And the Band Played Waltzing Matilda - Eric Bogle

Waltzing Matilda has inspired numerous other songs. Perhaps the most famous, and most poignant is Eric Bogle’s And the Band Played Waltzing Matilda, which he wrote as a newly arrived immigrant to Australia in 1972. It was entered in a songwriting competition at a folk festival that year and was awarded third prize. No-one remembers the songs which took the major prizes.

It has since been recorded almost 140 times, by singers from many countries. It was first recorded by Eric on his first LP Now I’m Easy in 1980, after several other people had popularised it in Australia and Britain. In 1986 it was given a Gold Award by the Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA), and in May 2001 APRA named it one of the Top 30 Australian songs of all time.