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.
Hear 'Em Go
Slim Dusty Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And the beam of his big bull light,
That Dave by the number of gears he don't drop,
And Col in his long nose white,
They're pushin' an' tryin' to make some miles,
With their big double loads of freight,
Like flour an' steel an' tractor parts,
From Brisbane and interstate.
The windows will rattle in the towns tonight,
And the roads tax man may wait,
The boss of the motel may curse and swear,
At the noise that the truckies make,
Hate the truckies for makin' the noise an' din,
Which awakens him from his sleep,
The road tax boy wants to watch his step,
And the squatter best watch his sheep.
Instrumental
Six of Fitzy's rigs and an All-trans guy
There's Snow and old Air-way Don,
With the Brambles flag which both now fly,
They'll boil up a few miles on,
Oh I remember the smell of transmission oils,
And the Road Ranger whines in my ears,
The chatter of quad box sticks I can feel,
And the way that the R model steers.
My sight is gone and I can't go on,
At my job on the big road trains,
But the blokes I knew are still jockeying through,
Past my home on the western plains,
I can lie at night in my restless bunk,
And envisage the smoke from the stacks,
As my mates roll by doin' jobs like I,
Use to do on the western track.
Instrumental
That's Bob by the roar of his Maxidyne,
And the beam of his big bull light,
That Dave by the number of gears he don't drop,
And Col in his long nose white
The lyrics to Slim Dusty's song "Hear 'Em Go" pay tribute to the truck drivers who tirelessly traverse the highways of Australia, delivering goods and supplies from city to city. Slim Dusty expertly captures the essence of truck driving life through his descriptive lyrics, describing the sounds of the engines and the sights of the lights, as well as the camaraderie between the drivers.
The lyrics paint a vivid picture of the hardworking truck drivers and their rigs, each with their unique features that distinguish them from the rest. The chorus describes the sound of the trucks as they pass through towns, making the windows rattle and awakening the locals from their slumber. The second verse highlights the challenges of trucking life, such as the resentment from those who are disturbed by the noise, and the need for drivers to watch out for livestock and roadblocks.
Overall, the song celebrates the unsung heroes of the transportation industry, and their contributions to keeping Australia running. It speaks to the pride that truck drivers take in their work and the bonds they share with their fellow drivers.
Line by Line Meaning
That's Bob by the roar of his Maxidyne,
Identifying Bob through the loud sound of his engine, producing a distinct noise.
And the beam of his big bull light,
Identifying Bob through the bright light of his headlight, steering through the dark.
That Dave by the number of gears he don't drop,
Identifying Dave through his driving skill, not dropping any gears while maneuvering his vehicle.
And Col in his long nose white,
Identifying Col through his white colored truck, having a long nose.
They're pushin' an' tryin' to make some miles,
The drivers are relentlessly pushing and trying to cover more distance.
With their big double loads of freight,
The drivers are carrying heavy loads of cargo.
Like flour an' steel an' tractor parts,
Examples of the types of cargo being hauled by the drivers.
From Brisbane and interstate.
The cargo is being transported from Brisbane and other states.
The windows will rattle in the towns tonight,
The noise from the truck engines will be so loud that it will shake the windows of nearby towns.
And the roads tax man may wait,
The tax collector may wait to collect road tax from the drivers.
The boss of the motel may curse and swear,
The motel manager may get angry and swear due to the noise from the trucks disturbing the guests.
At the noise that the truckies make,
The truck drivers are responsible for creating the loud noise that disturbs the peace of the area.
Hate the truckies for makin' the noise an' din,
People who reside nearby are annoyed by the noise and they hate the truck drivers for causing it.
Which awakens him from his sleep,
The noise from the trucks wakes up people who are sleeping.
The road tax boy wants to watch his step,
The tax collector needs to be careful because he may be in danger due to the trucks on the road.
And the squatter best watch his sheep.
The sheep owner needs to keep an eye on his herd to ensure they don't get hit by the trucks.
Six of Fitzy's rigs and an All-trans guy
Identifying a group of trucks belonging to Fitzy and another driver from All-trans.
There's Snow and old Air-way Don,
Identifying two more drivers, Snow and Air-way Don.
With the Brambles flag which both now fly,
The trucks owned by Snow and Air-way Don belong to the Brambles company.
They'll boil up a few miles on,
The drivers will keep driving and cover more distance.
Oh I remember the smell of transmission oils,
Recalling the scent of the transmission oils from the previous days of working as a truck driver.
And the Road Ranger whines in my ears,
Recalling the sound of the Road Ranger gear system in the old trucks, still ringing in the memory of the driver.
The chatter of quad box sticks I can feel,
Recalling the sensation of shifting gears using the quad box stick, still fresh in the driver's memory.
And the way that the R model steers.
Recalling the way the R model of truck was steered by the driver.
My sight is gone and I can't go on,
The singer is now visually impaired and unable to drive trucks anymore.
At my job on the big road trains,
The singer used to work as a driver on massive road trains.
But the blokes I knew are still jockeying through,
Despite the singer leaving the job, the other drivers he worked with are still driving trucks.
Past my home on the western plains,
The trucks and drivers are still driving on the roads near the artist's home in the western plains.
I can lie at night in my restless bunk,
The artist is unable to sleep peacefully at night and remains restless in his bed.
And envisage the smoke from the stacks,
The singer can imagine the smoke rising from the stacks of the moving trucks.
As my mates roll by doin' jobs like I,
The singer's friends are still doing the job that he used to do, driving trucks on the road.
Use to do on the western track.
The artist used to drive on the western track, but he can only remember it now as his days of driving trucks have come to an end.
Writer(s): Kelvin Dixon
Contributed by Amelia K. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@lindagannell4392
lovedly to hear slim singing Henry Lawsons words ...Two Great Australians
@johnphelan7895
He loved Australia but oh how Australia loved him in return
@fredwarren1145
❤ love these people
@michellegalea3419
You were a great mate and friend XOXO you are sadly missed and loved and thanks for the great memories XOXO
@cameronsullings8148
Slim was a genius
@ianford
Love this and Love the ol mate singing......And i'm still listening buddy both on Vinyl
and here on The Tube.
@keithschmidt6418
I love this song, Slim Wrote this song for his wife Joy, for one of there aniversarys, I'm fairly sure. RIP. SD.
@davidmallet8093
Lyrics from Henry Lawson poem. Slim had great respect for Lawson and put some of his poems to songs as well as writing about him (see Slim’s song:- Henry Lawson’s Pen). Slim has carried a baton of some of Lawson’s valuable lyrical contributions to Australian literature for a few more generations at least.
@troyburton7709
@davidmallet8093 yeah mate, that's probably why he could write a million songs. Tones of inspiration.
@keithschmidt6418
@@davidmallet8093 i think you will find slim actually wrote this song, he never wrote many but fairly sure he wrote this one for joy