Warumpi Band
Encyclopedia
The Warumpi Band is an Australian band from the bush, coming from Papunya
, Northern Territory
, Australia.
The band was formed in 1980 by Neil Murray
, a Victorian "whitefella" working in the region as a schoolteacher and labourer, George Burarrwanga, from Elcho Island
, and local boys Gordon and Sammy Butcher
. Over the years, many different people played in the band at various times. The only consistent elements were Murray and Burarrwanga, with Sammy Butcher generally being available when band commitments did not take him too far from home for long.
In 1983, the band recorded "Jailanguru Pakarnu", the first song using an Aboriginal language in a rock music
format. This created some mainstream media interest, and the band made a few trips to the big cities of Melbourne
and Sydney
for gigs and TV appearances.
In Sydney, they built up a loyal following in the Sydney northern beaches pub rock scene, and played as support to Midnight Oil
. In 1985 the band released their debut album Big Name, No Blankets, featuring the track "Blackfella/Whitefella".
In 1986, Midnight Oil and the Warumpi Band embarked on the "Blackfella/Whitefella Tour" which brought one of Australia's biggest bands to some of the country's remotest locations. The resulting Midnight Oil album Diesel and Dust
was an international hit and brought the issues of land rights and aboriginal reconciliation into the national spotlight.
The Warumpi Band recorded their second album, Go Bush! after the tour, but the strain of balancing family commitments with the band took its toll and they were unable to capitalise on the groundswell created by the Blackfella/Whitefella tour.
Neil Murray embarked on a solo career in 1990, though the band still reunited when it fitted in amongst their other activities.
1996 saw the release of their third and final album, the ARIA-nominated Too Much Humbug, and a renewed (if brief) commitment including a European tour. Burarrwanga is reputed to have arrived in Paris
and been amazed that people in this so-called civilised nation could not even speak English - after all, he himself spoke nearly a dozen different languages of the north of Australia.
In the following years, reunion gigs were sporadic, generally for festivals and other one-off appearances. In 2000, Neil Murray retired from the band for good, concentrating on his solo career which, by that time, had produced several albums.
George Burarrwanga continued to perform as a solo artist, and released an album. In 2007, he returned to his "Island Home" where he died from lung cancer
on 10 June of that year.
Sammy Butcher remains heavily involved with a recording studio in Alice Springs, bringing the opportunity to record to outback youth. He has also recorded an album of instrumental guitar songs.
Papunya, Northern Territory
Papunya is a small Indigenous Australian community of about 299 people roughly 240 km northwest of Alice Springs in the Northern Territory, Australia...
, Northern Territory
Northern Territory
The Northern Territory is a federal territory of Australia, occupying much of the centre of the mainland continent, as well as the central northern regions...
, Australia.
The band was formed in 1980 by Neil Murray
Neil Murray (Australian musician)
Neil Murray is an Australian musician and writer. He was a founding member of the Warumpi Band that formed in the early 1980s, the first major Aboriginal rock group and influential Aboriginal rock band.-Biography:...
, a Victorian "whitefella" working in the region as a schoolteacher and labourer, George Burarrwanga, from Elcho Island
Elcho Island
Elcho Island is an island off the coast of Arnhem Land, Northern Territory, Australia. It is located at the southern end of the Wessel Islands group located in the East Arnhem Region. The island's largest community is the settlement of Galiwin'ku....
, and local boys Gordon and Sammy Butcher
Sammy Butcher (musician)
Sammy Butcher, an Indigenous Australian, was born at Papunya, Northern Territory in Central Australia. He formed the Warumpi Band with George Burarrwanga, Neil Murray and Gordon Butcher in the late 1970s...
. Over the years, many different people played in the band at various times. The only consistent elements were Murray and Burarrwanga, with Sammy Butcher generally being available when band commitments did not take him too far from home for long.
In 1983, the band recorded "Jailanguru Pakarnu", the first song using an Aboriginal language in a rock music
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
format. This created some mainstream media interest, and the band made a few trips to the big cities of Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
and Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
for gigs and TV appearances.
In Sydney, they built up a loyal following in the Sydney northern beaches pub rock scene, and played as support to Midnight Oil
Midnight Oil
Midnight Oil , were an Australian rock band from Sydney originally performing as Farm from 1972 with drummer Rob Hirst, bass guitarist Andrew James and keyboard player/lead guitarist Jim Moginie...
. In 1985 the band released their debut album Big Name, No Blankets, featuring the track "Blackfella/Whitefella".
