Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu was featured on the Australian ABC Indigenous TV Series Message Stick. Follow the links to view the videos online or read the transcripts below.
Last week we featured singer songwriter Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu in concert at the Sydney Opera House. Gurrumul avoids the media spotlight, preferring to let his wonderful songs do the talking for him.
To find out the story behind the man and his music, we travelled from the Opera House stage to his birthplace - Galiwin’ku on Elcho Island in north east Arnhem Land. Through his family and friends we gain an intimate insight into the people, country and traditions that have shaped the incredible musical talent that is, Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu.
MIRIAM COROWA: Hello, I'm Miriam Corowa. Welcome to Message Stick. Last week, we featured singer/songwriter Geoffrey 'Gurrumul' Yunupingu in concert at the Sydney Opera House. Gurrumul avoids the media spotlight, preferring to let his evocative songs do the talking for him. To find out the story behind the man and his music, we travelled from Opera House stage to his birthplace - Galiwin'ku on Elcho Island in north-east Arnhem Land. Through his family and friends, we gain an intimate insight into the people, country and traditions that have shaped the incredible musical talent of Geoffrey 'Gurrumul' Yunupingu.
(GURRUMUL SINGS)
DAISY YUNUPINGU (Translation): That's my son, Gurrumul, he's my baby, Djarrimirri (Rainbow Serpent). And also my beloved son is the continuation of my ancestors.
DAVID YUNUPINGU: Gurrumul's music is like a recipe, mixing for both Yolngu and Balanda to live together, to hear and get that message.
FRANK DJIRRIMBILPILWUY: You just give him a rock and he'll turn it into ice-cream cone or something. You give him a stick and he'll make a big bagpipe or give him a eight-string guitar and he'll play the Mexican harp or something. That's why I call Gurrumul is a god.
(GURRUMUL SINGS IN INDIGENOUS LANGUAGE)
Thank you!
MICHAEL HOHNEN: While he might be shy, he's very confident as a Yolngu man and as a person, as a Gumatj person and I...when I listen to the songs it makes me smile because there's a lot of stuff that I don't know. And there's a lot of stuff that I know and it's... it's a world of discovery that'll probably extend most of my life.
(GURRUMUL SINGS) (Translation) I was carried by mother Wititj (Rainbow Serpent)
I am, a Rainbow child...
MICHAEL HOHNEN: Yolngu have a totally different belief system from Balanda people. And it involves what we see as metaphysical concepts. And relationships with country, land, ancestors and sacred stuff which doesn't translate word to word. So for me to speak about a certain song is in a way not doing it justice, it just gives you this little window.
(GURRUMUL SINGS)
MICHAEL HOHNEN: A song that I don't have full understanding of but a lot of appreciation of is Djarimirri, it's such a strong totem for me. They're singing about Wititj, the Rainbow Serpent. And Gurrumul being the child of the Rainbow Serpent and being carried by that Rainbow Serpent.
DAISY YUNUPINGU (Translation): Djarrimirri tells a sacred story about the Olive Python and a dance by two ancestors. That's why my son made this song because it is my totem and he is the custodian of the totem. He's my son and he is the right person to sing this song. And also he sings my song, called the Cat song.
(GURRUMUL SINGS) (Translation) Now it has cooled, the country
His night has come for
The cat
Also he will, climb into funeral shelter
The cat will travel, the cat will travel.
MICHAEL HOHNEN: Marwurrumburr is a curious one, it's almost a flippant song in some ways. And it's essentially, as a lot Yolngu songs talks about a certain subject matter. In this case, the pussy cat or the native cat or the wild cat. But the Yolngu have a fantastic dance where when pussy cats walk along you see their shoulders move like that. Now, I'd never really noticed it till I saw a Yolngu dance like the cat.
DAISY YUNUPINGU (Translation): He learnt to play when he was only a little boy. Four years old he didn't have a guitar, he didn't have anything. Only a drum, an empty tin cup to play or a flour tin. Milk powder tin, golden syrup tin, everything inside the house. We couldn't go to sleep at night because he used to keep playing from morning till night-time.
