Clancy of the Overflow
Encyclopedia
"Clancy of The Overflow" is a poem by Banjo Paterson
, first published in The Bulletin
, an Australian news magazine, on 21 December 1889
. The poem is typical of Paterson, offering a romantic view of rural life, and is one of his best-known works.
and drover
, and now envies the imagined pleasures of Clancy's lifestyle, which he compares favourably to life in "the dusty, dirty city" and "the round eternal of the cashbook and the journal".
The title comes from the address of a letter the city-dweller sends, "The Overflow" being the name of the sheep station where Clancy was working when they met.
The poem is based on a true story that was experienced by Banjo Paterson. He was working as a lawyer when someone asked him to send a letter to a man named Thomas Gerald Clancy, asking for a payment that was never received. Banjo sent the letter to "The Overflow" and soon received a reply that read:
The letter looked as though it had been written with a thumbnail dipped in tar and it is from this that Banjo Paterson found the inspiration for the poem, along with the meter.
In 1897, Thomas Gerald Clancy wrote a poem to reply to Banjo Paterson's, named "Clancy's Reply".
Clancy himself makes a cameo appearance
in another popular Banjo Paterson poem, "The Man from Snowy River", which was first published the following year.
in the movie The Man from Snowy River, and Clancy is mentioned in the musical theatre
production The Man from Snowy River: Arena Spectacular
– during the recitation of the poem, Clancy is mentioned by Steve Bisley
in his role of Banjo Paterson while the poem is being re-enacted in the show.
Contemporary recordings of the poem include Jack Thompson's recitation on "Jack Thompson, The Bush Poems of A.B. (Banjo) Paterson, 2008" and "Jack Thompson, Favourite Australian Poems, Fine Poets Collection Volume 5, 2010.
The poem "Clancy of the Overflow", has also been set to music and recorded several times, including:
, who was a co-producer for The Man from Snowy River. Bruce Rowland
(who composed the music for both the 1982 film The Man from Snowy River and its 1988 sequel film The Man from Snowy River II (USA title: Return to Snowy River), as well as composing music for The Man from Snowy River: Arena Spectacular
, was to compose the music for the film. The film was to have been funded by private investors, but the A$22 million minimum investment was not met by the deadline of June 2004, and the film has been shelved indefinitely.
Banjo Paterson
Andrew Barton "Banjo" Paterson, OBE was an Australian bush poet, journalist and author. He wrote many ballads and poems about Australian life, focusing particularly on the rural and outback areas, including the district around Binalong, New South Wales where he spent much of his childhood...
, first published in The Bulletin
The Bulletin
The Bulletin was an Australian weekly magazine that was published in Sydney from 1880 until January 2008. It was influential in Australian culture and politics from about 1890 until World War I, the period when it was identified with the "Bulletin school" of Australian literature. Its influence...
, an Australian news magazine, on 21 December 1889
1889 in poetry
Nationality words link to articles with information on the nation's poetry or literature .-Canada:* William Wilfred Campbell, Nationality words link to articles with information on the nation's poetry or literature (for instance, Irish or France).-Canada:* William Wilfred Campbell, Nationality...
. The poem is typical of Paterson, offering a romantic view of rural life, and is one of his best-known works.
History
The poem is written from the point of view of a city-dweller who once met the title character, a shearerSheep shearer
A sheep shearer is a worker who uses -blade or machine shears to remove wool from domestic sheep during crutching or shearing.-History:...
and drover
Drover (Australian)
A drover in Australia is a person, typically an experienced stockman, who moves livestock, usually sheep or cattle, "on the hoof" over long distances. Reasons for droving may include: delivering animals to a new owner's property, taking animals to market, or moving animals during a drought in...
, and now envies the imagined pleasures of Clancy's lifestyle, which he compares favourably to life in "the dusty, dirty city" and "the round eternal of the cashbook and the journal".
-
- And the bush hath friends to meet him, and their kindly voices greet him
- In the murmur of the breezes and the river on its bars,
- And he sees the vision splendid of the sunlit plains extended,
- And at night the wond'rous glory of the everlasting stars.
- And the bush hath friends to meet him, and their kindly voices greet him
The title comes from the address of a letter the city-dweller sends, "The Overflow" being the name of the sheep station where Clancy was working when they met.
The poem is based on a true story that was experienced by Banjo Paterson. He was working as a lawyer when someone asked him to send a letter to a man named Thomas Gerald Clancy, asking for a payment that was never received. Banjo sent the letter to "The Overflow" and soon received a reply that read:
-
- Clancy's gone to Queensland droving and we don't know where he are
The letter looked as though it had been written with a thumbnail dipped in tar and it is from this that Banjo Paterson found the inspiration for the poem, along with the meter.
In 1897, Thomas Gerald Clancy wrote a poem to reply to Banjo Paterson's, named "Clancy's Reply".
Clancy himself makes a cameo appearance
Cameo appearance
A cameo role or cameo appearance is a brief appearance of a known person in a work of the performing arts, such as plays, films, video games and television...
in another popular Banjo Paterson poem, "The Man from Snowy River", which was first published the following year.
