Gold's a Wonderful Thing

DESCRIPTION: "Gold's a wonderful thing, what a change it can make, 'Tis the great civiliser... It peoples the country; wherever it's found, There's certain to be a great rush to the ground." The song lists some who grew rich, and the gold-seekers and girls who follow
AUTHOR: Charles R. Thatcher (1831-1878)
EARLIEST DATE: 1869 (Thatcher's Wit and Humour, according to Mike Harding, _When the Pakeha Sings of Home: A Source Guide to the Folk & Popular Songs of New Zealand_)
KEYWORDS: gold humorous travel
FOUND IN:
REFERENCES (3 citations):
Colquhoun-NZ-Folksongs-SongOfAYoungCountry, p. 56, "Gold's a Wonderful Thing" (1 text, 1 tune) (p. 34 in the 1972 edition)
Garland-FacesInTheFirelight-NZ, p. 95, "(Olden Days of Lake Wakitipu)" (1 short text)
Hoskins-GoldfieldBalladeer-LifeAndTimes-Charles-R-Thatcher, p. 57, "(Olden Days of Lake Wikatipu)" (1 excerpt); pp. 180-182, "Gold"; compare pp. 169-171, "Olden Days at Lake Wakatipu" (1 text)
NOTES [136 words]: For brief background on Charles Thatcher's career, see the notes to "Where's Your License?" For an extensive collection of his songs, see Anderson-StoryOfAustralianFolksong.
This song poses a bit of a conundrum, because Charles Thatcher wrote at least two items beginning "Gold's a Wonderful Thing." Given the likelihood of cross-fertilization, and the lack of evidence that either one is traditional, I've lumped them -- and used the title Gold's a Wonderful Thing" because it's clearly more memorable than Thatcher's titles. What appears to be the more common text was originally titled "Olden Days of Lake Wakatipu," with the tune is listed as "St. Giles and St. James's"; the other one, which Hoskins-GoldfieldBalladeer-LifeAndTimes-Charles-R-Thatcher just calls "Gold," is to the tune of the Irish Washerwoman. - RBW
Last updated in version 6.5
File: Colq034

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