Written by Phillip Butterss, lecturer in Australian Literature at the University of Adelaide, and illustrated by Ron Edwards.
A.B. Patterson is usually acknowledged as the first collector of Australian folk song through his important edition, Old Bush Songs, but this book was actually preceded by a collection published some eleven years earlier in the Brisbane weekly, The Queenslander. The songs were published under the heading 'Songs of the Bush', in a column that ran for a little over 6 months.
This book, Songs of the Bush contains the songs that made up that first collection back in the 1890s, as well as original comments from readers of The Queenslander including varying versions of the songs.
Written and illustrated by Ron Edwards.
Was originally published in 1976 and although the reviews were very good and the first edition sold out it was decided not to do a reprint because of the high cost involved.
It has since become a rare and hard to get item and after receiving numerous enquiries, a decision was made to reprint a small edition containing all the songs exactly as they had appeared in the first edition.
By Keith McKenry. Australia's Lost Folk Songs is number 25 in the longstanding series of Australian Folklore Occasional Papers.
It is dedicated to the memory of Ron Edwards, founder of the Rams Skull Press and Australia's most prolific collector of folk songs and bush craft, who died while the book was being prepared for printing.
Happily, the book is graced by Ron's delightful illustrations. He was a giant in the field of Australian folklore.