Courage: difficult to define. In Oz, the tradition was that real courage came from the underdog prepared to stand up to authority and speak out, nay, act for what was right. Full of contradictions and able to morph from anti-British to pro-Empire in only a generation or two, as Ned Kelly and John Simpson (a Pom) demonstrate. Real courage today? Hard to know where or how to show it. As a purveyor of 'protest' songs that no one gets shoved under their nose, this writer lays no claims. Still, the tale of Ned's last stand raises the hairs on the neck. And writing the line 'Hart says to Byrne' took no courage whatsoever
lyrics
UNDERDOG
They rode into Glenrowan after weeks on the run
These were the boys of Ned Kelly
Everybody knew, their time it had come
A feeling deep within the belly
Hart says to Byrne, this is it mate
Seasons have turned, this is our fate
Now come what may, I hope and pray
I'll show the courage of Ned Kelly
We'll need the courage of Ned Kelly
Simpson had a donkey bringing men from the line
He didn't give a damn 'bout Johnny
Every day they saw him, their spirits soared high
Life on that ridge wasn't funny
He says to the sapper, she's right mate
We'll have you at home in quick shakes
On Anzac Day, you'll hear them say
He had the courage of Ned Kelly
A man who could stand with Ned Kelly
Tall, tall poppy, underdog - our Ned Kelly next to God
Tall, tall poppy, underdog - our Ned Kelly next to God
War and fighting ended and the lamb became fat
Diggers did battle with the mortgage
Enemies were friends, the budgie and cat
Hats were the only place for corkage
Heroes were made on a big ground
Stand in a shirt front, don't go down
And in the end, a blood-spattered win
Won with the courage of Ned Kelly
Men who could stand with Ned Kelly
Modern days have followed, the cringe is thrown off
A land that God would choose to live in
But is there something missing, a sense of some loss
Times when people still were giving
It's hard now to see when the slide came
Video freeze the precise frame
Though diggers did bleed, there's no-one to lead
Who has the courage of Ned Kelly
None has the courage of Ned Kelly
Who now could stand with Ned Kelly
Tall, tall poppy, underdog - our Ned Kelly next to God
Tall, tall poppy, underdog - our Ned Kelly next to God
Next to God, underdog, next to God, underdog
Next to God, underdog, next to God, underdog
Next to God, underdog, next to God, underdog
Next to God, underdog, next to God, underdog
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