Pub with No Beer

Slim Dusty

About Pub with No Beer

"A Pub with No Beer" is the title of a humorous country song made famous by country singers Slim Dusty (in Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States) and Bobbejaan Schoepen (in Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany and Austria). The song was written about his local pub at Taylors Arm, New South Wales, adapted by Gordon Parsons from the original poem "A Pub Without Beer" by Irish poet Dan Sheahan of Ingham, North Queensland, in the Day Dawn Hotel, now known as Lees Hotel, Ingham, Queensland. The song gently explores the "devastation" caused to a pub and its community when its beer supply is interrupted. It is believed the song was first performed in public by Gordon Parsons in 1954 at the 50th birthday of George Thomas, a resident of Creek Ridge Road, Glossodia (near Windsor in Sydney). It was performed with an extra verse that was dropped from Slim Dusty's recorded version, because it contained elements of blue humour. In January 2018, as part of Triple M's "Ozzest 100", the 'most Australian' songs of all time, "A Pub with No Beer" was ranked number 45. 


Year:
2013
2:58

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Oh it's-a lonesome away from your kindred and all
By the campfire at night we'll hear the wild dingoes call
But there's-a nothing so lonesome, morbid or drear
Than to stand in the bar of a pub with no beer

Now the publican's anxious for the quota to come
And there's a far away look on the face of the bum
The maid's gone all cranky and the cook's acting queer
Oh what a terrible place is a pub with no beer

Then the stockman rides up with his dry dusty throat
He breasts up to the bar and pulls a wad from his coat
But the smile on his face quickly turns to a sneer
As the barman says sadly the pub's got no beer

Then the swaggie comes in smothered in dust and flies
He throws down his roll and rubs the sweat from his eyes
But when he is told, he says what's this I hear
I've trudged fifty flamin' miles to a pub with no beer

Now there's a dog on the v'randa, for his master he waits
But the boss is inside drinking wine with his mates
He hurries for cover and he cringes in fear
It's no place for a dog 'round a pub with no beer

And old Billy the blacksmith, the first time in his life
Why he's gone home cold sober to his darling wife
He walks in the kitchen, she says you're early Bill dear
But then he breaks down and tells her the pub's got no beer

Oh it's hard to believe that there's customers still
But the money's still tinkling in the old ancient till
The wine buffs are happy and I know they're sincere
When they say they don't care if the pub's got no beer

So it's-a lonesome away from your kindred and all
By the campfire at night we'll hear the wild dingoes call
But there's-a nothing so lonesome, morbid or drear-a

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Slim Dusty

David Gordon "Slim Dusty " Kirkpatrick AO, MBE (13 June 1927—19 September 2003) was an Australian country music singer-songwriter and producer, with a career spanning nearly seven decades. He was known to record songs in the legacy of Australian poets Henry Lawson and Banjo Patterson that represented the Australian Bush Lifestyle, and also for his many trucking songs. Dusty was the first Australian to have a No. 1 Hit song with Gordon Parsons (A Pub With No Beer). He received an unequalled 37 Golden Guitar and two ARIA awards and was inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame and the Country Music Roll of Renown. At the time of his death at the age of 76, Dusty had been working on his 106th album for EMI Records. In 2007 his domestic record sales in Australia surpas… more »

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Written by: GORDON PARSONS

Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind


12 facts about this song

Genre Classification
"Pub with No Beer" by Slim Dusty falls under the Country and Western genre.
Release Date
This iconic Australian song was first released in 1957.
Chart Performance
"Pub with No Beer" was the first Australian single to go gold.
International Recognition
Not only did it fare well in Australia, the song became popular internationally, making Slim Dusty the first Australian singer to receive a Gold Record.
Song Inspiration
The song's lyrics were inspired by a poem written by Dan Sheahan, who, in Ingham, Queensland, discovered to his dismay that his local pub had run out of beer.
Unique Storytelling
"A Pub with No Beer" narrates a story that paints a bleak picture of a pub lacking the means to serve its patrons - quite a unique theme for a song.
Multiple Versions
There are several recorded versions of the song, including an Irish version by The Dubliners, but Slim Dusty's is the most recognized.
Historical Significance
The song marked a pivotal moment in Australian music history as it helped put Australian Country Music on the international map.
Legacy
In 2011, "A Pub with No Beer" was added to the Sounds of Australia registry in the National Film and Sound Archive, which recognises culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant sound recordings.
The Actual Pub
The pub that inspired the song, formerly known as Day Dawn Hotel, is now called Lees Hotel, and is found in Ingham, Queensland. A sign outside recognizes it as the "Home of the original Pub with No Beer."
Songwriting Credit
While Dan Sheahan wrote the poem that inspired the song, the official songwriting credit goes to Gordon Parsons who arranged it into a song form for Slim Dusty to record.
Slim Dusty's Career
"Pub with No Beer" was one of Dusty's most popular songs in his prolific career, in which he released over 100 albums.

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    Pub with No Beer

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      Pub with No Beer

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