The Seekers - I Am Australian: Special Farewell Performance | Reaction

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[firecrakka]

The song is telling how Australians have many stories of origin. From first nation to convicts, settlers and bushmen, immigrants and all the other ways our people have come to call Australia home. It's a unifying song that many would prefer to have as our National Anthem... as opposed to the current archaic version that fails to include a large part of our history and people.

[charki]

As an Aboriginal Australian, I love this song. Its the song of our country. All of our histories, ancient and young and our shared identities and love for this great land. This brings tears to my eyes everytime I hear it. It should be our National Anthem. I am of the Gunditjmara Nation and Im also Australian. Edit: Im utterly moved by the responses to my comment. Ive made an effort to respond to you all. Thank you for the likes and comments. Much love to you all. My fellow Aussies. : )

[jeffreyflynn]

Do you realise your entire Australian audience is tearing up while watching this

[Mez]

It’s a VERY special song to us. It’s the story of our land. When he says “for 40, 000 years I’ve been the first Australian”, he’s talking about our indigenous Aborigine forefathers. When he talks about the one who came on the prison ship, he’s talking about the British people who were sent as convicts for ridiculous crimes, that were forced to build infrastructure before being freed. They talk about the wonderful immigrants that brought so many cultures to our country, with hope for better lives in a new land. And they talk about the earth, the sky, the sea… everything that makes Australia what it is. ♥️ This song makes me cry every time, especially today as Judith Durham (the female singer) has passed away. Rest in Peace, Ms. Durham. Your beautiful voice that graced us for 60 years will be missed terribly.

[divusaugstus]

This song needs to be our national anthem instead of the dead dirge we have now. It talks to First Nations people and immigrants and convicts — it does mention the land itself but it is mostly about our human history — our current one just rambles about ‘being girt by sea’ etc. c’mon Aussies, we need to campaign for this. It is a seriously good national anthem!
It brings tears to my eyes when I hear it. It is emotional and powerful. It’s about unity.

[asyrotk]

First verse is about our aboriginals- ' for 40, 000 years I've been the first Australian'. Second verse talks about convicts and settlers. Our first settlers were convicts. England used us as a prison. Some convicts were sent here for the term of their natural life. Some were sent 7 years for stealing a little bread. Gradually convicts that had done their time recieved land and freemen arrived. One of the verses talks about famous Australians. Albert Namatjira was a famous aboriginal who painted landscapes. 'Clancy on his horse' refers to a beautiful Australian bush poem about a man in a city office dreaming about his friend Clancy, somewhere droving ( driving) cattle. Ned Kelly was one of our bushrangers or outlaws, remembered fondly for his stand against the police. There have been movies made about him. And 'I'm the one who waltzed Matilda, refers to another one of our unofficial anthems 'Waltzing Matilda'. Hope this helps with some of the references. Great reaction.

[Sunnygirl]

Can’t listen to this song without it bringing a tear to my eyes. As a child of immigrants, I’m so proud to call Australia home.
The Seekers are amazing and Judith Durham has the voice of an angel.

[thisisbillgates]

This song really should be our national anthem. My mother is an indigenous Australian and my father is from an immigrant family, and I love that both sides of my family are represented in this amazing song (unlike our current anthem).

[thewilfer]

Vale Judith Durham, the lead singer of The Seekers. She passed away on Friday 5th August, 2022. My condolences to her family and friends. What a beautiful singing voice. May she Rest In Peace. 😔

[Royal_BloodLust]

Lyrics and the meaning behind them all...


Aboriginal point of view:

I came from the dream-time (Dreamtime is an ancient Aboriginal belief of how the world began, our religion, if you will)

From the dusty red-soil plains (Australian soil, is naturally red; the more towards the centre of the continent you go, the darker the red. The coast and valley soils are dark and black.)

I am the ancient heart (We are an ancient people.)

The keeper of the flame
I stood upon the rocky shores
I watched the tall ships come (The tribal people of Eora, where modern day Sydney is today; stood on the large rocky cliffs & watched the British ships arrive)

For forty thousand years I've been
The first Australian.... (Aboriginals have been here for what they thought at the time was over 40, 000 years. Recent research has proven it's well over 60, 000 years. The oldest people on Earth.)



A convicts point of view:

I came upon the prison ship
Bowed down by iron chains (A citizen of the United Kingdom, here for whatever crime of a certain amount of time or even for life.)

I fought the land, endured the lash (They cleared the harsh landscape to make settlements, Endured the lash refers to lashes or being whipped, convicts were publicly whipped when misbehaving.)

And waited for the rains (Waiting for the rains for their crops, wheat and barley, mainly for food and rum.)

I'm a settler, I'm a farmer's wife
On a dry and barren run (It's a dry, hot, barren continent, it's a hard run for yakka.)

A convict, then a free man, I became Australian
(The convicts came over for all sorts of crimes from murder, treason [Usually high treason against the crown] to petty treason or stealing bread, some convicts were here for only a few years others were sent for life. Some chose to stay when their time was up. They were given land and grants to help the settlement grow and to establish the first colony in Australia called "New South Wales" Named after the country of Wales [A constituent country 1 of 4 of the United Kingdom], and due to the colony being in the southern hemisphere, it is hence South of Wales. NSW is now a state 1 of 6 [not including 3 internal territories or the 7 external territories] of the Commonwealth of Australia.)


