Buddy and Slim

Thinkin' about Buddy and Slim

And Stan Coster too

And all those pioneers, before the tar came through

Before rock and roll

Before the hip hooray

Thinkin' about the trail they blazed and the songs they made

Stan was short of a quid

And the pub had no beer

The rain tumbled down in July, and we had a good year

We had a drink with Shorty

At Three Rivers Hotel

There was Smoky and Tex and Chad, and Rick and Thel

There was Banjo and Henry

And all their peers

They wondered what an Aussie would be in a hundred years

Will they keep our romance?

With the bush, out there

And I must admit, I wonder, will we still care?

It's all about how

The world can change

But maybe not so much, the other side of the range

There will always be battlers

That feel right at home

Out there where the white-faced cattle roam

A fire of Gidgee Coals

Will keep us warm

It'll rain on the Diamantina and the birds will swarm

We'll boil a billy

And admire the stars

Sing about droughts and floods and apricots in jars

The songs will live

And I'll tell you why

The spirit of the bush will never die