In 1986, Midnight Oil and the Warumpi Band embarked on the "Blackfella/Whitefella Tour" which brought one of Australia's biggest bands to some of the country's remotest locations. The resulting Midnight Oil album Diesel and Dust
Diesel and Dust
Diesel and Dust is an album by Midnight Oil that was released in 1987 under the CBS record label.The album is a concept album about the struggles of the Australian Aborigines and environmental causes, issues both near and dear to the band, and drew inspiration from the Black Fella White Fella tour...
was an international hit and brought the issues of land rights and aboriginal reconciliation into the national spotlight.
The Warumpi Band recorded their second album, Go Bush! after the tour, but the strain of balancing family commitments with the band took its toll and they were unable to capitalise on the groundswell created by the Blackfella/Whitefella tour.
Neil Murray embarked on a solo career in 1990, though the band still reunited when it fitted in amongst their other activities.
1996 saw the release of their third and final album, the ARIA-nominated Too Much Humbug, and a renewed (if brief) commitment including a European tour. Burarrwanga is reputed to have arrived in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
and been amazed that people in this so-called civilised nation could not even speak English - after all, he himself spoke nearly a dozen different languages of the north of Australia.
In the following years, reunion gigs were sporadic, generally for festivals and other one-off appearances. In 2000, Neil Murray retired from the band for good, concentrating on his solo career which, by that time, had produced several albums.
George Burarrwanga continued to perform as a solo artist, and released an album. In 2007, he returned to his "Island Home" where he died from lung cancer
Lung cancer
Lung cancer is a disease characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissues of the lung. If left untreated, this growth can spread beyond the lung in a process called metastasis into nearby tissue and, eventually, into other parts of the body. Most cancers that start in lung, known as primary...
on 10 June of that year.
Sammy Butcher remains heavily involved with a recording studio in Alice Springs, bringing the opportunity to record to outback youth. He has also recorded an album of instrumental guitar songs.
Principal members
- George Burarrwanga – vocals, didgeridooDidgeridooThe didgeridoo is a wind instrument developed by Indigenous Australians of northern Australia around 1,500 years ago and still in widespread usage today both in Australia and around the world. It is sometimes described as a natural wooden trumpet or "drone pipe"...
- Neil MurrayNeil Murray (Australian musician)Neil Murray is an Australian musician and writer. He was a founding member of the Warumpi Band that formed in the early 1980s, the first major Aboriginal rock group and influential Aboriginal rock band.-Biography:...
– guitar, songwriter - Sammy ButcherSammy Butcher (musician)Sammy Butcher, an Indigenous Australian, was born at Papunya, Northern Territory in Central Australia. He formed the Warumpi Band with George Burarrwanga, Neil Murray and Gordon Butcher in the late 1970s...
– bass, guitar - Gordon Butcher – drums
Famous songs
- "Blackfella/Whitefella"
- "My Island HomeMy Island Home"My Island Home" is popularly believed to be a song about Australia. However, it was written by Neil Murray and originally performed by his Warumpi Band in reference to their lead singer's home up at Elcho Island off the coast of Arnhem Land in the Northern Territory as said by...
" - made famous by Christine AnuChristine Anu-Early life:Anu was born in Cairns, Queensland to a Torres Strait Islander mother from Saibai and Mabuiag Islands.-Career:Anu began performing as a dancer and later went on to sing back-up vocals for The Rainmakers, which included Neil Murray of the Warumpi Band. Her first recording was in 1993... - "Jailanguru Pakarnu" (Out from Jail) was the first rock song recorded in an Aboriginal language (LuritjaLuritjaLuritja is a name used to refer to several dialects of the Indigenous Australian Western Desert Language, and thereby also to the people who speak these varieties, and their traditional lands.-Origin and meaning of Luritja:...
dialect). - "Stompen Ground" (ARIA-nominated song) gave its name to an Australian rock festival
Discography
- Big Name No Blankets (1986)
- Go Bush (1988)
- Too Much Humbug (1996) recorded at CAAMA
- included a remake of "Blackfella/Whitefella"
External links
- Warumpi Band on Neil Murray's website
- Warumpi Band's MySpace Page
- Mates, Mabo and Warumpi interview; GreenLeft Online, 24 July 1996
- Warumpi Band at Skinnyfish Music
- Warumpi Band discography
- Blackfella/Whitefella: The Warumpi Band from the blog Aboriginal Art and Culture: an American eye
- Sing Your Destiny Unofficial Neil Murray and Warumpi Band site
- Listen to an excerpt of 'Jailanguru Pakarnu' and read more about it on australianscreen online
- 'Jailanguru Pakarnu' was added to the National Film and Sound Archive's Sounds of Australia Registry in 2007