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00:00G'day, Jimmy. Nice to have you with us.
00:03Hello, Jeff. Good to see you again. Hello, everybody.
00:06Jimmy, when did you first become involved in music?
00:10It goes back a long way, Jeff. I come from a musical family.
00:13My parents were vaudevillians, singers, dancers and storytellers,
00:17and myself and my brothers and sisters just sort of followed on from there.
00:21How old were you when you started performing?
00:24About ten. Prior to that I was mostly always watching and absorbing and observing.
00:35And then I would sing a few songs with Dad and sing a few songs with Mum in public,
00:43at parties and little concerts.
00:46But by the time I was 13 I then began to play the guitar
00:51and that really boosted my confidence.
00:53So really between 10 and 13 was the years that I started to think seriously about getting on the road.
01:01Now where are you from?
01:02I'm from southern New South Wales in Australia.
01:06Inland, I was born inland in the land of my mother's people, Yorta Yorta clan, on the Murray River.
01:14And then in the latter part of my schooling, Mum and Dad moved to the coast to Dad's people.
01:21And so I grew up in both areas of my family. Dad's a Yuin clan person from the coast.
01:29So I had the wonderful river inland growing up and then the coastal hilly parts of the southern New South Wales.
01:42And all this was great for my love of the country in a rural sense.
01:48Can you tell us any more about your heritage?
01:51Yeah, I can talk a lot about that.
01:58Having two distinct tribal backgrounds in my heritage and beyond that it's been a wonderful journey of learning and applying oneself to the new life coming around me.
02:13Growing up in general society, from the community, I took on board a lot of information from people of all walks of life.
02:23Particularly at school and sport and in the arts.
02:26I found that everybody had a culture, everybody had a family tree and everybody had an interesting story to tell.
02:35And I wanted to tell my story in the best way I knew how, just like a lot of other people.
02:41There were writers and there were poets and there were dancers and there were singers and musicians.
02:46And in my early stage I thought, gee, if I can do that, I'll feel really part of the whole nation growing up.
02:55And I can express myself personally and culturally and artistically.
03:01And so all of that was really just building the foundation of my wanting to be a travelling troubadour, if you will.
03:15When did you first hear the song Morning Town Ride?
03:18On radio, of course, I was always listening to radio for songs to learn and just enjoy entertainment.
03:25And The Seekers, our big international Australian group, sang many songs.
03:32And that was the one that really captured my imagination, I thought.
03:36Because I loved being a child and I loved working with children.
03:42And every song that's written and performed for children, I love.
03:47And Morning Town Ride was always in my mind somewhere when I went and sang at school to parties.
03:54And the kids would jump in. Not only that, but the adults love it too.
03:58And I'm glad that I had a chance to sing that with you, Geoff.
04:06You've been performing for quite a while now. Tell me about some of the highlights.
04:10Numerous highlights. I had some Royal Command performances.
04:16Who was it that you performed for?
04:18The Queen Mother in Adelaide Festival of Arts back in the 80s.
04:25No, in the 60s, I'm sorry.
04:27And did some acting in movies, stage and big screen.
04:35And awarded different recognitions for my contribution to the nation.
04:45What were some of the awards that you received?
04:48The Mo Award, which we have in our industry, is a humanitarian award.
04:55And I got that.
04:57I was also awarded Aboriginal of the Year.
05:00And, of course, gold records and silver record awards.
05:06And currently, I've just received what we call the Red Ochre Award from the Australian Aboriginal Arts Board
05:20for my contribution over the years, the Red Ochre.
05:25And I've got a Gospel Award for my Gospel contribution musically.
05:35The Gospel Award, I'm getting a Doctrine shortly.
05:41And...
05:44Wasn't there an ARIA Award as well?
05:47Yeah, I'm forgetting about them all.
05:49Just going on looking for the next challenge.
05:52But, you know, I'm in a wax museum and life-size.
05:57And I look at myself and I say, that can't be me, you know.
06:00And hands of fame and things like that.
06:03I've realised that I've not been too idle over the years.
06:06I've been scoring points along the way.
06:09But the thing I like is I'm giving to a nation that gave me a chance to be...
06:16what I wanted to be.
06:18Just a...
06:19a well-liked entertainer.
06:21Now, that's amazing that you've won so many awards.
