Name: If The Memories Last
Duration: 4 min 15 s
Channel: Merv Webster
Description: "If The Memories Last" is a song by Bush Balladeer. Australian Bush Ballad

If The Memories Last

Bush Balladeer

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Australian Bush Ballad

ballads balladeer bush ballads bush poetry merv webster

Bush Balladeer

Australian Bush Poet and Balladeer

The particular style of music I enjoy playing is The Australian Bush Ballad pick and strum style championed by Slim Dusty and Stan Coster. The ballad style of lyrics shares the culture and the characters of my country. I am a member of the Australian Bush Balladeers. http://bushballadeers.com.au/bushpoet.htm I am also a bush Poet and a member of The Australian Bush Poets Association who define bush poetry as rhyming verse with regular metre and true rhyme about Australia, its people, places, things and way of life. http://www.abpa.org.au/

Song Info

Genre

Country • Traditional Country

Charts

Peak #188

Peak in subgenre #29

Author

Merv Webster

Rights

Merv Webster

Uploaded

March 20, 2010

Track Files

MP3

MP3 3.9 MB • 128 kbps • 4:15

Story behind the song

We oftened toured out through the west of Queensland and performed a show at the Wellshot Hotel at Ilfracombe, some 30 kilometres east of Longreach.  I was always impressed by the bar at the back which was made from old wool presses and the seats were actually saddles mounted on pipe to the floor.

Recenly we returned but sadly the saddles were gone and I figured like a lot of old Drovers who now live on the memories of large Drives back in their days, the seats were now like those memories to me.  They would stay with us ... If the Memories Last.

Lyrics

IF THE MEMORIES LAST
 
I recall that Ia019d met him some years ago now
in this pub called the Wellshot out Ilfracombe way.
He had spent all his life in a saddle, he claimed,
pushing cattle down routes for a pittance of pay.

The old bar there before him was rather unique;
it was made from wool presses, old timers for sure.
And his seat was a saddle, with stirrups to boot,
that was mounted on pipe and secured to the floor.

CHORUS

You could tell by the look in the old timera019s eyes
he was back on a stock route reliving the past.
For his frame in that saddle sure touched me that day
and you sense life goes on if the memories last.

Then the Barmaid she tapped the old man on the back
and he looked up in fright for a moment or two
to recall where he was and just where he had been,
then she poured him a rum and a beer chaser too.

a01CIta019s a shout for you Sam from that bloke over there,a01D
and she pointed to me as I walked from the scene.
He then dipped his old hat and he smiled with a grin,
but then drifted on back to the place he had been.

CHORUS

You could tell by the look in the old timera019s eyes
he was back on a stock route reliving the past.
For his frame in that saddle sure touched me that day
and you sense life goes on if the memories last.

It had been near ten years since Ia019d been through this town
and one lesson Ia019ve learnt as the years slip away
is the fact that the images fresh in your mind
can become like Sama019s memories of yesterday.

I just stood there a moment surveying the scene
as Ia019d hoped to at least shared that saddle a while.
But like Sam it was gone and the best I could do
was to treasure the mema019ry and savour a smile.

CHORUS

You could tell by the look in the old timera019s eyes
he was back on a stock route reliving the past.
For his frame in that saddle sure touched me that day
and you sense life goes on if the memories last.
 

© Bush Poet and Ballad Writer -Merv Webster

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