Murphy Family, The – A Little Bit of Land

This earthy CD of poetry is a pleasure to listen to and review. It contains favourites by Banjo Paterson, C J Dennis, D H Souter and Thomas E Spencer amongst others. It is reminiscent of a time when families entertained each other with great yarns, yet the performances make the material entertaining across generations. Such poetry is timeless.

Maggie Murphy, an entertainer and lovely traditional singer grew up in the Mallee, near the Murray River. She is joined on this CD by her brothers, daughter, niece and great nieces and great nephew, making the album a true family affair. The murphy demonstrate that traditional metre still has pride of place when poems are recited aloud, and that poetry can be executed brilliantly by women, men and children. They demonstrate too, that poetry is fun and like song can be performed and celebrated in groups.

Maggie gives brilliant renditions of Clancy of the Overflow, Maloney’s Cockatoo, O’Toole & McSharry and Rum and Water. The younger reciters break up the longer ballads with short, humerous pieces of frogs, tadpoles, rabbits and sheep and the fictitious triantiwontigongolope. The brothers round the collection off with old favourites like Tangmalangaloo, Kitty O’Shea and When the Army Prays for Watty.