Redgum Poor Ned Lyrics

Poor Ned, you're better off dead
At least you'll get some peace of mind
You're out on the track
They're right on your back
Boy, they're gonna hang you high

1878 was the year I remember so well
They put my father in an early grave
And slung my mother in gaol
I don't know what's right or wrong
But they hung Christ on nails
Six kids at home and two still on the breast
They wouldn't even give her bail

You know I wrote a letter 'bout Stringybark Creek
So they would understand
I might be a bushranger but I'm not
A murdering man
I didn't want to shoot Kennedy
Or that copper Lonnegan
He alone could have saved his life
By throwing down his gun

You know they took Ned Kelly
And they hung him in the MelbourneGaol
He fought so bravely dressed in iron mail
And no man single-handed
Can hope to break the bars
It's a thousand like Ned Kelly
Who'll hoist the flag of stars

Sifting through a teacher/friend's record collection, I stumbled on Fairport Convention's 'Ballad of Ned Kelly'. I heard it once only but enough of it stuck in my head for us to reassemble it during an early rehearsal when we were scratching around for songs to play. We borrowed a verse from JS Manifold. Years later we met Trevor Lucas who had written the original. We were happy to re-a__ign the copyright from Trad Arr to Trevor. - JS