06:23How does that make you feel as a performer?
06:26Oh, it does make you feel special, Geoff.
06:29It's, uh...
06:31Because you don't set out to get this.
06:33You set out to enjoy your life and do what you can with your ability.
06:38And when you get wonderful accolades and citations and awards
06:43and certificates and medals, you realise that you're going about your business
06:50but a lot of important people are taking note
06:53and are putting my name down for your contribution.
06:58And it's building up and it says,
07:00gee, your nation appreciates you.
07:03And that's a lot to get from a nation.
07:08When you think about the nation of people are strangers,
07:12yet we're friends in a distant sort of way.
07:15And it's the kind of things you expect from family, immediate family.
07:20But I look at all Australians and music lovers and entertainers
07:25as extended family members.
07:27So when they're all saying, well done, Jimmy,
07:29I accept what they have to offer
07:31and I accept their compliments and their camaraderie
07:35and all those wonderful things,
07:36it makes me feel I'm going to do another
07:40and I'm going to put more into what I do.
07:42And it's given me a lot of energy and a lot of pride
07:46and a lot of ideas of how to keep on keeping on
07:54rather than come to a wall or a dead end and say,
07:59well, that's all I can do.
08:00I keep being inspired to look for new ways to entertain the public.
08:08Where have you travelled over the years?
08:11Just all over Australia in what we call the tours,
08:17the mini tours and the major tours.
08:20I did have a chance with the WOMAD Festival to go abroad
08:23for the first and only time and representing Australia.
08:29In the WOMAD Festival we went to Hanover in Germany
08:35and went to London to perform.
08:38I went to Seattle and Singapore
08:43and in between dates of performing,
08:48it was kind of a little working holiday.
08:50I went to Hollywood and New York and Vancouver.
08:56So it was a wonderful trip just to see these places
09:00that I've seen on the screen and in magazines all these years.
09:03And here I was walking down those famous streets
09:06and realising that I'd been blessed in many ways with my music
09:11to be able to go that far.
09:13I arrived at London Airport, I think it was Heathrow, I think.
09:19And it was odd and strange over the intercom.
09:24Would Jimmy Little please come to the information area or something?
09:32And, you know, there's millions of people walking around
09:35and Jimmy Little is in the air and nobody knows me here, you know.
09:40And it just felt wonderful and crazy to be walking around the airport in London
09:47and have your name, you know, called out.
09:50And a similar thing happened when I went to New Guinea,
09:53just off from Australia.
09:55I got off the plane there.
09:57I was performing there one weekend.
09:59And this little child's voice sang out across the tarmac.
10:03Jimmy Little, Jimmy Little, you know.
10:06I'd never been there before.
10:08And, again, it was all so wonderful and strange.
10:11The organisers who had me come to New Guinea was at the airport
10:19and the little girl recognised me.
10:21They were from Australia, so they knew me.
10:23And I knew Jimmy Little.
10:25So those two times I heard my name mentioned in a foreign land
10:30to walking around Sydney and Melbourne, you know.
10:35But those little things are little highlights in my life.
10:38You've been playing music for quite a while now.
10:40Tell me about your chart success.
10:43My first real chart success was Royal Telephone,
10:48a gospel standard from way back that I got a chance to revive, if you will.
11:01And that took me to the top of the hit parades and gave me gold and silver
11:06and a big recognition and a great boost to my career.
11:10Prior to that I had other minor hits that weren't real chart stoppers,
11:16but Royal Telephone was the biggest and not necessarily the best.
11:22I look at a lot of things I recorded and they were great tonight.
11:26I come out of the studio and I feel this is a hit now.
11:29And sometimes they don't go anywhere.
11:32So I just leave it to the public now.
11:34I say I'll do my best in the studio and if it goes to the top, fine.
11:38If it doesn't, it's going to go to the people who know what I do and enjoy that.
11:43Do you still travel and perform?
11:46Not as much as before, Geoff.
11:48I love touring, I love meeting people, I love performing.
11:52I'm a kidney patient now on dialysis and I'm on the transplant list.
11:59So it's slowed me down quite a lot energy-wise and medically-wise.
12:05I have to make time for that now.
12:08But I'm still going across the nation on weekends or a day here, a day there.
12:16And I'm coping so far.
