JOHN PAUL YOUNG leans into the microphone to sing, just as he’s done thousands of times before. The Australian music icon, known simply as JPY, is a king of the stage – a position he’s held for half a century. But on this August day, his auditorium is one without walls. He stands in the shade of a solitary gum tree, his shoes beating time in the dust. Behind him, the flat, burnished land stretches on, punctuated by a sprinkling of trees.
This time JPY’s audience is small compared with what he’s used to, perhaps fewer than 100. But these people have travelled from far and wide to be here, to sit on the ground or stand quietly in a community reserve on the edge of a town called Goodooga, in north-western New South Wales, not far from the Queensland border.
John’s long-time musical director and close friend, Warren ‘Pig’ Morgan, begins playing a portable electronic keyboard, and JPY’s soulful tenor blooms. He’s not singing “Yesterday’s Hero”, or his international smash “Love Is in the Air” – but a song called “The Coloured Digger”.
“He proved he’s still a warrior,” John hollers. “In action, not afraid.” In a way, both the soldier whose story is told in the song and his best friend are here.
Denne historien er fra March - April 2024-utgaven av Australian Geographic Magazine.
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Denne historien er fra March - April 2024-utgaven av Australian Geographic Magazine.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Loveday Internment Camp, SA A
DURING WORLD WAR II, civilians n Australia deemed \"enemy aliens\" - mostly those of German, Italian and Japanese descent were housed in internment camps.
THE STORYTELLERS OF THE GREAT BARRIER REEF
More than 100 dedicated Master Reef Guides are sharing the GBR's most important stories with visitors in a bid to inspire its greater protection.
A BEAUTIFUL DISASTER
Does last summer's mass coral bleaching event sound a death knell for Australia's beloved Great Barrier Reef? \"Not on my watch!\" is the message coming from he army of heartbroken, but resolute, marine scientists who've responded to the crisis by doubling down on their research.
AROUND AUSTRALIA IN 44 DAYS
This year marks the 100th anniversary of the first aerial circumnavigation of Australia. Aviator Michael Smith retraces the flight in his unique amphibious flying boat, Southern Sun, starting and finishing at RAAF Base Point Cook, on Melbourne's Port Phillip, taking in 15,000km of vast, diverse and stunning coastline in between.
CLEAR-CUTTING KOALA COUNTRY
More than 3000sq.km of forests on NSW's Mid North Coast have been earmarked for the Great Koala National Park. But there's still work to be done before this proposed reserve becomes the safe haven koalas desperately need.
MORE THAN QUOKKAS
Sure, you can't avoid those cute little marsupials that made Rottnest Island world-famous, but there's so much more to life on this ocean-ringed jewel off the Western Australian coast.
A WILD POLO TUSSLE
It's an event reminiscent of a Banjo Paterson poem. For 35 years, in the High Country 200km east of Melbourne, city polo players have gathered annually at Cobungra, Victoria's largest cattle station, to vie with a rural team for the Dinner Plain Polo Cup.
Ancient know-how meets a modern challenge
Contemporary marine park management is infused with traditional knowledge to tackle new threats on the Great Barrier Reef.
LOOKING FOR TJAKURA
The search is on across Australia's deserts for a culturally important vulnerable lizard.
RESCUING THE CHUDITCH
After intensive planning, recovery for this endangered marsupial species is being stepped up to secure its future.
