Bushranger Ben Hall’s story has become one of the most celebrated in Australia.
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Long before work on the feature film “The Legend of Ben Hall” began, the legend was kept alive through folk song and poem.
A web search for “The Streets of Forbes” will bring up many versions of the song, in many styles and genres and from many countries of the world.
From bluegrass to brass bands to Paul Kelly and even a rock rendition by well-known band ‘Weddings, Parties, Anything’ the song is certainly well covered and well recognised as a leading Australian folk song.
According to Dr Graham Seal, Professor of Folklore at Curtin University and his local colleague National Library folklorist, Rob Willis, there are more and better songs written about the Hall legend than any other bushranger.
“The Streets of Forbes”, with its haunting melody and strong lyrics, is one of the best known bushranger ballads in Australia and overseas.
It was supposedly ‘collected’ by folklore recordist, John Manifold, from Mrs Ewell in the 1950’s “in the back room of a Brisbane hotel”.
The words were thought to have been written by Ben Hall’s brother in law, John McGuire, an eye-witness of the parading of Hall’s bullet ridden body through the town of Forbes in NSW.
Come all you Lachlan men, and a sorrowful tale I’ll tell
Concerning of a hero bold who through misfortune fell.
His name it was Ben Hall, a man of good renown
Who was hunted from his station, and like a dog shot down.
So runs the start of the first verse.
But there is some controversy as to the origins of this classic with strong evidence that Manifold was aware of a poem that McGuire had published and put his own melody to it.
“Irrespective of how it came in to the tradition it is still one of the best outlaw ballads ever composed,” Professor Seal said.
These works have probably contributed to the longevity of the Ben Hall legend.
The Hall legend lived on in poetry and as late as 1987 Rob Willis collected and recorded a poem from the late Paddy Godden (1896 – 1996) a well-known sportsman, musician and character of the Forbes district.
The following poem was recited to Paddy by his mother who was very sympathetic to Hall.
Should we rejoyce the death of Hall?
Or sad deplore his fate,
We knew he was a noble soul
We knew, but knew too late.
They sought him in his ambush,
and over him did creep,
and long before the break of day,
They shot him in his sleep.
They put thirty bullets in his breast,
and two more in his brains,
and by their cruel threatury,
they have murdered you, “Ben Hall”.
His sister weeping, found the spot
Where he before had layed,
She little thought the blood-hounds,
would find him, in his grassy bed,
and long before the break of day,
that noble Hall was dead.
They put thirty bullets in his breast,
and two more in his brains,
and by their cruel threatury,
They have murdered you Ben Hall.