Gordon Lightfoot Forums - View Single Post - Canada Day celebration to Lightfoot music

Dave, Melbourne,Australia · 07-05-2009, 12:18 PM

Is there a Canadian Railroad Trilogy equivalent for Australia? That's an excellent question, John Stinson. If you're asking about an industrial/engineering achievement, I'd say the 1950s building of the Snowy Mountains Hydroelectric Scheme. (Or being the country that took the America's Cup yachting trophy after more than a century!) But if you're asking about a landmark song recognising a historic national achievement, I'd say we don't have anything approaching Lightfoot's CRT. The nearest I can think of is late country legend Slim Dusty's 1978 song "Indian Pacific", written by his wife Joy McKean. It described the 4000Km (2500-mile) railway linking Australia's west and east coasts, but it didn't say much about the railway's construction, the songwriting was very basic and it wasn't sung with much feeling. Corfid's other Aussies may have better suggestions.

07-05-2009, 12:18 PM	#7
Dave, Melbourne,Australia Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Posts: 558	Re: Canada Day celebration to Lightfoot music Is there a Canadian Railroad Trilogy equivalent for Australia? That's an excellent question, John Stinson. If you're asking about an industrial/engineering achievement, I'd say the 1950s building of the Snowy Mountains Hydroelectric Scheme. (Or being the country that took the America's Cup yachting trophy after more than a century!) But if you're asking about a landmark song recognising a historic national achievement, I'd say we don't have anything approaching Lightfoot's CRT. The nearest I can think of is late country legend Slim Dusty's 1978 song "Indian Pacific", written by his wife Joy McKean. It described the 4000Km (2500-mile) railway linking Australia's west and east coasts, but it didn't say much about the railway's construction, the songwriting was very basic and it wasn't sung with much feeling. Corfid's other Aussies may have better suggestions.