anzacsightsound.org

Sights and Sounds of World War I

  • All
  • Homefronts
  • Battlefronts
  • Aftermath
  • Maps
  • Timeline

Search

Close
Menu

Have a question?

Contact Us FAQ

Search results

  • Take Me Back to Dear Old Blighty

    Audio

    This song, in which a series of soldiers yearn to return to ‘Blighty’, or Britain, was hugely popular in 1917.


  • Never Mind the Food Controller

    Audio

    An uplifting music hall song, intended to provide comfort during wartime food rationing.


  • I’m Going Back Again to Yarrawonga

    Audio

    "I’ll linger longer in Yarrawonga"


  • The Rose of No Man’s Land

    Audio

    A sentimental song composed as a tribute to Red Cross battlefield nurses.


  • What Did You Do in the Great War, Daddy?

    Audio

    The subject of a child innocently shaming their father for failing to carry out military service was a commonly used theme of war propaganda.


  • Every Girl is a Fisher Girl

    Audio

    This rousing music hall song by Australian-born Florrie Forde, popular during WW1, suggests that every girl is ‘fishing for a mate’.


  • 'When the war is over, mother dear'

    Audio

    Though your heart is aching, mother dear
    For your soldier boy never fear
    I’ll come back some day, and kiss your tears away
    When the war is over, mother dear

    In this somewhat maudlin song, written and recorded in England in 1915, a soldier laments being far away from home and from his mother, and promises to return to her.


  • 'If England wants a hand, well, here it is'

    Audio

    Comes a message o’er the ocean
    A message to our sunny land
    England calls Australia’s soldiers
    We must answer her command
    If England wants a hand, well, here it is…

    The lyrics of this rousing, patriotic ballad were written by one of Australia’s most popular vaudeville (music hall) performers, with music by a noted Sydney songwriter. 'If England Wants a Hand, Well, Here It Is' was used on the soundtrack of the 1981 Australian feature film Gallipoli.


  • Boys of the Dardanelles

    Audio

    Boys of the Dardanelles
    They faced the shot and the shells
    Down in hist'ry their fame will go

    The patriotic ballad ‘ Boys of the Dardanelles ', composed by Australian writer and singer Marsh Little, was particularly effective for encouraging recruitment. This version was performed by the prolific English singer and recording artist Stanley Kirkby.


  • Australia will be there

    Audio

    Of all the patriotic songs of WW1, 'Australia Will Be There' is probably the one best known to Australians. It became the marching song of the Australian Expeditionary Forces and was used to rally the troops as they marched away from home. 'Australia Will Be There' was written in 1915 by Walter ‘Skipper’ Francis. The song quotes from ‘ Auld Lang Syne’ in its chorus and is often given its longer title, 'For Auld Land Syne - Australia Will Be There '.


Ww100 Ngataonga Nfsa

© All rights reserved

Follow us:

Facebook Twitter About Us Frequent Questions