Click Goes the Shears - Meaning of Aussie Lyrics
Australian Language Explanation for Old Bush Ballad
Jul 23, 2009
Click Goes the Shears is a traditional old Australian bush ballad, dating back to the 19th century when shearing was un-mechanised and shearers used hand shears, sometimes referred to as 'the tongs', which resemble garden secateurs. Some of the words heard in the song are still valid today, while others have "gone out with the blades" – an Aussie bush expression that is doubly relevant in this instance.
Chorus of Click Goes the Shears
Click goes the shears, Boys, Click, click, click,
Wide is his blow and his hands move quick.
The ringer looks around but is beaten by a blow
And curses the old snagger with the bare-bellied yeo.
Click Goes the Shears
The blades of the device are opposed. The handle joining them serves as a spring and opens the blades again after they have been squeezed together to cut. The motion makes a clicking or snipping noise.
Wide is his Blow
A blow is one sweeping movement of the hand and arm in one cutting swathe through the wool. Some blows are short but the "long blow" goes the length of the sheep's side and back. The shearer in the song is credited with taking a broad swathe as he cuts.
The Ringer Looks Around
The ringer is the acknowledged fastest shearer in the shed, a prestigious position to hold and defend. To "ring the shed", when 12 to 25 men might be shearing, was no mean feat.
Curses the Old Snagger
A snagger is a shearer who rushes and doesn't shear cleanly, leaving tufts or snags of wool on the sheep.
Bare-bellied Yeo
Yeo is an English dialect word for ewe, a female sheep. Some sheep have, through genetics or through wool falling out as a result of disease or parasitic problems, bare patches, which of course, don't need shearing. This sheep's belly wool, usually notoriously dense with clover burr and dirt and slow to shear, was missing and hence gave the "old snagger" an advantage.
Explanation of First Verse
Out on the board the old shearer stands,
grasping his shears in his thin bony hands.
Fixed is his gaze on a bare-bellied yeo,
Glory, if he gets her, won't he make the ringer go.
It is clear from the first verse that the old snagger wants to defeat the ringer or at least give him a run for his money. Several shearers select sheep from the same pen, so he hopes to catch the one with the bare bally, which will give him the advantage he needs.
Explanation of Verse 2
In the middle of the board in his cane-bottomed chair
Sits the boss of the board with his eyes everywhere
Notes well each fleece as it comes to the screen
Paying strict attention that it's taken off clean.
Verse 2 is fairly self-explanatory. There is a supervisor, possibly the shed contractor, who oversees the work. "The Board" is the length of shed where the shearers are lined up working. the "screen" is another term for the skirting table, where the finished fleece is thrown and the scrappy bits taken off the edges.
Explanation of Verse 3
The colonial experience-man he is there, of course,
With his shiny leggin's on, just got off his horse,
He casts round his eye like a real connoiseur
Scented soap and brilliantine, and smelling like a sewer.
the time this song was written, it is clear that an Australian culture was developing and the English were a source of scorn, particularly the wet-behind-the-ears colonial experience men, jackaroos, who were sometimes the sons of nobility or the wealthy, sent to Australia to learn something about the wool business and trade.
They always appeared out of place in a busy shed with smelly, dirty shearers working hard. This one does nothing useful, justs stands around, trying to impress. His hair is "brilliantined" with a popular hair oil of the day and he is perfumed in a most un-manly way... indeed, smelling like a sewer is a corruption of the original words, "smelling like a whore."
Expanation of Third Verse
The tar boy is there, awaiting his demand
With his blackened tar pot in his tarry hand,
Notes one old sheep with a cut upon her back,
Here is what he's waiting for – it's "Tar here, Jack!"
The tar boy (not necessarily young) had the task of watching the shearing and coming when called to assist a shearer who had inadvertently cut a sheep. The standard treatment was to smear Stockholm Tar on the wound. Even when the product was replaced by better antiseptics, the term "tar" stuck.
Explanation of Verse 4
Now the shearing is all over and we've all got our cheque,
Roll up your swag, Boys, and off on the track.
The first pub we come to, it's there we'll have a spree
and anyone that comes along, it's "Come and drink with me.”
Most shearers in the early days of the colony were itinerant workers who walked between sheds, carrying a bedroll or "swag". Often, with little else to do, shearers would spend most of their earnings in the pub (bar) in a drinking spree. The most famous swagman song is, of course, Waltzing Mathilda. For the meaning of the words of this Aussie song, see this Suite101 article.
As with most old traditional songs, there are many variations of words and even extra verses. The above is the standard version that is sung today and gives a good indication of the story line and the terms used. For more Aussie slang explanations, see this Suite101 article.
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