ANDREW YUNUPINGU (Translation): When we were little kids, we started our own band and we used to play drums. We would go out and cut the fishing lines then we made our own guitar. But it wasn't good sound, so we had to wait to buy one from the shop.
DAISY YUNUPINGU (Translation): He said, "Mother, can you buy me a guitar? Any sort - electric or anything." And we went down there to get his guitar at the old shop.
ANDREW YUNUPINGU (Translation): Michael Jackson, Dire Straits and Neil Diamond and Elvis - this is the music we used to listen to.
DAISY YUNUPINGU (Translation): I used to call him, "Come and have something to eat." He would say, "Wait, Umala (Mum), I'm still playing."
FRANK DJIRRIMBILPILWUY: To my knowledge, Gurrumul, when I first saw him he picked up a acoustic guitar and he played a six-string guitar. Right handed guitar with a left hand. And everything's got to be back to front. He strummed the string from bottom up because he's playing a right-hand guitar.
(GURRUMUL SINGS)
(PEOPLE SPEAK IN INDIGENOUS LANGUAGE)
DAVID YUNUPINGU: His grandfather was a singer. He leads the other Gumatj people through the songs, you know. He was a lead singer. Like my father and his grandfather.
FRANK DJIRRIMBILPILWUY: His music is so unique and he'll adapt his music to any musician whether it's Santana, Yothu Yindi, Soft Cell... any of the gospel or the choirs, you know. And even the boys in the...his younger brothers, they're just talented themselves, you know. They got their own talent in their own rights.
(BAND SINGS IN INDIGENOUS LANGUAGE)
JOSH DHURRKAY: We just set up here under the mango tree, the keyboard and sit around and jam and play the songs. And then record tapes and then give the tapes to everyone around the community. And so, that's how the popularity of Saltwater band started really was from this homemade tapes that people would give to other family in the community.
MICHAEL HOHNEN: So there was Gurrumul and this other singer called Manuel Dhurrkay. And the combination of those two voices, jamming together in a room, and I'd been involved in classical music and jazz and all these other things and I thought - this is really, really high quality music from these two incredible voices. And I started teaching them chords and relationships and my relationship with them kept going to what is now a really close relationship with all of them and with Gurrumul. He doesn't have a guide-dog, he doesn't have a walking cane. He learned a bit of Braille but essentially he's a blind person who relies totally on another person to be with him all the time. So...and that puts a lot of responsibility on someone else as well, to be doing the right thing. But he's a real people person, he's constantly relating to whoever works with him. :WOMAN: I'm from the Sydney Opera House...
DAVID YUNUPINGU: When he was six years old, we asked their parents to hand over Geoffrey to us for two years, two years... We taught him, he used to go with me fishing... hunting... that was very special, important for us to really introduce for him to taste what is manymak, what is good. And what is bad.
DAISY YUNUPINGU (Translation): He has respect for the old people and always respect for all people including children.
WOMAN (Translation): Come over here, kids. Come and dig for mussels. Hurry up. Help me. The tide's coming in.
DAISY YUNUPINGU (Translation): I had white ochre all over me for a funeral and a Dhapi (initiation ceremony). He said, "Mum, why have you got ochre on you? What's going on, are we at a funeral?" And I said, "Yes." He asked, "Can I paint myself?" "Yes." He started to dance around in ceremonies, that's how he learnt without seeing because he is blind by listening for the clap sticks for the songs.
(GURRUMUL SINGS) (Translation) Grief has taken hold of me
For my father
When the sun sets
Oh, beloved father.
MICHAEL HOHNEN: Bapa for me I is...see it as a bit of a homage to the role of the father. And I don't mean the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost. I mean the father as in your blood father or your uncle or in Yolngu way, everyone who plays that role of father in society.
(GURRUMUL SINGS) (Translation) Oh, beloved father.
DAVID YUNUPINGU: And he's also telling on that song... in that song about a deceased bapa. My brother, Steve Yunupingu was not present here for that funeral. He was in Darwin so when he heard that, he wrote that song. He was worried for all his bapas.
