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.
Getting Away from It All
Slim Dusty Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And I long for the city so gay,
It seemed that my youth had been wasted,
The best years of life blown away,
The tales I had heard of the big town,
Made my life seem empty and dull,
So one night I fin'ly decided,
To get right away from it all.
So I sold my bridle and saddle,
My horse I turned loose on the run,
I caught the next train for the southland,
My days as a stockmen were done,
I soon learned the ways of the bright lights,
Though life was so different and strange,
Wine, women and song of the night life
Soon made me forget the old dream,
I dressed in the latest of fashion,
Discarded my old western droll,
I wanted no part of the bushland,
At last I was free from it all.
Instrumental
Then one night with music and laughter,
Of women and sparkling champagne,
The setting I grown to be part of,
somehow didn't seem quite the same,
In fancy I saw my old bushmates,
As they stood on the station that day,
And she tried so hard to keep smiling,
And wave as the train pulled away;
Oh, the train whistle echo resounded,
From gullies and mountains so tall,
It seemed to announce that a bushman,
Was getting away from it all.
It's two years ago since I wandered,
away from the old cattle run,
I realize now for the first time,
The wild reckless thing I have done,
Oh, true friends by me were forsaken,
I let my truest love fall,
As out through the doorway of nature,
I walked away from it all.
Instrumental
But old mother nature forgive me,
And open her doorways again,
There still may be time for redemption,
If I can break free from these chains,
Oh the northern bound train now is rolling,
And outside the moon shadows fall,
All the bright lights are fading behind me,
And I'm getting away from it all;
Yes getting away from it all.
The lyrics to Slim Dusty's song "Getting Away from It All" explore the idea of escaping from a monotonous and unfulfilling life in the bush and seeking the excitement of the city, only to find that life there is equally unfulfilling. The singer of the song has grown tired of the bushland, feeling that the best years of his life have been wasted. In search of something more, he sells his horse and gear and catches a train to the southland, leaving behind his life as a stockman.
In the city, he is at first exhilarated by the bright lights and the wine, women, and song of the night life. He discards his old western clothes and embraces the latest fashion. However, over time, he begins to feel disillusioned, and the glittering world of the city loses its shine. He realizes that he has left behind true friends and his true love, and that he has made a wild and reckless decision by abandoning the bush. As he sets off on a train heading north, he hopes that he can find redemption and return to a life closer to nature.
Overall, the song is a poignant exploration of the human desire for change and excitement, and the realization that true contentment and happiness cannot be found solely in external circumstances.
Line by Line Meaning
I grew sick and tired of the bushland,
I was tired of living in the bush.
And I long for the city so gay,
I wanted to live in the city because of the exciting tales I had heard.
It seemed that my youth had been wasted,
I felt like I had wasted my youth living in the bush.
The best years of life blown away,
The best years of my life had gone by.
The tales I had heard of the big town,
I had heard exciting tales about city life.
Made my life seem empty and dull,
The stories I heard made me feel like my life was empty and dull.
So one night I fin'ly decided,
I decided to leave the bush for the city.
To get right away from it all.
I wanted to get away from my life in the bush.
So I sold my bridle and saddle,
I sold my horse-riding equipment.
My horse I turned loose on the run,
I let my horse run free.
I caught the next train for the southland,
I took the next train to the southern part of the country.
My days as a stockmen were done,
I was no longer a stockman.
I soon learned the ways of the bright lights,
I quickly learned about city life.
Though life was so different and strange,
Even though city life was different and strange.
Wine, women and song of the night life
I enjoyed the night life, including drinking, women, and music.
Soon made me forget the old dream,
I forgot about my old dreams of living in the city.
I dressed in the latest of fashion,
I started dressing in the latest styles.
Discarded my old western droll,
I stopped dressing in western clothing.
I wanted no part of the bushland,
I didn't want anything to do with the bush anymore.
At last I was free from it all.
I finally felt free from my old life in the bush.
Then one night with music and laughter,
One night while enjoying music and laughter.
Of women and sparkling champagne,
Drinking and being with women.
The setting I grown to be part of,
The setting I had grown accustomed to.
Somehow didn't seem quite the same,
The setting didn't feel the same anymore.
In fancy I saw my old bushmates,
I imagined my old bush friends and colleagues.
As they stood on the station that day,
As they stood on the train station the day I left.
And she tried so hard to keep smiling,
A woman tried hard to keep smiling as the train pulled away.
And wave as the train pulled away;
And she waved as the train departed.
Oh, the train whistle echo resounded,
The sound of the train whistle echoed.
From gullies and mountains so tall,
The sound echoed from the tall mountains and gullies.
It seemed to announce that a bushman,
It felt like the whistle was announcing that a bushman was leaving.
Was getting away from it all.
That someone was leaving their old life behind.
It's two years ago since I wandered,
It's been two years since I left.
Away from the old cattle run,
Away from my life as a stockman.
I realize now for the first time,
I now realize for the first time.
The wild reckless thing I have done,
That what I did was wild and reckless.
Oh, true friends by me were forsaken,
I left my true friends behind.
I let my truest love fall,
I let my truest love slip away.
As out through the doorway of nature,
As I left the doorway of nature.
I walked away from it all.
I left my old life behind.
But old mother nature forgive me,
But I hope Mother Nature forgives me.
And open her doorways again,
And lets me back into nature.
There still may be time for redemption,
There may still be time for me to find redemption.
If I can break free from these chains,
If I can break free from my current situation.
Oh the northern bound train now is rolling,
The train bound north is now moving.
And outside the moon shadows fall,
The moon is casting shadows outside.
All the bright lights are fading behind me,
The city lights are fading behind me as I leave.
And I'm getting away from it all;
And I'm leaving everything behind once again.
Yes getting away from it all.
I'm truly getting away from it all.
Contributed by Josiah L. 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