12:18My doctors are very happy with my medical treatment in the interim
12:23while I'm waiting for a transplant.
12:25You're involved in education.
12:27Tell us a bit about that.
12:29Well, as I was saying before,
12:33I'm interested in children getting a good start in life.
12:37And education is one of the important things that children must have.
12:41Formal education, that is.
12:43And in my countrymen, the Aborigine,
12:47a lot of us have missed out on education to give us choices in life.
12:53So the government invited several well-known identities in the community to consider going to schools
13:02and having a little talk and a little lecture and inspiring them to be more attentive with school.
13:08So I'm one of the 17 ambassadors that go across Australia visiting schools by invitation,
13:15talking to the parents and talking to the school staff about ways and means of encouraging children to stay at school longer for better education.
13:26And in my little lectures, I give musical performances as well, and it's all part of the art program.
13:36So I enjoy all of that.
13:39And I just want to keep on inspiring others to do their best.
13:44We've been so honoured to have worked with you, Jimmy.
13:47Thank you, Geoff, for inviting me.
13:48It's good to catch up with the Wiggles again.
13:50And I thank you very much for that.
13:52And, ladies and gentlemen, nice to say hello to you.
13:56Hello, Joy. Now, you're a singer and a songwriter. When did you start singing?
14:04Oh, I think I started singing when I was about eight or nine years old, you know,
14:09and we were living south of Sydney at the time.
14:13My father was a schoolteacher. We moved round a good bit.
14:16And I used to do quite a lot of singing.
14:18We vamped to a steel guitar, my parents had.
14:21And then they had me taught to play guitar.
14:27Had a little tiny one made for me.
14:29I've still got it, actually.
14:31And, of course, once I started singing and playing guitar,
14:35my sister sort of always had the idea that whatever you can do,
14:38I can do and probably do better.
14:40So she got into the act with a ukulele.
14:44So we began singing together quite a lot around, you know, just locally, that sort of thing.
14:50Then later when we moved to Sydney, we began doing local shows, you know,
14:55even though when we were just still at high school.
14:58After that, we went on to recording for a rodeo label
15:03and running our own radio show in Sydney on 2KY every Saturday night.
15:09So that's how I got into singing.
15:12When did you meet Slim?
15:14I met Slim about, oh, about 1950, I think it was.
15:22And he had come down to Sydney to do some shows
15:26for the same chap that we were doing a lot of shows with,
15:29a man called Tim McNamara.
15:31And Tim said, well, now we're going to be doing a lot of shows
15:35and a bit of touring and you should meet the other people who are working in the show.
15:39So he brought us all out to his place in the afternoon
15:42and then we were going to go to the showboat that night.
15:45It was a big ferry on the harbour where they had entertainment.
15:48So that's when I first met Slim and we were doing the same,
15:51all the same tours and shows, that sort of thing.
15:56He was down here recording for Regal Zonophone.
15:58So that's how we got together. We were all working together.
16:02Now, when did you marry Slim?
16:04In 1951. We married in 1951
16:07and we ran quite a few shows around Sydney for a while
16:11and then we went on the road in 1954.
16:14Slim is a famous musician in Australia.
16:16Can you tell me about some of his achievements?
16:19Yes, he had a very long recording career.
16:23He was the only singer in the world that had recorded,
16:27I think, for the one record company for 60 years.
16:30But he was also the first Australian to receive a gold record.
16:35He was the first Australian to ever have an international record hit.
16:40He was the first singer in the world to have his voice beamed to earth from space,
16:45from the Columbia Shuttle.
16:47And he really...
16:50He was awarded more gold and platinum records here in Australia
16:54than any other Australian artist.
16:56And he has a catalogue of 107 albums.
17:01So he did quite a lot.
17:04But apart from that, he toured all of Australia, all the outback,
17:08as well as all the big cities.
17:10And people seemed to think of Slim as a particular mate of theirs,
17:15whether they'd met him or not.
17:16And I think that was one of the greatest achievements of all.
17:19Did Slim enjoy singing with the Wiggles?
17:22He had a great time.
17:24I think he wasn't quite sure of what to expect to begin with,
17:28but he ended up having a really nice time, you know,
17:32because, oh, they were good friends, weren't they?
17:35Yeah.
