The Camel Boy
They called him Camel Boy
But he was a man
He walked behind us... With a billy
He tended the campfire... And he made the tea
Drowned in the colours... We didn't see
And the ghost gums stand... Gleaming white
Showed him a paint brush... He showed us the light
I apologise... For the condescension
Paid no attention to the pain of the Camel Boy
It's Namatjira... He became the one
We remember... All alone
Under a huge sky... With a gentle hand
Painted the pictures... Of an ancient land
What fools we were... What did we mean
Dressed in white... To meet the queen
Take down her picture... Hang up a ghost gum
Put up a landscape... By the Camel Boy
'Cause her majesty... Was in his eye
The 'sleeping lubra', the Aranda sky
I apologise... For the condescension
Paid no attention to the pain of the Camel Boy
And the ghost gums stand... Gleaming white
Showed him a paint brush... He showed us the light
Drowned in the colours... We didn't see
What a man was he... Albert the Camel Boy
Albert the Camel Boy
Namatjira the Camel Boy