This is the tale of a new chum, Jack
Who'd just come in from the Great Outback!
I asked an old dark man how the boomerang came to be
And he told me as only a dark fella can
That they made it from a boomerang tree
A boomerang, a boomerang, a boomerang tree
I searched and searched but I never did see
That's how the boomerang came to be,
They made it from a boomerang tree
I asked an old dark man where the kangaroo got its tail
And he told me as only a dark fella can
They shipped them in on the Birdsville mail
Shipped them in on the Birdsville mail,
A couple of a hundred to a bail
Shipped them in on the Birdsville mail
And that's how the kangaroo got its tail
I asked an old dark man where the roly-poly goes
And he told me as only a dark fella can
That the big fella Dabble-Dabble lives on those
A big fella Dabble-Dabble lives on those
A big fella Dabble-Dabble lives on those
And every picaninny knows:
That's where the roly-poly goes.
Boomerang, boomerang, kangaroo tail,
Roly-poly, Birdsville Mail
New chum, new chum on the trail:
All add up to a dark fella's tale.
I asked an old dark man how you tell the Coolibah tree
And he told me as only a dark fella can
That they always write it with a capital 'C.'
Always write it with a capital 'C'
Always write it with a capital 'C'
And that's how you tell the Coolibah tree
Well, that's what the dark man said to me
I asked an old dark man how the billabong got its name
And he told me as only a dark fella can
That he wasn't around when the billabong came
Wasn't around when the billabong came
Wasn't around when the billabong came
Doesn't know how it's got its name
'Cause he wasn't around when the billabong came
Billabong, boomerang, kangaroo tail,
Roly-poly, Birdsville Mail
Coolibah, new chum on the trail:
All add up to a dark fella's tale.
All add up to a dark fella's tale
All add up to a dark fella's tale.
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From his album: "Country Livin'"
Who'd just come in from the Great Outback!
I asked an old dark man how the boomerang came to be
And he told me as only a dark fella can
That they made it from a boomerang tree
A boomerang, a boomerang, a boomerang tree
I searched and searched but I never did see
That's how the boomerang came to be,
They made it from a boomerang tree
I asked an old dark man where the kangaroo got its tail
And he told me as only a dark fella can
They shipped them in on the Birdsville mail
Shipped them in on the Birdsville mail,
A couple of a hundred to a bail
Shipped them in on the Birdsville mail
And that's how the kangaroo got its tail
I asked an old dark man where the roly-poly goes
And he told me as only a dark fella can
That the big fella Dabble-Dabble lives on those
A big fella Dabble-Dabble lives on those
A big fella Dabble-Dabble lives on those
And every picaninny knows:
That's where the roly-poly goes.
Boomerang, boomerang, kangaroo tail,
Roly-poly, Birdsville Mail
New chum, new chum on the trail:
All add up to a dark fella's tale.
I asked an old dark man how you tell the Coolibah tree
And he told me as only a dark fella can
That they always write it with a capital 'C.'
Always write it with a capital 'C'
Always write it with a capital 'C'
And that's how you tell the Coolibah tree
Well, that's what the dark man said to me
I asked an old dark man how the billabong got its name
And he told me as only a dark fella can
That he wasn't around when the billabong came
Wasn't around when the billabong came
Wasn't around when the billabong came
Doesn't know how it's got its name
'Cause he wasn't around when the billabong came
Billabong, boomerang, kangaroo tail,
Roly-poly, Birdsville Mail
Coolibah, new chum on the trail:
All add up to a dark fella's tale.
All add up to a dark fella's tale
All add up to a dark fella's tale.
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From his album: "Country Livin'"