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Traveling in a fried-out combie
On a hippie trail, head full of zombie
I met a strange lady, she made me nervous
She took me in and gave me breakfast
And she said
Do you come from a land down under?
Where women glow and men plunder?
Can't you hear, can't you hear the thunder?
You better run, you better take cover
Buying bread from a man in Brussels
He was six-foot-four and full of muscles
I said, "Do you speak-a my language?"
He just smiled and gave me a Vegemite sandwich
And he said
I come from a land down under
Where beer does flow and men chunder
Can't you hear, can't you hear the thunder?
You better run, you better take cover
Yeah
Lyin' in a den in Bombay
With a slack jaw, and not much to say
I said to the man, "Are you trying to tempt me
Because I come from the land of plenty?"
And he said
Do you come from a land down under? (oh yeah yeah)
Where women glow and men plunder?
Can't you hear, can't you hear the thunder?
You better run, you better take cover
Living in a land down under
Where women glow and men plunder
Can't you hear, can't you hear the thunder?
You better run, you better take cover
Living in a land down under
Where women glow and men plunder
Can't you hear, can't you hear the thunder?
You better run, you better take cover
Living in a land down under
Where women glow and men plunder
Can't you hear, can't you hear the thunder?
You better run, you better take cover
Living in a land down under
Where women glow and men plunder
Can't you hear, can't you hear the thunder?
You better run, you better take cover
On a hippie trail, head full of zombie
I met a strange lady, she made me nervous
She took me in and gave me breakfast
And she said
Do you come from a land down under?
Where women glow and men plunder?
Can't you hear, can't you hear the thunder?
You better run, you better take cover
Buying bread from a man in Brussels
He was six-foot-four and full of muscles
I said, "Do you speak-a my language?"
He just smiled and gave me a Vegemite sandwich
And he said
I come from a land down under
Where beer does flow and men chunder
Can't you hear, can't you hear the thunder?
You better run, you better take cover
Yeah
Lyin' in a den in Bombay
With a slack jaw, and not much to say
I said to the man, "Are you trying to tempt me
Because I come from the land of plenty?"
And he said
Do you come from a land down under? (oh yeah yeah)
Where women glow and men plunder?
Can't you hear, can't you hear the thunder?
You better run, you better take cover
Living in a land down under
Where women glow and men plunder
Can't you hear, can't you hear the thunder?
You better run, you better take cover
Living in a land down under
Where women glow and men plunder
Can't you hear, can't you hear the thunder?
You better run, you better take cover
Living in a land down under
Where women glow and men plunder
Can't you hear, can't you hear the thunder?
You better run, you better take cover
Living in a land down under
Where women glow and men plunder
Can't you hear, can't you hear the thunder?
You better run, you better take cover
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It's meant to be a light hearted take on aussie culture and lifestyle, the "kombi van", the vegemite, drinking beer until you "chunder" (vomit) followed by drinking more beer. colin used lots of aussie slang to capture the aussie culture, but .this song was meant to be about more than that, and how greed was creeping in and changing things. A point that many australians don't even realise.
"On a hippy trail, head full of zombie" = Driving around on 'pruno', a beverage people make in a British prison colony.
"I met a strange lady; she made me nervous." = She made me uneasy, as she was a felon in a British prison colony.
"She took me in and 'made me breakfast'" = Slang for raped me with a toilet brush in a British prison colony.
"Land down under" = Slang for British Prison Colony.
"Where women glow and men plunder" = Where men and women do stuff in a British prison colony.
"You better run, you better take cover." = You better leave, because it's a British prison colony.
...the rest of the song is pretty much about a British prison colony.
Anyway, to me that's the charm of the song, the scary miss witch doctor says come in, have some breakfast.
I'm Not Australian, I'm Brazilian!
Just love the song, but I have to point something out... The song might be understood to YANKS as they simply are too dumb to look for other cultures!
I've being listening to this song for years, and always understood the Australian Feeling it has! Just logged in here to check out the Den in Bombay, as the tempting really sounded gay in my opinion!
I simply love on the video clip when they go hopping like Roos"
as the tempting really sounded gay in my opinion!"
it wasn't about sex, the lyrics were about being being so messed up in an opium den like you were dying, and being tempted with more drugs because you come from "the land of plenty" that's more aussie slang because australia was known as "the land of milk and honey" which basically means the land of opportunity. but when the guy finds out he's an aussie, he stops trying to ply him with drugs and tells him to get going.
Ultimately, I find this song very sad. To me, it's a lament about the death or partial death of independent Australian culture, in favor of adopting the stereotypes set out by the world.
/My two cents, as an American, not an Australian. If this seems like total bullshit to you, fine.
no these were colin's observations of aussies, women glow because of the climate, and men plunder is a reference to greed and development changing the country.
