William Neville Scott OAM (4 October 1923 – 22 December 2005) was an Australian author,

folklorist Folklore studies, less often known as folkloristics, and occasionally tradition studies or folk life studies in the United Kingdom, is the branch of anthropology devoted to the study of folklore. This term, along with its synonyms, gained currenc ...

, songwriter, poet, and collector of

bush ballads The bush ballad, bush song or bush poem is a style of poetry and folk music that depicts the life, character and scenery of the Australian bush. The typical bush ballad employs a straightforward rhyme structure to narrate a story, often one of a ...

and Australian folk history.Jam article He has published anthologies of Australian bush songs, including the best selling book ''The Complete Book of Australian Folklore'' published in 1976. He was awarded the Order of Australia in 1992 for his contributions to folklore, folk music, and

Australian literature Australian literature is the written or literary work produced in the area or by the people of the Commonwealth of Australia and its preceding colonies. During its early Western history, Australia was a collection of British colonies; as such, ...

. He was considered a living treasure,Legacy article, Scott and his anthologies of songs and his donated collections continue his legacy.

Childhood and early career

Bill Scott was born in

Bundaberg Bundaberg is a city in the Bundaberg Region, Queensland, Australia, and is the tenth largest city in the state. Bundaberg's regional area has a population of 70,921, and is a major centre of the Wide Bay–Burnett geographical region. The Bun ...

, Queensland, and grew up in

Caboolture Caboolture () is a town and suburb in Moreton Bay Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , the suburb of Caboolture had a population of 26,433 people. It is located on the north side of the Caboolture River, which separates the town from Morayfi ...

and Brisbane. He began writing poetry while serving in the Royal Australian Navy during World War II and had his first poem published in ''

The Bulletin Bulletin or The Bulletin may refer to: Periodicals (newspapers, magazines, journals) * Bulletin (online newspaper), a Swedish online newspaper * ''The Bulletin'' (Australian periodical), an Australian magazine (1880–2008) ** Bulletin Debate, ...

'' in 1944 when he was twenty-one. After the war he traveled around Queensland working as a sugar cane cutter, umbrella maker,Obit, Folklore steam-engine driver, and gold-prospector. He was also a worker in the smelters of Mount Isa, and a seaman on a lighthouse tender in the 1950s before working at a publishing house.ABC Sunday Starting in 1974 he wrote full-time. In 1976 he compiled ''The Complete Book of Australian Folklore'', a book that has been in print almost continuously ever since. He also edited and compiled ''The Second Penguin Australian Songbook''.ABC Sunday Scott completed 51 books of prose and poetry, and is renowned as a collector and writer of Australian folk stories and songs. He also wrote novels, short stories, verse, biographies, magazine articles, anthologies and songs, with some of his poetry and short stories anthologised in various collections. Late in life he moved from Brisbane to Warwick in the Darling Downs, where he spent his last 18 years of life. He wrote long letters "full of stories, news, ideas and weather reports from his beloved Condamine River". He shared little gifts, tapes, books and even a rock of smoky quartz from the

Snowy Mountains The Snowy Mountains, known informally as "The Snowies", is an IBRA subregion in southern New South Wales, Australia, and is the tallest mountain range in mainland Australia, being part of the continent's Great Dividing Range cordillera system ...

, as a reminder of his prospecting days, with friends.

Accomplishments

Many of his poems are well known and recited by school children. Scott was also a founding member of the Queensland Folk Federation that now runs the Woodford Folk Festival. Ian McNamara of ABC Radio said, "We as people are all better off for the muse of a bloke like Bill." His song ''Hey Rain'' was used as the namesake for the documentary on his 50-year "folkie" career, with the subtitle ''The songs and stories of Bill Scott''. The documentary has been featured on ABC's Sunday afternoon program.ABC Sunday ABC's description of the show notes, "Continuing the tradition of Australian

bush poet The bush ballad, bush song or bush poem is a style of poetry and folk music that depicts the life, character and scenery of the Australian bush. The typical bush ballad employs a straightforward rhyme structure to narrate a story, often one of a ...

s like Henry Lawson and Banjo Paterson is... Bill Scott. A popular performer at the Woodford Folk Festival over the years where most of this documentary is set, this is an affectionate look at a charming man with a lot of great memories." The documentary's liner notes say, "He's a story teller, he's Bill Scott, and this is his song". An obituary in ''Folklore'' suggested the refrain of his poem "The Old Man's Song" as an epitaph: "What good is your life if it isn't a song?"

''Hey Rain'' documentary

First broadcast on the ABC in 2005, Hey Rain is a documentary that celebrates the life and works of Bill Scott. "It looks at Bill's lifelong fascination with Australian folklore and the role he played in collecting it, loving it and bringing it to an ever widening audience. (It) touches on Bill's poems, stories and songs and contains performances by

Dave de Hugard Dave de Hugard (born 1945) is an Australian musician and folklorist. He has been described as "the country's foremost interpreter of the 'old bush songs'". He was nominated for the 1987 ARIA Awards for Best Indigenous Release. Discography *''F ...

, Penny Davies and Roger Ilott, and it also features a song dedicated to Bill by that extraordinary performer, Ted Egan."

Bibliography

Song collections

* ''Bushranger Ballads'' (1976) * ''The Second Australian Song Book'' (1980) * Tape-recordings of his songs: "Hey, Rain!" and "Songbird in Your Pocket" * CD of his songs ''Opal Miner - The Songs of Bill Scott'' recorded by Penny Davies and Roger Ilott in 1999 on Restless Music label * Expanded CD of his songs accompanies DVD ''Hey Rain - The Songs and Stories of Bill Scott'' documentary seen on ABC TV

Notes

References

"Bill Scott passes away"
(JAM: NSW Folk Federation) Accessed: 29 January 2007
"Passionate Bill loved folk: Renowned author leaves lasting legacy"
by Jen Scott 28 December 2005 ''Warwick Daily News''
''It's an Honour''
William Neville Scott Medal of the Order of Australia, accessdate 19 December 2008

accessdate 19 December 2008
"Bill Scott passes away"
Jam.org article, accessdate 19 December 2008 *Ian McNamara, ABC Radio, ''Australia All Over'' August 1999 *''Obituary'' 1 December 2006 Folklore

External links

National Library of Australia – Extended Bibliography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Scott, Bill 1923 births 2005 deaths Australian children's writers People from Bundaberg Recipients of the Medal of the Order of Australia Royal Australian Navy personnel of World War II Australian folklorists 20th-century Australian poets Australian male poets 20th-century Australian male writers