Sitting on the floor of my study, along with too much other stuff, is a pile of old records which I rescued from Nanna’s place. About sixty in faded sleeves, some of which I remember from the 1960s and 70s, some I don’t. Some Mum and Dad inherited from The Aunts. Aunty Ella and Aunty Lenie, Schuller, my great aunts, from the Wimmera-Mallee who moved to Adelaide and eventually wound up in one of those Lutheran retirement units. Aunty Lenie lived until she was 103 or so.
During the 1960s we had an HMV radiogram, or was it a radiogramme, or a stereogram, or a stereogramme. It could have tracked the Russians. It had a radio with every radio station for every state on it and a turntable with a stylus and the advanced technology to stack a couple of records on auto so when one finished the next one would drop.
We listened to footy on the radio which gave commentators deep, room-filling whiskey voices, except for the round the grounds guys who’d break in. They were tenor, if not falsetto when they broke in to the coverage to excitedly report a lead change (with a fan in the background screaming).
Nanna with Aunty Lynette, her sister
We knew about tenors and altos and all the voice registers because our record collection consisted primarily of classical music, especially choral music. We had music in our house, Mum practising the hymns on the piano, that she would play on Sunday in church; Dad in his study on the transistor, usually ABC Radio 3, was it 3AR? Soft, ambient sound, making its way through the hanging pipe smoke and curling past papers and across open books of Biblical commentary.
Dad in his Shepparton study. Sans pipe smoke. That’s my great grandfather, also a pastor, on the wall.
But sometimes we’d have what was called in our household ‘a bit of a craze’ which meant three or four days of doing the same thing. “The boys are having a bit of a Canasta craze.” That extended to the record player.
When we were very young this was the Christmas album. Big sounds. Carols in German pumping out in the Shepparton loungeroom.
And here’s the Nat King Cole version. I did not know Nat King Cole existed until I was about 25 and heard ‘Unforgettable.’ Don’t know where. But I immediately went out and bought a CD. Nat became an element of the music of the share house (Holland Street) of friends in Toowong. Geoffrey Neil Gunn would arrive home after a day trying to be a solicitor, plonk down and say, “Nat me.” Nat’s would fill the room.
Bach was huge in our house. He was The Man. Mum and my brother Peter both played Bach on the piano, Mum because she was practising for Sunday and Peter who was working through the grades. He still plays, some Bach.
Handel’s Messiah was also played from time to time, particularly ‘The Hallelujah Chorus’.
We visited the Barossa Valley in 1971. I returned when I was in Adelaide playing Intervarsity Golf in in 1981. Dad and Mum moved to Eudunda in 1982. I have come to the Barossa every year since and Susan and the kids moved here in 2021. We now hear thee bells call the faithful to Kirche every Saturday evening (St John’s) and Sunday morning (Langmeil).
In our home, King’s College, Cambridge, was imagined as the great chapel and it’s choir was without peer. It was a benchmark reset every Christmas Eve. We would come home from the Children’s Christmas Eve Service, a bottle of sparkling wine would be opened, and someone would say, “Put carols from Kings on.” Plates of dill pickles, cheese and mettwurst would be served and, after a while, we would open the presents, a very German Lutheran tradition of Christmas Eve. Just to affirm the place of the choir we had one of their albums.
Dad had about 278 favourite hymns and one of them was ‘When I Survey the Wondrous Cross’. I quoted one of the stanzas in Dad’s eulogy because it captured the enormity of the grace and love which moved him:
Were the whole realm of Nature mine,
Twould be an offering far too small,
Love so amazing, so divine,
Demands my soul, my life, my all.
‘The Lutheran Hour’ was a radio program which was broadcast on many stations across Australia, although I couldn’t tell you which ones. From the mid-1920s, hymn-singing was a radio staple. In Geelong, for example, a huge battle over what should be programmed on Saturday afternoons was fought: community hymn-singing or the game from Corio Oval. Footy won the day.
The Lutheran Hour was so popular that those responsible for it could press vinyls of hymns knowing their would be a willing audience ready to buy them. This album is ‘Hymns of the Lutheran Hour Vol. 2: Passion and Easter Hymns Sung by The Lutheran Singers. It includes one of the great hymns Ó Sacred Head, Now Wounded’ so brilliant in the context of Good Friday but so brilliant musically that Paul Simon interpreted the theme to compose ‘American Tune’. When, as the world faced Covid in the March of 2020 and New York, in particular was suffering, he posted a memorable performance of it.
The funny thing is that, in the pile of records, I found about six albums that had been missing since about 1986. This included the soundtrack from The Big Chill. I subsequently bought two more copies of that album which means, having uncovered this one, means I have three. I had been to the Dire Straits Concert at Footy Park in 1985 and played this over and over and over. Mark Knopfler could play.
I think I can find enough gold for at least a Volume 2 and who knows, by popular demand, a few more.