An Australians point of view:

I'm the daughter of a digger (A digger is a famous Australian term for our WWI soldiers, most notably the ones that were deployed to fight the Ottoman Turks at Gallipoli. Modern day Gallipoli, Turkey)

Who sought the mother lode (Who sought out for a greater life, to make money for herself in very hard times)

The girl became a woman
On the long and dusty road (Slight bit metaphorical but also true...She grew up in harsh times Australia. But we also did have long and dusty dirt roads, no asphalt back then, before WWI.)

I'm a child of the Depression (Self explanatory, she grew up during the depression)

I saw the good times come (She [The generation] saw change in the nation, from war, the depression to cultural change, to federal change)

I'm a bushie, I'm a battler (A tough country girl from the bush)
I am Australian


Facts and additional info:


I'm a teller of stories
I'm a singer of songs (Aboriginal people passed down culture and wisdom through songs, dance, stories, and paintings rather than writing)

I am Albert Namatjira
And I paint the ghostly gums (Albert Namatjira was an Aboriginal-Arrernte man whom painted many things and was the first indigenous person to have a wide range of Australian and overseas fans, one notable fan was Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, whom he met with on few occasions and he was awarded the Queen's Coronation Medal in 1953)

I'm Clancy on his horse (A poem written by Banjo Paterson. The poem is about offering a romantic view of rural life. One of his best works.)

I'm Ned Kelly on the run ( Ned Kelly, was an Australian born, Irish bushranger, outlaw, gang leader and convicted police-murderer. Born to Irish convicts, he was one of the last bushrangers, he is known for wearing a suit of bulletproof armour during his final shootout with the police.)

I'm the one who waltzed Matilda (the term Waltzing Matilda, is Australian slang for "Walking on foot[Waltzing] with ones belongings in a Matilda [Swag], slung over ones shoulder. A famous Australian song was written, by Banjo Paterson, using the slang "Waltzing Matilda".)
I am Australian


Australia, the continent and the people.. Australians, and, more notably, Aboriginals, are very spiritual beings, we connect with the land as we don't own the land, the land owns us.


I'm the hot wind from the desert (Australia is a very hot, barren, arid continent.)

I'm the black soil of the plains (Australia, along with a few other countries have what is called black soil, in parts of the country. Black soil is incredibly fertile soil)

I'm the mountains and the valleys (We have large mountains and very deep valleys.. Blue Mountains and the Hunter Valley, just to name one of each.)

I'm the drought and flooding rains (Australia could be in drought for years on end, then suddenly rain will fall for weeks to months on end, due to the ground being so dry the water doesn't soak in at first and it runs and floods...)

I am the rock (Uluru), I am the sky
The rivers when they run (We have natural rivers throughout Australia)

The spirit of this great land
I am Australian (Again, we are all very spiritual with our country, this continent has a mind of its own.)

I hope this helps some shed light on the lyrics and the meaning behind the song!

[BJ-uycl]

I am Australian… I was an immigrant from Wales and so lucky that my parents wanted better for us in the 70s. I have travelled extensively with my work but always sigh a relief when landing back in this beautiful country. I am officially an Australian I have a piece of paper that tells me I am, which I treasure.

[emeraldheart]

I'm a political refugee from apartheid South Africa. To have been welcomed into Australia is the greatest blessing on this earth.
I am Australian! 🇦🇺 ❤️

[julesau]

This should be our official Australian anthem. I am so proud of this song and equally as proud that the Seekers were famous long before John and Jimmy and continue to be recalled from many parts of the world....just not we Aussies. Judith is one of the best and unique singers you will ever find. Bruce Woodley wrote the song....such a brilliant song writer! I remember watching them in the early sixties on our black and white tv with my father holding up a microphone to the speaker of a modern reel to reel tape deck because all the family just loved them so much. Thank you for your reaction. You must do some more of them! 🦘🦘🦘🦘🦘

[leannemassari]

I love a sunburnt country
A land of sweeping plains
Of ragged mountain ranges
Of drought and flooding rains
I love her far horizon
I love her jewelled sea
Her beauty & her terror
This wide brown land for me

[lisadelahaye]

as a First Nations person from Australia, this is a fabulous song that describes us and our country well. Yo, you cover so many Australian artists we'll have to make you an honorary Australian lol...

[adrienneellul]

Judith Durham is 78 now. She was close to 70 when she sung that song in that video. She never lost her voice and the seekers repertoire is huge . They ARE legends

[davehocking]

Its the story of different australians from different generations.
The dreamtime and the indigenous australias that have been here for 40, 000 years.
The convicts that came from england on the tall ships
The ones that battled through the great depression and the world wars
The ones that immigrated post war or in the time since

Its about the origin of almost every australian in one song. Brought together with respect. I dont think ive met anyone that doesnt love this song.

[KarinainOZ]

First generation Aussie here, typing through tears. So proud of my wonderful, if imperfect, country. So very glad my parents moved here from post WWII Europe! *happy tears*

[sarahtaylor]

Judith Durham passed away yesterday evening. For us Aussies who grew up listening to The Seekers, it's the end of an era and we say goodbye and rest easy to a truly great Australian legend😢

[easternstar]

To me as a first generation born Australian, my parents are Dutch immigrants. I love Australia. I love the land. I love the first nations people. I love the diverse and wonderful people that make up Australia. This to me as our anthem. Everytime I hear it, it stirs my emotions of gratitude for such a beautiful and sacred home. Currently with the the division in our country because of bad politics, I listen to this now with you, and I cry with mixed emotions. The seekers are a legendary band. Peace be to all Australians and all people of Earth. 💫💜🇦🇺💫💜🌎💜