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When I wasA a young man I caDrried my pack A F#m
And I lived theA free life of a rEover. A
From the Murray's green basin to the dusty Doutback A F#m
I waltzed mAy Matilda all overE. A
Then in 1915 me couEntry said, ?SoDn A
It's time to sEtop rambling ?cause there's work to be done.â? D A
So they gave me a tin hat, and theyD gave me a gun A F#m
And they sent me awaAy to the warE. A
And the band playeAd "Waltzing Matilda"D A
When we sailed away from the Dquay, E
And amidst all thDe tears and tBmhe shouts and cheers A F#m
We sailed off Afor Gallipoli. E A
And how well I reAmember that tDerrible day A F#m
When our blood staineAd the sand and the wateEr A
And how in that hell that theDy call Suvla Bay A F#m
We were butchered like lAambs at the slaEughter. A
Johnny Turk, he waEs ready, he'd primed himself well. D A
He shot us wEith bullets, and he rained us with shellDs, A
And in five minutes flat he'd bloDwn us all to hell,A F#m
Nearly blew us rAight back to AustrEalia. A
And the band played A?Waltzing Matildaâ?D A
As we stopped to bury our slainD. E
And we burieDd ours and Bmthe Turks buried theAirs. F#m
Then it started allA over againE. A
Now, those who werAe living did theirD best to survive A F#m
In that mad worlAd of guts, blood aEnd fire, A
And for seven long weeks I kept myseDlf alive A F#m
While the corpses around Ame piled hEigher. A
Then a big TurkiEsh shell knocked me arse-over-head D A
And when I awoke in me hospiEtal bed D A
And saw what it had Ddone, Christ! I wished I was dead. A F#m
Never knew therAe was worse things than Edying. A
And no more I'll gAo waltzing MatildDa A
Through the green bushesA so far and near,D E
For to hang tents Dand pegs a man nBmeeds two Alegs. F#m
No more waltzing MatildAa for me.E A
(Instrumental break: verse)
So they collected theA the crippled, the wounDded and maimed A F#m
And they shipped us bacAk home to Australia,E A
The the legless, tAhe armless, the blDind and insaneâA? F#m
Those proud wouAnded heroes of Suvla. E A
And when the sEhip pulled into Circular Quay D A
I looked at Ethe place where me legs used to be D A
And thanked Christ there wAas no one there waitingD for me A F#m
To grieve aAnd to mourn and to Epity. A
And the band playAed "Waltzing Matilda" D A
As they carried us Adown the ganDgway, E
But nobody chDeered, theyBm just stood and sAtared F#m
And they turned all thAeir faces away. E A
And now every AApril I sit Don my porAch F#m
And I watch theA parade pass beforeE me. A
I see myA old comrades, how prDoudly they march, A F#m
Reliving thAe dreams of paEst glory. A
I see thEe old men all twisted and toDrn, A
The forgotten hEeroes of a forgotten war, D A
And the young pAeople ask me, "What aDre they marching for?" A F#m
And I ask Amyself the samEe question. A
And the band playsA ?Waltzing Matilda,âD? A
And the old men still answer the call, D E
But year aftDer year theBmir numbers are feAwer. F#m
Someday no one will marAch there at alEl. A
Waltzing AMatilda, waltzing MatildDa, Bm
Who'll go a-waltzing AMatilda with meF#m? E
And their ghosts may bAe heard as they marcEh by the Billabong:F#m D
"Who'lDl come a-Waltzing MatildaA with me? D7 A
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