Editing Culture of Australia (section)

====Folk music and national songs====
[[File:The Old Bush Songs by Banio Paterson.jpg|thumb|right|150px|Cover of ''Old Bush Songs'', [[Banjo Paterson]]'s 1905 collection of [[bush ballad]]s]]
The [[national anthem]] of Australia is "[[Advance Australia Fair]]".<ref>{{Cite web |title=Australian National Anthem |url=https://www.pmc.gov.au/government/australian-national-anthem |access-date=2022-06-01 |website=Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet}}</ref>

The early [[Anglo-Celtic]] immigrants of the 18th and 19th centuries introduced folk ballad traditions which were adapted to Australian themes: "[[Botany Bay (song)|Bound for Botany Bay]]" tells of the voyage of British convicts to Sydney, "[[The Wild Colonial Boy]]" evokes the spirit of the bushrangers, and "[[Click Go the Shears]]" speaks of the life of Australian shearers. The lyrics of Australia's best-known folk song, "[[Waltzing Matilda]]", were written by the bush poet Banjo Paterson in 1895. This song remains popular and is regarded as "the nation's unofficial national anthem".<ref>[http://www.nla.gov.au/epubs/waltzingmatilda/index.php "Who'll come a 'Waltzing Matilda' with me?"], National Library of Australia. Retrieved 24 December 2012.</ref>

Well-known singers of Australian folk music include [[Rolf Harris]] (who wrote "[[Tie Me Kangaroo Down Sport]]"), [[John Williamson (singer)|John Williamson]], and [[Eric Bogle]] whose 1972 anti-war ballad "[[And the Band Played Waltzing Matilda]]" is a criticism of Australian involvements in [[Gallipoli campaign|Gallipolli]] and [[Military history of Australia during the Vietnam War|Vietnam War]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=AND THE BAND PLAYED WALTZING MATILDA BY ERIC BOGLE |url=https://www.nfsa.gov.au/collection/curated/asset/82296-and-band-played-waltzing-matilda-eric-bogle |access-date=22 August 2024 |website=nfsa.gov.au}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2002-04-20 |title=Secret life of Matilda |url=https://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/music/secret-life-of-matilda-20020420-gdf7n4.html |access-date=2024-08-22 |website=The Sydney Morning Herald |language=en}}</ref>