In other media
Clancy was portrayed by Jack ThompsonJack Thompson (actor)
Jack Thompson, AM is an Australian actor and one of the major figures of Australian cinema. He was educated at University of Queensland, before embarking on his acting career. In 2002, he was made an honorary member of the Australian Cinematographers Society...
in the movie The Man from Snowy River, and Clancy is mentioned in the musical theatre
Musical theatre
Musical theatre is a form of theatre combining songs, spoken dialogue, acting, and dance. The emotional content of the piece – humor, pathos, love, anger – as well as the story itself, is communicated through the words, music, movement and technical aspects of the entertainment as an...
production The Man from Snowy River: Arena Spectacular
The Man From Snowy River: Arena Spectacular
The Man from Snowy River: Arena Spectacular, which was based on Banjo Paterson's poem The Man from Snowy River, was a very popular musical theatre production which toured Australian capital cities twice during 2002....
– during the recitation of the poem, Clancy is mentioned by Steve Bisley
Steve Bisley
Steve Bisley is an Australian film and television actor, who attended the National Institute of Dramatic Art .-Acting career:...
in his role of Banjo Paterson while the poem is being re-enacted in the show.
Contemporary recordings of the poem include Jack Thompson's recitation on "Jack Thompson, The Bush Poems of A.B. (Banjo) Paterson, 2008" and "Jack Thompson, Favourite Australian Poems, Fine Poets Collection Volume 5, 2010.
The poem "Clancy of the Overflow", has also been set to music and recorded several times, including:
- John SchumannJohn SchumannJohn Lewis Schumann is an Australian singer, songwriter and guitarist from Adelaide. He is best known as the lead singer for the folk group Redgum, with their chart-topping hit "I Was Only 19 ", a song exploring the psychological and medical side-effects of serving in the Australian forces during...
of RedgumRedgumRedgum were an Australian folk and political music group formed in Adelaide in 1975 by singer-songwriter John Schumann, Michael Atkinson on guitars/vocals and Verity Truman on flute/vocals; they were soon joined by Chris Timms on violin. All four had been students at Flinders University and...
recorded it on his 1993 album True BelieversTrue Believers (John Schumann album)True Believers is the second solo album by John Schumann, previously the frontman of Redgum. Released in 1993, it was reissued in 2009.-Album artwork:... - John Cameron's recording of Albert ArlenAlbert ArlenAlbert Arlen AM was a Turkish Australian pianist, composer, actor and playwright. He is best known for his musical The Sentimental Bloke , the "Alamein Concerto", and his setting of Banjo Paterson’s Clancy of the Overflow.-Biography:Albert Aarons was born in Sydney in 1905 to Turkish immigrants...
's setting, with an orchestra conducted by George S. English (1955) - Peter Dawson's recording of the same setting, with the London Symphony OrchestraLondon Symphony OrchestraThe London Symphony Orchestra is a major orchestra of the United Kingdom, as well as one of the best-known orchestras in the world. Since 1982, the LSO has been based in London's Barbican Centre.-History:...
conducted by Charles MackerrasCharles MackerrasSir Alan Charles Maclaurin Mackerras, AC, CH, CBE was an Australian conductor. He was an authority on the operas of Janáček and Mozart, and the comic operas of Gilbert and Sullivan...
(4 May 1955) - folk band Wallis and Matilda (1981)
- Jonathon WelchJonathon WelchJonathon Welch is a choral conductor and singer from Melbourne, Australia.Welch was the 2008 winner of the Australian Local Hero Awardin recognition of his work with The Choir of Hard Knocks, a choir made up of homeless and disadvantaged singers from Melbourne...
with Opera AustraliaOpera AustraliaOpera Australia is the principal opera company in Australia. Based in Sydney, its performance season at the Sydney Opera House runs for approximately eight months of the year, with the remainder of its time spent in the The Arts Centre in Melbourne...
.
Proposed film
In 2004 there were plans to make a movie of "Clancy of the Overflow", a sequel to the 1982 film The Man From Snowy River, but this fell through due to financial reasons. The director was to have been Simon WincerSimon Wincer
Simon Wincer is an Australian film director and film producer. He attended Cranbrook School, Bellevue Hill, Sydney from 1950 to 1961. On leaving school he worked as a stage hand at TV Station Channel 7. By the 1980s he directed over 200 hours of television. In 1986 he directed the made for TV...
, who was a co-producer for The Man from Snowy River. Bruce Rowland
Bruce Rowland
Bruce Rowland is a well-known Australian composer. He composed the soundtrack for the 1982 movie "The Man from Snowy River", as well as the soundtrack for its 1988 sequel "The Man from Snowy River II"...
(who composed the music for both the 1982 film The Man from Snowy River and its 1988 sequel film The Man from Snowy River II (USA title: Return to Snowy River), as well as composing music for The Man from Snowy River: Arena Spectacular
The Man From Snowy River: Arena Spectacular
The Man from Snowy River: Arena Spectacular, which was based on Banjo Paterson's poem The Man from Snowy River, was a very popular musical theatre production which toured Australian capital cities twice during 2002....
, was to compose the music for the film. The film was to have been funded by private investors, but the A$22 million minimum investment was not met by the deadline of June 2004, and the film has been shelved indefinitely.
External links
- Clancy of the Overflow – The poem
- "Clancy of the Overflow in the works", The Sydney Morning HeraldThe Sydney Morning HeraldThe Sydney Morning Herald is a daily broadsheet newspaper published by Fairfax Media in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1831 as the Sydney Herald, the SMH is the oldest continuously published newspaper in Australia. The newspaper is published six days a week. The newspaper's Sunday counterpart, The...
(1 June 2004)