17:36By the end of the day, I think that Slim was able to sing
17:39I'd like to have a dance with Dorothy all the way through without a mistake.
17:43What did Slim's audience think about him singing with the Wiggles?
17:46We had lots, we'd go on tour and we had lots and lots of small girls and boys coming up
17:53and wanting to see Slim.
17:55One little girl was very, very serious.
17:58She said, oh, Mr Dusty, you're a very good dancer.
18:03Slim was tickle pink with that.
18:08How would you describe Slim for those that didn't meet him?
18:12A very ordinary Australian.
18:16I think that's why Australians don't like too much of the star quality, I think,
18:21as you fellas would know.
18:23And I think that Australians found that Slim was someone they could relate to
18:30and from letters and calls that we used to get and people coming to the shows,
18:35honestly, they felt they could talk to him about anything.
18:38He was very approachable.
18:40And what you saw with Slim was what you got.
18:43He was just an ordinary Australian.
18:46He's calling himself just an ordinary Australian bloke.
18:49Do you still sing and write songs?
18:52I haven't done any writing much since I lost Slim.
18:58I hope to get back to it.
19:00I did write one especially for Anne.
19:03I finished one, actually, that I had written and she found the words
19:07and said she'd like me to finish it for her.
19:10So I did get down to do that and I'm hoping to begin writing again.
19:16Thank you for sharing Slim's stories with us.
19:18Now, in recognition of Slim's work on It's a Wiggly Wiggly World,
19:21we'd like to present you with this award for sales in Australia and worldwide.
19:26Oh, Geoff, thank you.
19:29Oh, isn't that wonderful?
19:30Oh, look.
19:31Thanks so much.
19:33And I'm so glad everyone's enjoying Slim's music, Geoff.
19:36Excellent.
19:37Bye.
19:38Hi, everyone.
19:41It's Geoff Wiggle here.
19:43Now it's time to talk to our good friend, Christine Anu,
19:46via the Wiggly satellite.
19:48Hi, Christine.
19:50Can you tell us where you're from?
19:53Originally, I come from the Torres Strait Islands,
19:56which is up past the pointy bit of Australia.
19:59In between Papua New Guinea and the pointy bit is the Torres Strait Islands.
20:04What was it like growing up in the Torres Strait Islands?
20:07It was lots and lots of fun.
20:09We didn't have playgrounds, but we went swimming all the time
20:12and we played sandcastles on the beach
20:15and we built a lot of humpies and cubby houses to play in
20:19and we collected a lot of shells, just like Dorothy likes to do.
20:23Can you tell us about the song Tabanaba?
20:26Tabanaba comes from the eastern Torres Strait Islands
20:30from an island called Stephen Island
20:33and it's about going down to the reef and fishing
20:36and jumping in the dinghy
20:38and having a good, fun time splishing and splashing around in the water.
20:43Can you tell us about the actions in the song?
20:47The actions go with the words
20:49and it's just so that there are lovely little actions
20:52to go along with the pretty little words.
20:55Do all the songs from the Torres Strait Islands include actions?
20:59Lots of songs from the Torres Strait Islands include actions.
21:03There are two types of dancing styles.
21:06You can sit down like we do in Tabanaba to dance
21:11or you can stand up using instruments like a rattle
21:16and different types of things representing stars for navigation
21:21and storytelling for fishing and different sorts of things like that.
21:26So you can stand up dance or sit down dances
21:29and you also have teams for boys and for girls.
21:33It's lots and lots of fun.
21:35Can you tell us a little bit about your career, Christine?
21:38My career started out as a dancer.
21:41I wanted to teach my cultural dances from the Torres Strait Islands
21:45to all of the audiences like you out there.
21:49And then from that my interest grew into singing.
21:52And then I got signed to a record company
21:55and I started recording albums.
21:57That's when I went on to start doing TV,
22:01acting on television and in movies.
22:05Wow!
22:06Can you tell us about some of the movies you've been in?
22:09I've been in movies like Moulin Rouge and The Matrix Reloaded
22:14where I have a very small speaking part
22:17and that was a lot of fun to do.
22:19Very exciting.
22:20I like doing movies.
22:22Thank you, Christine.
22:23It's been great speaking with you.
22:25Oh, and as we say in the Torres Strait,
22:28Yawu.
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