Eric Bogle : The Funny Stuff Trivia Quiz

Answer: Surliness

"The Introduction Song", also called "You Can Call me Eric", is where he presents himself as follows:

"I'm surly and I'm Scottish,
My shape is small and spheric,
The boys all call me "Wee Short Lad*" (*the word he actually uses is a little naughty for FT)
but you can call me "Eric"."

He does like a tipple, particularly if there's some Glenfiddich in the air, and while he doesn't play bagpipes himself, his father did. As a youngster Eric wanted to play drums, but in the end taught himself to play the guitar and turned to folk singing, having tried other careers along the way (accounting ...).

Answer: He was flattened by a big dog

Little Gomez, from the song of the same name, was a wee Mexican chihuahua with a formidable libido, who enthusiastically tried his luck on anything with four legs that came within sniffing distance, be it a pint-sized Pekinese in a toupée or some unfortunate wombats just passing through. That is, until the fateful day when Blodwin, a St Bernard bitch, got bored with the proceedings and sat down leaving poor Gomez as flat as a squashed tamale and in need of "a grave which was rather flat and round".

Answer: Bob Dylan

As a young, aspiring folk singer Eric recounts that he was plagued by requests to imitate the popular Bob Dylan, requests which he "usually [refused in his] own quiet way with a totally indecent suggestion". However, he caved in when it looked as if his love-life was going to suffer. He went along to his local folk-club and instead of singing through his mouth, or his nose, as most singers do, he "sang through his navel" as any would-be Dylan singers worth their salt were wont to at the time. The experience apparently was enough to nearly rupture his throat as he delivered a eye-wateringly funny rendition of Dylan's "The Times They are a-Changin'".

The whole tale is recounted in the lively and jovial "The Traditional Folk-singer's Lament for the Passing of the Three-Chord Traditional Folk Song", otherwise known as "Do You Sing any Dylan?".

Answer: He was driving the bus.

"Nae thanks tae the drivin'", they did all arrive safely at the match, and an unforgettable time was had by all. The five-minute long "World Cup Fever" conveys the suitably festive atmosphere that certainly reigned before, during and after the memorable occasion.

Answer: Flat cats

Obviously, neither Eric nor John ever really played Frisbee with any of these things, but it did make an amusing introduction to his equally entertaining song "Nobody's Moggy Now", in memory of the many deceased felines found on the roadside throughout Australia (and elsewhere, for that matter).

Answer: Aussie BBQ

Aerogard, an Australian brand of outdoor insect repellant, is pretty much essential in the pursuit of "av(ing)agoodweekend" in Australia, as it is most useful for keeping mossies (mosquitoes) at bay when dining alfresco.

Answer: Extinction

Eric uses a host of inventive descriptions and adjectives during the course of this song, many not particularly flattering, and all of which lead him to the conclusion that the white, Anglo-Saxon male is the most "Endangered Species" of all.

Answer: Silly Slang Song

Semantic Change is the term used to describe the evolution of language and words, where over the course of time word meanings can change quite drastically and the modern meaning is often well-removed from the original usage. Eric draws our attention to a variety of such changes in this song, set absurdly, but quite aptly, to the music of the very correct and proper "English Country Garden" for the chorus, and the anything-but-refined "Irish Rover" for the verses.

Answer: Yellow cake

Yellow cake is a toxic byproduct of uranium mining. In the 70s there was a project on the table to import the world's toxic waste and store it in the Australian outback deserts. Obviously this was not very palatable to many Australians of the time, Eric included.

Flo Bjelke-Petersen, a member of the Australian Senate from 1981 to 1993, was as well known for her pumpkin scones as for her politics. Eric hasn't much time for either!

Answer: A hot water bottle

The song in question is "Wee China Pig". During the chilly Scottish winters, Eric particularly appreciated cuddling up in bed with his "wee china pig" - a hot water bottle "made oot o' wally (china), and (which) weighs half a ton". This strange object had a snout-like spout for filling it up, making it look rather like a pig, from whence the name.

The beloved china pig was replaced in his affections by his wife, of whom he sings "[...] she's a wee tidy thing, she's the pride o' ma life, she's no' very round and she's no' very big, but she sure beat the pants off that wee china pig!"

High praise indeed!