Union Songs
Beaconsfield
A song by Colin Buchanan©2006 Universal Music (Aust.)- [play]
Way down south in Beaconsfield
Late on Anzac Day
A thousand metres down below
A hundred tons gave way
Fourteen miners scrambled clear
But there were 17 went down
Fallen rock and twisted steel
Three men down in Beaconsfield
Three men down in BeaconsfieldLarry didn't make it out
They found him two days in
Still no sign of Todd and Brant
Things were looking grim
Come late on Sunday afternoon
Hope was all but dead
When voices in the dark revealed
Two alive in Beaconsfield
There's two alive in BeaconsfieldThere were tears of joy, they're safe and strong
A miracle from God
Across the town, across the world
Spread word of Brant and Todd
They chatted to their rescuers
Just metres from their cage
Can you send us down a counter meal
From the Club Hotel in Beaconsfield
From the miner's pub in BeaconsfieldThat Tassie rock is hard as nails
But the folks are tougher still
Their family were praying
And their mates were on the drill
And freedom clawed its way on
Through the darkness and the dread
They kept their shoulders to the wheel
They breed 'em tough in Beaconsfield
Breed 'em tough in BeaconsfieldAnd who'll forget that moment
When the lads we feared were dead
Stepped out onto the surface
Todd Russell and Brant Webb
And they held their loved ones tightly
And moved their tags to "Safe"
And every miner's face revealed
They are the gold of Beaconsfield
They are the gold of Beaconsfield
And they walked free from Beaconsfield
Notes
This song written and recorded live to Colin's laptop on Tuesday, 9th May 2006, the day Todd Russell and Brant Webb were freed and walked from the Beaconsfield Gold Mine after 2 weeks trapped in a rockfall 1 km below ground.
On his website at http://www.colinbuchanan.com.au he writes:
"At the urging of Richard Glover, 702 ABC Sydney drive presenter, on Tuesday afternoon, 9th May 2006, I wrote a song about the Beaconsfield Rescue. I think it is one of those "in the moment" songs that sort of popped out. It's my attempt to tell the story in an uncomplicated, unsentimental sort of way and build a simple musical monument to a remarkable piece of Australian history. The late Slim Dusty and Stan Coster wrote and sang real songs about and for real Australians, and I had them in mind as I wrote "Beaconsfield". There are no grand plans - be good to raise some money for the community of Beaconsfield, but let's see to what degree, if any, it resonates..."
union songs..........a selection by mark gregory