Over the course of his career, he collected more gold and platinum albums than any other Australian artist.
Dusty not only recorded songs written by himself and other fellow Australian performers, but also recorded classic Australian poems by Henry Lawson and Banjo Paterson with new tunes, to call attention to the old 'Bush Ballads.' An example is The Man from Snowy River by Paterson.
In 1970, he was made a Member of the Order of the British Empire for services to music. In 1971 he won Best Single at the Australian Country Music Awards at the Tamworth Country Music Festival (Slim's wife Joy McKean won Song of the Year as writer of the song for which he won best single). In all, he won a record 35 "Golden Guitars" over the years.
He died at home in St Ives, New South Wales on 19 September 2003 after a protracted battle with cancer, at age 76.
The Slim Dusty Story started back in the 1940s on a remote dairy farm in the hills behind Kempsey, NSW, when a 10-year-old boy dreamed of being a country music singer. His name was David Gordon Kirkpatrick... he called himself "Slim Dusty" and began to live that dream.
But even the most optimistic farm boy would never have imagined the life that was to unfold... a life that would establish Slim as the voice of the nation, the chronicler of Australian history in song.
Slim managed to hold on to those early visions of writing and singing about the bush because during his lengthy career, he always stayed in touch with his audience. And he did this in a very real and meaningful way, so much so that his fans would feel that Slim was one of their mates and his songs "just a good yarn you might hear from a mate at the pub, around a campfire in the bush or at a back yard barbie".
He described his music as "songs about real Australians... "I have to be fair dinkum with my audience. I can't see any other way of doing it," he said. "You have to believe in what you are singing about."
Slim Dusty was the first Australian to have a number one hit record and the only Australian to ever receive a 78rpm Gold Record (for A Pub With No Beer in 1958)...
He was the first Australian to have an international record hit and the first singer in the world to have his voice beamed to earth from space (astronauts Bob Crippen and John Young played Slim's recording of Waltzing Matilda from the space shuttle "Columbia" as it passed over Australia back in 1983).
During an amazingly successful career spanning over six decades, Slims' continued popularity saw him rewarded with more Gold and Platinum Awards for sales of his singles, eight-tracks, cassettes, CD's, videos and DVDs... more than any other Australian artist!
He received an unequaled 37 Golden Guitar Awards, two ARIA's (Australian Recording Industry Association awards), inductions into the ARIA Hall of Fame and the Australian Country Music Roll of Renown.
Slim was recognized for his long time services to Australian entertainment with an MBE and an Order of Australia. In 1999, Prime Minister John Howard named Slim Dusty Australia's Father of the Year and Senior Australian of the Year. There were many other awards and honors... too many to name here!
Dusty died at his home in St Ives, New South Wales on 19 September 2003 at the age of 76, after a protracted battle with cancer.
A Certain Kind of Gold
Slim Dusty Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You scheme always for money and you twist my friends around.
I loved you but that's over, it can never be retold.
Go and seek your gilded mansion, your riches and your gold.
For there's a certain kind of gold you only find in your true friends,
It's the only kind of gold you take with you when this world ends,
So I'd rather have a life of love to remember when I'm old
But if you'd rather have them, take your riches and your gold.
I don't want to have this mansion when our hair is turnin' grey,
I'll keep true friends around me, and be part of that fold,
And I'll have my kind of mansion and a certain kind of gold.
For there's a certain kind of gold you only find in your true friends,
It's the only kind of gold you take with you when this world ends,
So I'd rather have a life of love to remember when I'm old
But if you'd rather have them, take your riches and your gold.
But if you'd rather have them, take your riches and your gold.
In Slim Dusty's song "A Certain Kind of Gold," the singer is bidding farewell to someone who puts money above all else. The person in question is accused of scheming and twisting the singer's friends around. Despite having loved this individual in the past, the singer recognizes that their priorities will never change. The song talks about the importance of true friendship and the value of having people around you who will be there for you even when the money and the riches disappear.
The lyrics of the song convey a sense of betrayal and disappointment; Slim Dusty sings about love that has been lost because one person's priorities were always about acquiring wealth. The song is a reminder that there is more to life than material possessions and that true happiness comes from meaningful relationships that are built on trust and mutual respect.
Slim Dusty's "A Certain Kind of Gold" is a poignant commentary on the importance of genuine friendship and how it is worth more than any amount of gold or riches. It reminds us that the things that truly matter in life are the people that we share it with.
Line by Line Meaning
You can go away and leave me, I don't want your type around,
I don't want to associate with people who only care about money and manipulate my friends.
You scheme always for money and you twist my friends around.
You are always trying to make money and manipulate the people I care about.
I loved you but that's over, it can never be retold.
I used to love you, but that's in the past and can never be regained.
Go and seek your gilded mansion, your riches and your gold.
You should go look for your material possessions elsewhere.
For there's a certain kind of gold you only find in your true friends,
The real treasure in life is the true friendships you have.
It's the only kind of gold you take with you when this world ends,
When life comes to an end, you can't take material possessions with you, only the memories of true happiness.
So I'd rather have a life of love to remember when I'm old
I choose a life filled with love and meaningful relationships that I can cherish forever.
But if you'd rather have them, take your riches and your gold.
But if you only value material possessions, then you can keep them.
I don't want your kind of livin' that you're livin' every day,
I don't want to live a life consumed by the pursuit of money and possessions, like you do every day.
I don't want to have this mansion when our hair is turnin' grey,
I don't want a big house when I'm old and my hair is turning grey.
I'll keep true friends around me, and be part of that fold,
I will surround myself with true friends who share my values and priorities.
And I'll have my kind of mansion and a certain kind of gold.
I will be happy with the life and friendships I have, and that will be my true treasure.
But if you'd rather have them, take your riches and your gold.
Again, if you only care about material possessions, then keep them; but I don't need them to be happy.
Writer(s): joy mckean
Contributed by Thomas O. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Sandra
on One Truckie's Epitaph
My brother Terry Radke was the man Slim wrote the song for after he received a letter from Terry's youngest son, Lync. Thank you
Charley Boyter
on Axe Mark On a Gidgee
With horsebells to keep me company
Jake
on Your Country's Been Sold
You say you belong to Australia my friend
And rightly you’d die for this land to defend
But let us be honest, it’s sad but it’s true
Australia my friend doesn’t belong to you
Our country’s been sold by the powers that be
To big wealthy nations way over the sea
We couldn’t be taken by bayonets or lead
And so they decided to buy us instead
And talking of wars and the blood that was spilled
The widows, the crippled, the ones that were killed
And I often wonder if their ghosts can see
What’s happening now to their native country
I wonder if ghosts of the fallen can see
The crime and corruption and vast poverty
With a lost generation of youth on the dole
Who drift on life’s ocean without any goal
I once had a dream of our country so grand
The rivers outback irrigated the land
With towns and canals in that wasteland out there
And big inland cities with work everywhere
With profit from farming and factory and mine
Was used to develop a nation so fine
Then I woke from my dream into reality
That the wealth of our nation goes over the sea
Yeah you say you belong to Australia my friend
And rightly you’d die for this land to defend
But let us be honest, it’s sad but it’s true
Australia my friend doesn’t belong to you