Read more from John Harms HERE
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About John Harms
JTH is a writer, publisher, speaker, historian. He is publisher and contributing editor of The Footy Almanac and footyalmanac.com.au. He has written columns and features for numerous publications. His books include Confessions of a Thirteenth Man, Memoirs of a Mug Punter, Loose Men Everywhere, Play On, The Pearl: Steve Renouf's Story and Life As I Know It (with Michelle Payne). He appears (appeared?) on ABCTV's Offsiders. He can be contacted [email protected] He is married to The Handicapper and has three school-age kids - Theo, Anna, Evie. He might not be the worst putter in the world but he's in the worst four. His ambition was to lunch for Australia but it clashed with his other ambition - to shoot his age.
Record collections tell so much about a person. From my earliest years until now, whenever visiting for a dinner, a party, or just visiting I’d head for the record collection, if there was one, and have a quick flick through the albums.
Lovely. More volumes please
So right about the different registers of the radio commentators’ voices. Doug Heywood interrupting Tim Lane’s smooth flow to gloat that the’s got the close one.
love all of this, JTH
as Kingaroy Lutherans, my parents had many of these records, too.
APC Hansen (Alan Hansen, my father) also had many favourite hymns, including “When I survey the wonderous cross” … great stuff
Rabbit in the Vineyard
Any Engelbert surfaced?
You’ll have to wait for Volume 2 Swish. Clues: HB. Also NM.
Harms, so much here with which to resonate from our shared heritage. We didn’t have this music in our household, but we did have ‘The Lutheran Hour’ on the radio (ABC) featuring Dr Oswald Hoffmann every Sunday – 1960s/70s. Remember the phrase ‘70 Pirie Street, Adelaide, SA’?
Re Barossa Bells: the organist Bill Etscheid was an experienced American Lutheran primary school teacher who, along with a number of other Americans, came to Australia in the 1970s to help staff the growing number of Lutheran primary schools throughout SA and the eastern states. His wife Connie was also a teacher. Their son Peter and daughter Kristin were fellow students with Andy Thurlow and me at Lutheran Teachers College, Highgate SA in the early 70s. Lots of stories there!
As for ‘classic’ Lutheran hymns, in my mind I can still hear my father’s tuneful voice singing them at Redeemer Lutheran Church, Laidley Qld. His and my mother’s faith were instrumental in shaping the lives of me and my siblings, a commitment we all retain now in our 60s and 70s. Yes, it was traditional, conservative Lutheranism but it has been the bedrock of our understanding of life, the universe and everything. Unashamedly so!
I look forward to Vol. 2!
Grand stuff. Had me reminiscing about Mum’s musical taste. A staunch (rather than devout) Anglican – she defined the genteel middle class ouvre’ of those who came of age in the 1950’s. She loved Acker Bilk’s suave clarinet (Stranger on the Shore). Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass (The Lonely Bull). In her later days she professed to enjoying The Beatles. I spluttered that this must have been a secret pleasure, as she dismissed them as long haired hooligans in their heyday. We are all braver in memory.
I don’t remember any particular hymnal favourites, but the Kadina church had an elegant elderly lady organist. Occasionally there would be a regional Eucharist in Moonta or Wallaroo. More working class towns where the organist relied on vigour more than talent. Arms and feet pumping she thumped the keys and pedals determinedly – releasing discordant screeching cat noises.
After the service Mum would say that was “different” through pursed lips and confer a spiritual “best team player – tried hard” award to the organist. A reminder to be grateful we lived in a civilised community.
More please.
Love the old records. Crikey my old man had hundreds and hundreds. They still sit in his study even he no longer does. Bach x 1,000. He had several Bach pieces performed by several different orchestras and several different choral masters. At Christmas Handel and Bach blasted the neighbourhood.
Never forget one of my little brothers became obsessed with Johnny Cash’s Ring of Fire. “Put on Ringapyre, put on Ringapyre” he’d say.
Music is the language of humanity when done right I reckon.
Thanks for inspiring the memories.
Like Col I’ve always headed to the record or cd collections of people I’ve just met. It was this scenario that brought me an intro to Lynda. I was in between jobs on Phillip Island working sadly as a real estate agent. I was tasked to sell the house Lynda was renting. I took some clients through for an inspection when lynda wasn’t there and had a quick peek at her cd collection which was impressive. A week later same thing but this time she was there. For whatever reason I congratulated her on her collection and apologised for my voyeurism. She replied, “as long as you weren’t looking in my undies drawer that’s fine.” I knew I’d found a keeper. Lovely piece John. The likeness to your mum is extraordinary. Cheers
Some marvellous reflections here JTH.
I hadn’t heard of that particular favourite hymn of his. Of course, it should come as no great surprise to me but it is pretty clear he had his head firmly around the centrality of the doctrine of redemption.
What age would he have been there? I seem to recall that Shep was one of his early postings when you were just a little tacker before the move to Oakey – yes?
RDL
Brilliant JTH a real look thru your family history ironically as a non music person the Dire Straits concert at footy park is 1 of the 2 music concerts I’ve been to( Billy Joel at the old memorial drive tennis is the other one )