Hey True Blue

by John Williamson

The long-awaited life story of John an Australian icon, a much-loved legend of the music industry and man of the land.The joy after all is in the journey, or being what you really wanna be . . .The son of a wheat farmer, John Williamson grew up with an appreciation of the land and all things Australian. His career was kickstarted with a self-proclaimed silly song – 'Old Man Emu' – winning TV's New Faces in 1970, but it was a decade of hard slog before he forged his unique place in our musical history.From his love of the bush ('Mallee Boy') and his outrage at environmental destruction ('Rip Rip Woodchip'), to his pride in the Australian character and spirit ('True Blue'), Williamson has been chronicling the subjects and issues that are close to his heart for more than forty years. He has become the voice of Australia, performing his unofficial anthems at all the major events.In his distinctive Aussie style, John Williamson tells it like it is. He takes us behind the scenes on the road and at home, revealing the tough times, the great times, what drives him and what matters. His passion – for preserving our national character and landscape, and to remain true to himself – is as strong now as it has ever been.This is a journey into the heart and soul of Australia.

384 pages, Paperback

First published July 23, 2014

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.


John Robert Williamson AM (born 1 November 1945) is an Australian country music and folk music singer-songwriter multi-instrumentalist, television host and conservationist. Williamson usually writes and performs songs that relate to the history and culture of Australia, particularly the outback, in a similar vein to Slim Dusty and Buddy Williams before him. Williamson has released over fifty albums, ten videos, five DVDs, and two lyric books and has sold more than 4,000,000 albums in Australia.[1] His best known hit is "True Blue". On Australia Day (26 January) in 1992 Williamson was made a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) with the citation: "for service to Australian country music and in stimulating awareness of conservation issues". He has received twenty-six Golden Guitar trophies at the Country Music Awards of Australia, he has won three ARIA Music Awards for Best Country Album and, in 2010, was inducted into the related Hall of Fame. - wikipedia

Reviews

[Sue Gerhardt Griffiths · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ve been a fan of John Williamson and his music since the late 70s when my dad first introduced me to the TV program, Travlin’ Out West, from that time on I became obsessed with country music, not only have I been to dozens of concerts by various country music artists but I have been to countless John Williamson shows and every performance of his is magic! And, whenever hubby and I are on the road to our next adventure out comes the John Williamson CDs. Can’t beat good old Australian country music! And, there’s just something endearing about John Williamson’s Aussie bush songs.

It was a real joy to listen to someone whose storytelling and music I adore, he’s a fabulous entertainer and hearing his voice added genuineness to the tale. I also own a hardback copy and a mini poster John Williamson signed in 1991 which will be cherished forever.

John Williamson is down to earth, fun, loveable, a great campaigner for Australia and without question, an Australian Icon.

POPSUGAR Reading Challenge 2020: # 14 - your favourite prompt from a past POPSUGAR challenge - 2019 A book written by a musician (fiction or nonfiction)

[Danielle · Rating 2 out of 5]

Having grown up in country NSW, John Williamson's music left in indelible ink on my childhood. My dad was always a fan of his particular brand of Australian folk/bush balladeer music and thus it was playing around the house and in the car a lot when I was growing up. In fact, the first concert I ever remember going to was when I was about five and Dad took me to a Williamson concert in at the Mudgee Regent Theatre. I learnt a lot through Williamson's music - Australian narrative, the beauty of our flora and fauna, and the importance of environmental conservation. I've always been thankful for being exposed to those messages as a kid too too. Consequently, I was quite keen to read Williamson's autobiography. I wanted to get an insight into the songs I loved so much when I was younger and for which I still hold a soft spot. I wanted the nostalgia.

And there is plenty of nostalgia here and definite moments of interest. I found Williamson's early life, growing up on his family farm, funny and insightful - it explained a lot about his outlook. He is also great at being able to communicate the love he has for the natural Australian landscape and the respect he has for the Aboriginal people. The structure of the book also nicely interweaves lyrics from Williamson's songs and contains anecdotes about where the songs came from and how they evolved over time. We move chronologically through Williamson's life, but sometimes there is a reversal, or a flash forward, that communicates that great sense of memory and story telling. It frequently reminded me of all the reasons I like Williamson as a song writer - his ability to turn real life experience into an engaging and entertaining yarn.