Down Under is one of Australia national songs.
Australians love travelling. Basically it is a song about a pot head Australian guy, stoned most of time, travelling around Europe, meeting kind and friendly people and his countryman along his trip. It is about the universal acceptance of Australian culture. When the locals find out the person is Australian from his unique accent, they becomes friendlier and warm, as most people in the world like Australians, who are down to earth, happy and friendly people, where they are from a country that is full of beautiful landscapes and coastlines - a young, free, peaceful and democratic country.
1. Traveling in a fried-out kombi
Kombi = Minivan - Kiwis and Aussies drove old VW combis for their trip around Europasia
Fried-out = Minikombi's engines overheated due to the long hours on the road
2. On a hippie trail, head full of zombie
Hippie trail - Travelling around Europeasia starting at London-Pamplona-Greece-Munich.
3. Zombie - Pothead / person who smokes marijuana / high or stoned on pot
4. I met a strange lady who made me nervous . She took me in and made me
Version 1: is a metaphor that people help out travellers in time of need.
Version 2: the lady looked strange to him because he was high on marijuana. She slept with him for a night and made him breakfast the next morning.
5. And she said, "Do you come from a land down under?
Land down under - - Australia (Australia is on the southern hemisphere - situated on the world map)
6. Where women glow and men plunder?
women glow - the Australian women glow because they are golden with the sun tanning their skin.
(Australia has the highest rate of skin cancer due to sun bathing)
Men plunder - not really know what it means but it might be saying men have fun with women or take whatever it pleases him
7. Can't you hear, can't you hear the thunder?
You better run, you better take cover."
It refers to the tropica storms in sate of Queensland, northeastern of Australia
7. Buying bread from a man in Brussels
He was six foot four and full of muscles
He was six-foot-four and full of muscles - is a reference that Australian men are generally big, tall and strong due to
a) Australia is sporting nation. Men are generally love playing sport and they are generally tall and big.
b) Farming was Australia back bone during the 50-80s, not anymore. The song is written during the 80s. It implies that men work on the land and for that they are tall and muscular.
c) Australia produces a lot of good quality meats, daily and fresh produce and for that Auzzie men are bigger and thicker in size as compared to men form other countries.
However, I believe, in this case, it refers to an Australia who might have taken up Rugby as sport. (Rugby is one of our national sports and we have one of the world best rugby team in the world.) and as rugby player, he is most likely to be very tall and big.
8. I said, "Do you speak my language?"
It referes to the way you find your fellow countrymen in a plce where far from home
9. He just smiled and gave me a vegemite sandwich
He just smiled - a metaphor reference as" yes, mate, I am your country man"
Vegemite - it is so Australian. It is made from vegetable and yeast and only taste good to Australians but totally disgusting to the rest of the people of the world.
And he said,
10. "I come from a land down under
Where beer does flow and men chunder
Chunder - vomit due to too much drinking
Can't you hear, can't you hear the thunder?
You better run, you better take cover."
11. Lying in a den in Bombay
Den in Bombay - Opium den
12. With a slack jaw, and not much to say
with a salck jaw - because he is stoned
13. I said to the man, "Are you trying to tempt me
Because I come from the land of plenty?"
the man was trying to sell him something second rate (drug/ marijuana), which he refused because he is from Australia where it is a country produces plenty of better quality goods, in general, but in this case it refers to "drug or marijuana.
Well, it is crazy to others to hear we Australians sing this song in a sporting event with pride about a sotned Australiann man, travelling around the world. I believe it would be banned by the governments of other countries to refer it as a natioanl song. As you can see, we are too lay back and chilled, living in a land of young,free and bounty.
- A VW Kombi van is the Australian poor man's road trip vehicle of choice. "Fried out" means that it's in really poor condition and overheating.
- "Zombie" is marijuana, though some other people claim it's other drugs.
- The thunder refers to both Australia's tropical storminess, and also to the awesomeness of the people/country (like footsteps, ie: we're coming! Better take cover!)
- Vegemite is the national sandwich spread, made from yeast extract (beer scum, kind of). Usually only Australians can stand the taste (I eat it from the jar, haha), so eating a Vegemite sandwich is a good way to prove you're an Aussie (it's our secret "language" overseas).
- To "Chunder", in Australian slang, is to puke. So, they're saying we get drunk and barf a lot, which...is true. Ahem.
And of course, Australia is the land down under all the other countries. Hence, the land down under.
The concept of Australians being convicts echoes in the song ("plunder" means to rob; not to "work on land", unless it does so in Australia or something), and my statement "of course not" negates that idea (again, notice how the only Australian character in the song who sings the chorus doesn't mention the men being plunderers - I mentioned this the first time to convey how the Australian, above all people, would know the truth and not the stereotype).