Cunnamulla Fella Explained

Cunnamulla Fella
Type:single
Artist:Slim Dusty
A-Side:A Letter From Down Under
Released:1965
Recorded:1965
Genre:Country
Label:Columbia

"Cunnamulla Fella" (sometimes written as "Cunnamulla Feller") is an Australian country song about a fictional stockman from the Queensland town of Cunnamulla that was first recorded by Slim Dusty in 1965 and has been covered by several artists. An eponymous statue was unveiled in 2005 and is a major feature of the Cunnamulla town centre.

Background

The song "Cunnamulla Fella" was written by the Australian country music artist Slim Dusty in collaboration with Stan Coster.[1] [2] Recorded in 1965 and released in that year as the b-side to "A Letter From Down Under" (Columbia DO-4633),[3] [4] The song's lyrics tell the story of a nomadic and carefree stockman who roams the vast landscapes of the Outback and recall Coster's days working as a sheep-shearing "ringer" around Cunnamulla in the 1950s.[5] The song also refers to other towns in the area besides Cunnamulla such as Adavale, Augathella, Charleville, and Dirranbandi. A live version of the song was later released in 1973 on Slim Dusty's album Live At Tamworth (1973)[6] and the studio version appeared on compilation albums such as 'I'll Take Mine Country Style (1985),[7] The Very Best of Slim Dusty (1998),[8] and Pubs, Trucks & Plains (2007).[9] It was on the soundtrack of The Slim Dusty Movie (1984).[10]

Covers

Cunnamulla Feller
Type:single
Artist:The Screaming Jets
Album:Not So Dusty
Released:1998
Label:EMI
Prev Title:October Grey
Prev Year:1998
Next Title:I Need Your Love
Next Year:1999

The song has been covered by the following artists:

Eponymous statue

In honour of the enduring legacy of "The song," the Cunnamulla Fella Statue was unveiled in 2005 by country music personalities Anne Kirkpatrick (Dusty's daughter), Jayne Kelly, and Tracy and Russell Coster.[5] [12] [13] That year the Cunnamulla Fella Festival was established in its honour.[14] The statue was commissioned by the Paroo Shire Council, with the intent of celebrating the unique character of the Cunnamulla region and paying homage to Slim Dusty's contribution to Australian country music.[5]

The bronze statue was created by Australian sculptor Archie St Clair, a Northern Territorian who had previously worked as a stockman. It was based on a painting by Michael Nicholas, a wildlife painter who was formerly a police officer in Cunnamulla, in response to a national competition by the local Shire of Paroo held after Dusty's death in 2003 to create a sketch of the "Cunnamulla Fella".[5]

The Cunnamulla Fella Statue depicts a larger than life sized stockman sitting on a swag. The statue is strategically positioned in Cunnamulla's town centre in Centenary Park, offering a visual representation of the song's lyrics.

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Cunnamulla Fella . 13 November 2023 . Monument Australia.
  2. News: Gunders . Peter . 26 July 2013 . A Cunnamulla fella on the Cunnamulla Fella . Australian Broadcasting Corporation . 13 November 2023.
  3. Web site: Slim Dusty – A Letter From Down Under (1965, Vinyl). Discogs. 13 November 2023.
  4. Web site: Cunnamulla Fella (1998 Remaster). Universal Music Group. Youtube. 13 November 2023.
  5. News: Bronzed Aussie president over Cunnamulla . The Sydney Morning Herald . James . Shrimpton . 13 November 2008. 13 November 2023.
  6. Web site: Live At Tamworth. Slim Dusty Music. 13 November 2023.
  7. Web site: I'll Take Mine Country Style. Slim Dusty Music. 13 November 2023.
  8. Web site: The Very Best of Slim Dusty. Slim Dusty Music. 13 November 2023.
  9. Web site: Pubs, Trucks & Plains. Slim Dusty Music. 13 November 2023.
  10. Web site: The Slim Dusty Movie (Movie Soundtrack). Slim Dusty Music. 13 November 2023.
  11. Web site: The ARIA Australian Top 100 Singles Chart – Week Ending 04 October 1998. Imgur.com. ARIA. 22 October 2016.
  12. Web site: Cunnamulla Fella. Tourism Queensland. 7 November 2010. https://web.archive.org/web/20110722092807/http://www.queenslandholidays.com.au/things-to-see-and-do/cunnamulla-fella/index.cfm. 22 July 2011.
  13. Web site: Bronze 'Cunnamulla Fella' pays tribute to Slim Dusty. ABC News. 15 October 2005. 13 November 2023.
  14. Web site: About the Festival. Cunnamulla Fella Festival. http://webarchive.nla.gov.au/awa/20170218102837/http://www.cunnamullafellafestival.com.au/about-the-festival. 18 February 2017. dead.