King of Kalgoorlie - Slim Dusty

One night I was strollin' the time seemed to drag

I paused for a drink from the bronze water bag

That old Paddy Hannan holds out all the while

And I’ll swear that he slipped me a wink and a smile

Born on the breeze came the throb of the mines

And up in the city the mid nightly chimes

And the ghosts of the past and Paddy and I

Delved in the realms of the days long gone by

From all the world over adventurers came

To gamble their lives on the Nullarbor plain

They’d fight and they’d laugh they’d love and they’d live

And they’d die as they saw what the earth had to give

For how many times has the story been told

On the fields they all knew there are two kinds of gold

There’s the gold that men die for and struggle and strive

And the gold we call water that keeps men alive

We can only imagine their perils and fears

The hardships the heartaches their triumphs and tears

Dame fortune was fickle while many she spurned

She smiled upon others, some never returned.

Today, there are younger strong hands at the reins

But the gallant old prospector always remains

He’s there in the sunset the trees and the dust

His spirit is ours in his land our trust

Oh, he’s there sure enough in the big school of mines

In the books in the children those brave little vines

For the soul does not die as it passes the years

And what braver men than the old pioneers

So, old Paddy Hannan sits there on his throne

And dreams of the past and the days he had known

The clothes that he wears are not much for style

But who cares for that on the old golden mile.

Yes old Paddy Hannan in sunshine or rain

Dwells in the street which carries his name

His majesty watches out there all alone

The King of Kalgoorlie on his street corner throne.