[9]
Bust of Buddy Williamsin Centennial Park, Tamworth, NSW
Year
Nominee / work
Award
Result
1977
Buddy Williams
Australian Roll of Renown
inductee
Country Music Awards of Australia
The Country Music Awards of Australia (CMAA) (also known as the Golden Guitar Awards) is an annual awards night held in January during the Tamworth Country Music Festival, celebrating recording excellence in the Australian country music industry. They have been held annually since 1973.[10]
Year
Nominee / work
Award
Result
1980
What a Dreary Old World It Would Be
Heritage Award
Won
Tamworth Songwriters Awards
The Tamworth Songwriters Association (TSA) is an annual songwriting contest for original country songs, awarded in January at the Tamworth Country Music Festival. They commenced in 1986. Buddy Williams won two awards.[11]
Collins, Denis; Owens, Samantha; Macinlay, Elizabeth (2005). Aesthetics and Experience in Music Performance. Cambridge Scholars Publishing. ISBN1904303501.
