Lyrics The Band Played Waltzing Matilda - The Dubliners , Ronnie Drew
When
I
was
a
young
man
I
carried
me
pack
And
I
lived
the
free
life
of
the
rover
From
the
Murray's
green
basin
to
the
dusty
outback
I
waltzed
my
Matilda
all
over
Then
in
1915
my
country
said:
Son,
It's
time
to
stop
rambling,
there's
work
to
be
done
So
they
gave
me
a
tin
hat
and
they
gave
me
a
gun
And
they
sent
me
away
to
the
war
And
the
band
played
Waltzing
Matilda
When
the
ship
pulled
away
from
the
quay
And
amid
all
the
tears,
flag
waving
and
cheers
We
sailed
off
for
Gallipoli
It
well
I
remember
that
terrible
day
When
our
blood
stained
the
sand
and
the
water
And
how
in
that
hell
they
call
Suvla
Bay
We
were
butchered
like
lambs
at
the
slaughter
Johnny
Turk,
he
was
ready,
he
primed
himself
well
He
rained
us
with
bullets,
and
he
showered
us
with
shell
And
in
five
minutes
flat,
we
were
all
blown
to
hell
He
nearly
blew
us
back
home
to
Australia
And
the
band
played
Waltzing
Matilda
When
we
stopped
to
bury
our
slain
Well
we
buried
ours
and
the
Turks
buried
theirs
Then
it
started
all
over
again
Oh
those
that
were
living
just
tried
to
survive
In
that
mad
world
of
blood,
death
and
fire
And
for
ten
weary
weeks
I
kept
myself
alive
While
around
me
the
corpses
piled
higher
Then
a
big
Turkish
shell
knocked
me
arse
over
head
And
when
I
awoke
in
me
hospital
bed
And
saw
what
it
had
done,
I
wished
I
was
dead
I
never
knew
there
was
worse
things
than
dying
Oh
no
more
I'll
go
Waltzing
Matilda
All
around
the
green
bush
far
and
near
For
to
hump
tent
and
pegs,
a
man
needs
both
legs
No
more
waltzing
Matilda
for
me
They
collected
the
wounded,
the
crippled,
the
maimed
And
they
shipped
us
back
home
to
Australia
The
armless,
the
legless,
the
blind
and
the
insane
Those
proud
wounded
heroes
of
Suvla
And
when
the
ship
pulled
into
Circular
Quay
I
looked
at
the
place
where
me
legs
used
to
be
And
thank
Christ
there
was
no
one
there
waiting
for
me
To
grieve
and
to
mourn
and
to
pity
And
the
Band
played
Waltzing
Matilda
When
they
carried
us
down
the
gangway
Oh
nobody
cheered,
they
just
stood
there
and
stared
Then
they
turned
all
their
faces
away
Now
every
April
I
sit
on
my
porch
And
I
watch
the
parade
pass
before
me
I
see
my
old
comrades,
how
proudly
they
march
Renewing
their
dreams
of
past
glories
I
see
the
old
men
all
tired,
stiff
and
worn
Those
weary
old
heroes
of
a
forgotten
war
And
the
young
people
ask
"What
are
they
marching
for?"
And
I
ask
myself
the
same
question
And
the
band
plays
Waltzing
Matilda
And
the
old
men
still
answer
the
call
But
year
after
year,
their
numbers
get
fewer
Someday,
no
one
will
march
there
at
all
Waltzing
Matilda,
Waltzing
Matilda
Who'll
come
a-Waltzing
Matilda
with
me?
And
their
ghosts
may
be
heard
as
they
march
by
the
billabong
So
who'll
come
a-Waltzing
Matilda
with
me?
1 Seven Drunken Nights
2 I'll Tell Me Ma
3 The Sick Note
4 Dirty Old Town
5 The Rare Auld Mountain Dew
6 Finnegan's Wake
7 Lord of the Dance
8 All for Me Grog
9 The Auld Triangle
10 The Crack Was Ninety in the Isle of Man
11 Weile Waila
12 The Band Played Waltzing Matilda
13 Monto
14 Whiskey in the Jar
15 The Irish Rover
16 A Gentleman Soldier
17 The Rare Auld Times
18 The Ferryman
19 Fiddler's Green
20 God Save Ireland
21 When the Boys Come Rolling Home
22 Molly Malone
23 The Parting Glass
24 The Molly Maguires
25 Carrickfergus
26 Donegal Danny
27 The Zoological Gardens
28 A Rambling Rover
29 The Lark in the Morning
30 Cod Liver Oil
31 The Wild Rover
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