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Waltzing Matilda

From Wikisource
Waltzing Matilda (1895)
lyrics by Banjo Paterson, composed by Christina Macpherson

Folk song by Banjo Paterson, written in 1895, widely considered Australia's national song. It tells the story of an itinerant worker (a "swagman") making a drink of tea at a bush camp and stealing a sheep to eat. When police officers come to arrest him, he drowns himself in a small watering hole (a "billabong").

Tune for "Waltzing Matilda" (help | file info or download)
Christina MacphersonBanjo PatersonWaltzing Matilda189523992

\header {
    title = "“Waltzing Matilda”"
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}
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    \addlyrics {
        Oh there once was a swag -- man _
        camped in the bill -- a -- bong,
        Un -- der the shade of a Cool -- i -- bah tree,
        And he sang as he looked
        at the old bill -- y boil _ -- ing,
        Who’ll come a’ -- waltz -- ing Ma -- t -- il -- da with me

        Who’ll come a’ -- waltz -- ing Ma -- til -- da my dar -- ling
        Who’ll come a’ -- waltz -- ing Ma -- til -- da with me
        Waltz -- ing Ma -- til -- da and lead -- ing a wa -- ter- -- bag
        Who’ll come a’ -- waltz -- ing Ma -- til -- dt -- a with me
    }
  >> }
>> } }
  \layout { \context {
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}

Oh there once was a swagman camped in the billabong,
Under the shade of a Coolibah tree,
And he sang as he looked at the old billy boiling,
Who’ll come a’waltzing Matilda with me

Who’ll come a’waltzing Matilda my darling
Who’ll come a’waltzing Matilda with me
Waltzing Matilda and leading a water-bag
Who’ll come a’waltzing Matildta with me

2nd Verse

Down came a jumbuck to drink at the billabong,
Up jumped the swagman & grabbed him with glee,
And he said as he put him away in the tucker bag
“You’ll come a’waltzing Matilda with me”!—

Chorus: “You’ll come” etc

3rd Verse

Down came the squatter a’riding his thoroughbred,
Down came policemen, one, two and three,
“Whose is the jumbuck you’ve got in the tucker bag?
You’ll come a’waltzing Matilda with we.”

Chorus: “You’ll come” etc

4th verse

But the swagman he up & he jumped in the water-hole
Drowning himself by the Coolibah tree,
And his ghost may be heard as it sings by the billabong
Who’ll come a’waltzing Matilda with me.

Chorus: “Who’ll come” etc

This work is in the public domain in the United States because it was published before January 1, 1929.


The longest-living author of this work died in 1941, so this work is in the public domain in countries and areas where the copyright term is the author's life plus 82 years or less. This work may be in the public domain in countries and areas with longer native copyright terms that apply the rule of the shorter term to foreign works.

Public domainPublic domainfalsefalse