However, (and it is a big however), while the book reminded me of why I love Williamson the songwriter, it left me not liking Williamson the man very much. He often laments that his childhood (the Australia of the 1950s and 1960s) was so much better then nowadays in so many ways - well, sure, as long as you were a white male and not a woman, Aborigine, migrant or poor. I also understand that there needs to be an authentic voice through autobiographical form, but if I read someone significant reduced to merely a "good bloke", "top bloke", "great Australian", "true blue" or "fair dinkum" one more time I would have screamed. The thing that irked me the most throughout this though is that there is a hypocritical arrogance to Williamson's character that pops up time and time again. At the same time as he clearly holds bitter resentment towards people like Slim Dusty and Molly Meldrum for not offering him enough support and encouragement in the early days of his career, he also frequently puts down any younger Australian country music singers that he regards as sounding too American. This argument is interesting, but he never really takes on any significant discussion surrounding the fact that his music is more folk than traditional country (which is an American genre after all). He also mentions how many Golden Guitar Awards he has won (a staggering number by any measure), but also mentions how miffed he feels with the Awards for the times he didn't win. There is one instance when he talks about supporting Johnny Cash at a concert in Tasmania and mentions Cash's son as being such a lesser musician compared to his old man, at the same time he later mentions the importance of his own daughter (also a musician) not being compared to her father or living in his shadow. Williamson also describes how, after having a seemingly emotional affair with his now wife, Meg, over a period of about ten years, he tells his ex-wife of 35 years he's ending their marriage via fax machine. He then has the audacity to be wounded about how cold and distant she was with him a few days later when they met up to formally discuss and end the relationship. Um...you think? Buddy, I'm honestly surprised she let you back in the house to get your things.

So ironically, my summation of this book would be - while it's supposed to be a book for fans, if you are a fan, I wouldn't read it.

[Reader Rick · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don't generally like to read biographies but this one was exceptional. I think I enjoyed it mainly because it was about a subject that is close to my heart, namely, living in Australia. I compare it favourably to Four Fires by Bryce Courtney. Growing up in the 50's and 60's was both a unique and interesting experience. Williamson has captured the Australian essence perfectly. Only another born and bred Aussie can relate to the spirit captured, firstly in his songs and now in this book.

[Geoff Sheehan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyable. Full of enjoyable anecdotes from a performer that has been a big part of Australian life over my lifetime. My Dad was a bit of a JW fan (as well as Crooners & big band), I was rock n roll all the way. Yet, when JW did a show in Campbelltown that was on my late Dad’s Birthday I decided to go, and I thoroughly enjoyed the show and music.
I ended up buying the Butcherbird CD and T shirt and a couple of items after the show. JW was gracious enough to listen to my ramble about Dad and have a photo with me. He also autographed the copy of True Blue 2 that I bought at the after show table, inscribed In Memory of (my Dad). It was appreciated John.

I now have this Hey True Blue book to go along with True Blue 2. You could say I am now a bit of a JW fan myself now.

[Brit McCarthy · Rating 3 out of 5]

John Williamson is an award winning and very accomplished Australian singer-songwriter, best known for the classics "Old Man Emu" and of course "True Blue". Most Aussies have an emotional connection to True Blue that transcends the song itself, because of what it brings out in us. You never go out of your way to hear it, but you sure know all the words.

John Williamson writes his own story just like he writes his songs - with honesty, a bit of humour and a love for all things Australian. He tells of his upbringing in the Mallee in Western Victoria and his long music career - including how long it took him to really get going. I'd had no idea how long the slog was for him to be consistently recording and selling albums. He also imparts to the reader all the things he has learnt from his travels around outback Australia and impresses upon them the real need for better conservation for our native land and animals - although I don't think he used the word 'conservation' once.

As interesting as his career and travels have been, and all the big moments he was able to be a part of, I did get the feeling he was a pretty average husband and father. His kids rarely get a mention (not sure if that was on purpose) and his first wife got less time on the page than his parents. You definitely get the feeling he was too busy playing the music man to spend much time with his family, which was a weird vibe to get because he didn't seem that sorry about it.

Overall an interesting read. And the naked hardcover underneath the dust jacket was stunning - he sure lives in a beautiful part of this country. If there's one thing that came across, it was just how much Williamson loves Australia.

[Riley Beech · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed Williamson tone and candour, he let the tea fly at times but was steadfast and direct about his story, his love of nature and his views on artistic integrity. The writing is kind of all over the place but the message was inspiring to any Australians who may be wanting to feel connected to the place or artists looking to be inspired to keep doing what they’re doing.

[Anna Ciddor · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good yarn. Listened on audio to John telling the story of his life and how he has created many of his famous songs. Only problem was getting the tune of Hey True Blue stuck annoyingly in my head!

[Steven Kolber · Rating 3 out of 5]

Just about what you’d expect, clearly written and straightforward.

[Dianne Vandenhurk · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed the way song lyrics wrapped around each chapter. This book was made more memorable as an audio book read by the author Hearing his voice added authenticity to the story.

[Jason Duncan]

Down to earth - a great ambassador for Australia.
Couldn't be a more fair dinkum ... a pleasure to read.