As I tour around Australia I see so many once blossoming young towns frozen in time. Iconic Rolls of Renown stand pride of place in towns where the ‘land has all been bought up and the shops are closing down’. For each young man that didn’t return an invaluable skill was lost – a husband, a father, a captain coach, a teacher or a farmer – there was so much ‘future’ lost.
With the luxury of hindsight we now also know the majority of these deaths were not glorious nor necessary. The incompetence of our British generals and the way we defined ourselves in this baptism of hell fire ensured the legend and legacy of the ANZAC continues today – we marched off as little Englishmen – but returned as Australians. A race of our own.
As we remember the 100th Anniversary of WW1 – I wrote this song to deliberately punch listeners in the nose – to remind us all that ANZAC Day is a time for somber commemoration – not celebration.
Lest We Forget.
I Will Catch You (with Amber Lawrence)