TONY YUNUPINGU (Translated): Warawu, Baru, Djilawurr (scrub fowl), Gurrumul's made a lot of songs for me. These songs and stories aren't toy stories, they're not jokes or lies. They're real stories, connected to his land and my land. Our songs are very sacred. I taught him when he was just a little boy and now he is too popular and famous.
(GURRUMUL SINGS) (Translation) Coming out of her nest
Was that animal the saltwater crocodile
Hunting meat for food
The saltwater crocodile stood upright
JOSH DHURRKAY: One time, Johnno went first to Yirringa - that's an island up this way and then Nigel went and then Geoffrey, he went last.
(JOHNNO SPEAKS INDIGENOUS LANGUAGE)
JOSH DHURRKAY: They ran down the sand dune, bottom of the sand dune, there's a big hole and he got down to the bottom and he just froze. He could sense that there was something in there and he said, "Hey, Nigel, Johnno, there's something down there." There was this burrow there, this crocodile there. And straightaway as soon as he said that, the burrow then...take off out of that hole, shot out over the water.
(GURRUMUL SINGS) (Translation) To her country
Guwirri_ba
Her front claw took hold of the fire
TONY YUNUPINGU (Translated): He got his award in Sydney.
Stevie Wonder and Gurrumul, they both got the awards together. Remember he is blind just like Gurrumul. They had to feel one another first and then shake hands.
(JOHNNO SPEAKS INDIGENOUS LANGUAGE)
(ALL LAUGH)
JOSH DHURRKAY: He's saying the story, one time... Geoffrey was in the room and he just came out of the shower, he was looking for underwear, he didn't have any undies. And so his uncle grabbed his... Geoffrey's auntie's underpants like um...bloomers, like you know, women's underwear - silky one, laces. He goes, "Here, Geoffrey, here. "Put these on." And Geoffrey grabbed it and was feeling it and stretching it, felt the silk and he was going, "Hey, what's...this is auntie's, these are auntie's undies."
(ALL LAUGH)
DAISY YUNUPINGU ON PHONE (Translation): The camera crew here are here and they are filming us. Your father and I are telling stories about you. Where are you ringing from? All the Yolgnu are wondering, "Where has Geoffrey gone?" Some of the people are wondering if you are coming today because there is a concert tonight.
(MAN SPEAKS IN INDIGENOUS LANGUAGE)
JOSH DHURRKAY: This concert's going to be really good. It's always, with any event that we have in the community here it's always a major event, the whole community comes down. An opportunity for everyone to dance and you know, show their skills at dancing and little fellas get in there. Everyone...you know, everyone dresses up and they do their hair and put on their best clothes. Unfortunately, Gurrumul couldn't make it to the concert. That is quite a bit of disappointment but the night still was a big hit and went off really well. Everyone was happy and dancing.
MICHAEL HOHNEN: Having lived at Elcho for a little while and having gone hunting on some amazing hunting trips and being involved in quite a bit of ceremony and celebration that happens out there and being involved in a few different band groups and that's the biggest learning for me because you are spending all of that time with Yolngu people. And it's how they work and how they associate with you and associate with country and music. And I think that teaches you more about Yolngu than just translating the words and getting explanations from them. Spending time with a big group of people. It's very similar in a way but so different from my countrymen. (CHUCKLES)
(PEOPLE SPEAK INDIGENOUS LANGUAGE)
ANDREW YUNUPINGU (Translation): If he comes back to Galiwin'ku, he doesn't have a life here. He is on his journey. Half his life is to be with family. His life and spirit is in the music for Gurrumul.
DAISY YUNUPINGU (Translation): The music is in his brain. It is in his blood. It is easy for him to play his music far away down South. He has no shame because he has a warm heart and God is guiding him.
DAVID YUNUPINGU: If somebody is listening to him, whether in Australia or any part of the world, any part of the country, they have to become blind. Some like him, blind in spirit. But open heart to get that message, to touch him.
GURRUMUL: Thank you!
MIRIAM COROWA: We hope you enjoyed this week's show. If you'd like to drop us a line or watch a program you've missed, visit our website at www.abc.net.au/messagestick. See you next time.