Tuesday, November 22, 2005

When The Rain Tumbles Down In July



Slim Dusty, When the Rain Tumbles Down in July



One of my favourite people and one of his first songs, which
he wrote at the age of 18.

Slim Dusty, (born Gordon Kirkpatrick) 1927 – 2003


When The Rain Tumbles Down In July


Let me wander North to the homestead

Way out further on there to roam

By a gully in flood let me linger

When the summery sunshine has flown


Where the logs tangle up on the creekbed

And clouds fill the old Northern sky

And the cattle move back from the lowlands

When the rain tumbles down in July


The settlers with sad hearts are watching

The rise of the stream from the dawn

Their best crops are always in flood reach

If it rises much more they’ll be gone


The cattle string out long the fences

The wind from the south races by

And the limbs from the old gums are falling

When the rain tumbles down in July


The sleeping gums on the hillside

Awaken to herds straying by

From the flats where the fences have vanished

As the storm clouds gather on high


The wheels of the wagon stop turning

The stock horse is turned out to graze

The old station dogs are a dozing

On the husks in the barn through the days


The drover draws rein by the river

It’s years since he’s seen it so high

And that’s just the story of Homewood

When the rain tumbles down in July


Written by Slim Dusty (Gordon Kirkpatrick)

2 comments:

Carolyn said...

That's pretty neat, Peter :)
Do you write poetry and or stories too?

Anonymous said...

Hi Peter - Naturally I like Slim too and his many varied songs etc.
BUT you have more readers in the Northern Hemisphere than down South and the rain would not tumble down in July for them so it may appear strange to them.