MALLEE BOY

Words and Music by John Williamson
© 1986 EMUSIC PTY LTD

Well I’ve ripped and dug out burrows on a sandy bulloak hill,
Eradicating rabbits doesn’t take a lot of skill
But a boy born in the Mallee doesn’t find ’em hard to kill
No self-respecting farmer lets a rodent eat his wheat
He’ll shoot ’em and he’ll skin ’em and he’ll dress ’em up to eat
But since the spread of mixo He’s almost got ’em beat
And I don’t mind at all if you call me a Mallee boy

Where little town dogs howl at the morning train,
Where a cocky makes a living on twelve inches of rain
Where his woman provides and is rare to complain
And I still love the smell of that sandy soil,
Some say it’s dusty, some say it’s gold
Cause it grows the sweetest fat lambs the markets ever sold
And I don’t mind at all if you call me a Mallee Boy,
No I don’t mind at all if you call me a Mallee Boy.

Where you can lose an ear on duck opening day,
Where slickers bring their shotguns from miles away,
And shoot the life out of shags and swans that fly their way.
Where a bloke grows as stocky as a Mallee bull,
Where they come from miles around to see the tractor pull,
When the paddocks are clean and seed silos are full,
And I don’t mind at all if you call me a Mallee Boy.

Well I’ve ripped and dug out burrows on a sandy bulloak hill,
Eradicating rabbits doesn’t take a lot of skill,
And a boy born in the Mallee doesn’t find ’em hard to kill.
But they’ll never be as rare as a Quandong tree
My grandma made some jam for my brothers and me
They’re like the Mallee Fowl you hardly ever see
But I don’t mind at all if you call me a Mallee Boy.

No I don’t mind at all if you call me a Mallee Boy.
No I don’t mind at all if you call me a Mallee Boy.

 


 

Mallee
The mallee tree is a small eucalyptus that spreads its branches below the earth’s surface and emerges multi-trunked. There are many varieties and are found all over the southern half of Australia.

Mixo
Mixamatosis was a sterility drug spread amongst rabbits in the 1950’s which helped quell the plagues that frequently invaded farms and decimated crops. The rabbits, being profuse breeders, have almost become immune to it.

Cocky
A term generally referring to a grain grower.

Mallee Boy
‘The Mallee’ is a region in the north of Victoria (named after the tree) where John was born.

Slicker
A derogatory term used by bush people to describe a city dweller.

Tractor Pull
A tug-of-war competition using thousands of horse power of brute force!

Bulloak
Rough-barked tree with long wiry branches. A good shelter tree.

Quandong Tree
Small fruit bearing tree from the Mallee scrub. The fruit has a bitter sweet taste.