Rich in emotion and layered in goosebumps, the one-take rendition of The Whitlams Black Stump Band's 'The Day John Sattler Broke His Jaw' with the famed Pub Choir is a beautiful moment that captures the power music has to unite people.
'The Day John Sattler Broke His Jaw' chronicles the legendary tale of the South Sydney captain's heroic stand to remain on the field during the 1970 Grand Final.After sustaining the injury in the third minute of the match he told a teammate: "Hold me up, so they don't know I'm hurt." The rest is history as he played out the game, leading Souths to victory over Manly.
"The song is a meditation on how one moment can bring a community together, in this case a famous football match, and how that world is disappeared or is disappearing fast," The Whitlams' Tim Freedman says.
"Written by Redfern local Perry Keyes, it was perfect choice to tackle with our new country outfit because country music is great at conveying a sense of place, and that is what this song captures so well for the inner city suburbs of Sydney before gentrification."
Filmed during Pub Choir's recent Brisbane gig at The Fortitude Music Hall with the duo version of The Whitlams Black Stump Band, scenestr is delighted to premiere the music video today. Enjoy.
"Brisbane's Pub Choir brings the community together as well, and it was 1,200-strong the night we recorded this in Fortitude Valley," adds Tim.
"The sound of them singing evokes the football crowd that packed the SCG in 1970 on the day Souths won the competition with a captain whose jaw was broken.
"They learnt it for ten minutes and then we sang it together once, so this has that irreplaceably energy of a first take."
The origins of The Whitlams Black Stump Band emerged last year when Freedman was doing a regional run of shows as the nation began opening back up. The enthusiasm he saw from bush crowds led him to Matt Fell and the task to "put your dream band together".
The result is a crew of some of the country's finest session-touring musicians: Fell on bass, Ollie Thorpe on pedal steel, Rod McCormack on banjo and acoustic guitar, and long-term Whitlams member Terepai Richmond on drums; with Freedman out front.
The Whitlams Black Stump Band 2022 Tour Dates
Thu 28 Jul - The Metropolitan Hotel (Mackay)Fri 29 Jul - Mansfield Hotel (Townsville)
Sat 30 Jul - Tanks Arts Centre (Cairns)
Wed 3 Aug - Gunnedah Town Hall (Gunnedah)
Thu 4 Aug - Orange Civic Theatre (Orange)
Fri 5 Aug - Royal Hotel (Queanbeyan)
Sat 6 Aug - Bowral Bowling Club (Bowral)
Fri 12 Aug - Westernport Hotel (San Remo)
Sat 13 Aug - Queenscliff Town Hall (Queenscliff)
Sun 14 Aug - Burrinja Theatre (Upwey)
