Treaty (song)

Last updated

"Treaty"
Treaty by Yothu Yindi.jpg
Single by Yothu Yindi
from the album Tribal Voice
Language
B-side "Yolngu Boy"
ReleasedJune 1991
Recorded1991
Genre Pop, new wave, Indigenous Australian
Length3:35
Label Mushroom
Razor
Songwriter(s) Paul Kelly, Mandawuy Yunupingu, Stuart Kellaway, Cal Williams, Gurrumul Yunupingu, Milkayngu Mununggurr, Banula Marika, Peter Garrett
Producer(s) Mark Moffatt
Yothu Yindi singles chronology
"Djäpana"
(1989)		"Treaty"
(1991)		"Djäpana"
(1992)

"Treaty" is a protest song by Australian musical group Yothu Yindi, which is made up of Aboriginal and balanda (non-Aboriginal) members. [1] Released in June 1991, "Treaty" was the first song by a predominantly Aboriginal band to chart in Australia [2] and was the first song partly in any Aboriginal Australian language to gain extensive international recognition, peaking at No. 6 on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play singles charts. [2] [3] The song contains lyrics in Gumatj, one of the Yolngu Matha dialects and a language of the Yolngu people of Arnhem Land in northern Australia.

Contents

The song was released three years after the presentation of the Barunga Statement to then-Prime Minister Bob Hawke. Brothers Mandawauy and Galarrwuy Yunupingu wanted to highlight the lack of progress on the treaty between Indigenous Australians and the Australian government.

"Treaty" peaked at No. 11 on the ARIA Singles Chart in September 1991. In May 2001 "Treaty" was selected by the Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) as one of the Top 30 Australian songs of all time. In 2009 "Treaty" was added to the National Film and Sound Archive's Sounds of Australia registry. In January 2018, as part of Triple M's "Ozzest 100", the "most Australian songs of all time", the Filthy Lucre version of "Treaty" was ranked number 10.

Background

In 1988, as part of Bicentennial celebrations, the Prime Minister of Australia, Bob Hawke, visited the Northern Territory for the Barunga Festival, where he was presented with a statement of Aboriginal political objectives by Galarrwuy Yunupingu and Wenten Rubuntja, known as the Barunga Statement. [4] Hawke responded to the Barunga Statement with a promise that a treaty would be concluded with Indigenous Australians by 1990. [4]

In 1991, Yothu Yindi were Hughie Benjamin on drums, Sophie Garrkali and Julie Gungunbuy as dancers, Stuart Kellaway on bass guitar, Witiyana Marika on manikay (traditional vocals), bilma (ironwood clapsticks) and dance, Milkayngu Mununggurr on yidaki (didgeridoo), Gurrumul Yunupingu on keyboards, guitar and percussion, Makuma Yunupingu on yidaki, vocals, bilma, Mandawuy Yunupingu on vocals and guitar, Mangatjay Yunupingu as a dancer. [5] Mandawuy Yunupingu, with his older brother Galarrwuy, wanted a song to highlight the lack of progress on the treaty between Aboriginal peoples and the federal government. Mandawuy Yunupingu recalls:

Bob Hawke visited the Territory. He went to this gathering in Barunga. And this is where he made a statement that there shall be a treaty between black and white Australia. Sitting around the camp fire, trying to work out a chord to the guitar, and around that camp fire, I said, "Well, I heard it on the radio. And I saw it on the television." That should be a catchphrase. And that's where 'Treaty' was born.

— Mandawuy Yunupingu [6] , 8 July 2004

Production and release

"Treaty" was written by Australian musician Paul Kelly and Yothu Yindi members Mandawuy Yunupingu, Kellaway, Williams, Gurrumul Yunupingu, Mununggurr and Marika and Peter Garrett. [7] [8] [9] [10] The initial June 1991 release received limited radio and television exposure (mainly on ABC radio and SBS television). [11]

Reception

After the initial release of the song failed to chart, Melbourne-based DJ Gavin Campbell (Razor Records), approached Mushroom Records to create a dance-oriented remix. [5] [1] [2] The Filthy Lucre production team, consisting of Campbell, Paul Main and Robert Goodge produced a remix without the band's involvement but with the understanding that the Yolngu side of the music would be preserved. [11] The remix not only modified the musical backing but dispensed with the majority of the English language lyrics, with the song sung almost entirely in the Aboriginal language, Gumatj. [5] [1] [2] The Filthy Lucre remix was released in June, entering the charts in July and peaking at No. 11 on the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) singles charts by September, spending a total of 22 weeks in the national charts. [5] [12]

"Treaty" was the first song by a predominantly Aboriginal band to chart in Australia. [2]

Success for the single was transferred to the related album Tribal Voice which peaked at No. 4 on the ARIA Albums Chart. [12] The album produced by Mark Moffatt for Mushroom Records was released in September 1991. [13] Mandawuy Yunupingu took leave of absence from his duties as principal to tour and promote the single and album. [5] [1]

"Treaty" peaked at No. 11 on the ARIA Singles Chart in September 1991. [12]

In May 2001 "Treaty" was selected by the Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) as one of the Top 30 Australian songs of all time. [14]

In 2009 "Treaty" was added to the National Film and Sound Archive's Sounds of Australia registry.

In January 2018, as part of Triple M's "Ozzest 100", the "most Australian songs of all time", the Filthy Lucre version of "Treaty" was ranked number 10. [15]

Use in the 2023 "Voice" protest on Triple J

In October 2023, Australia's tax-funded Triple J radio station played "Treaty" on repeat for one hour in protest over the fact that the "No" vote won in the 2023 Australian Indigenous Voice referendum. [16]

"Treaty" was played for the entire block of rapper Nooky’s all-Indigenous music show Blak Out between 5pm and 6pm.

Nooky said at the start of the show, "October 14 was a moment in history where a dark cloud will forever cast a shadow."

A proud Yuin and Thunghutti man, Nooky continued: "I feel like I let down my elders, I feel like I let down the future generations. Last night was the most overt, unconcealed manifestation of racism I’ve ever experienced in my whole life."

"Yesterday they said our pain and our suffering continues. The disadvantage and the inequality continues. But so does our love, our happiness, our strength and our pride." [16] [17]

Awards

At the APRA Music Awards of 1991, "Treaty" won song of the Year. [18]

At the 1992 ARIA Awards Yothu Yindi won awards for 'Engineer of the Year' for "Maralitja" (maralitja is Yolngu matha for crocodile man - one of Mandawuy Yunupingu's tribal names), "Dharpa" (dharpa is tree), "Treaty", "Treaty (Filthy Lucre remix)" and "Tribal Voice" by David Price, Ted Howard, Greg Henderson and Simon Polinski; 'Song of the Year' for "Treaty"; and "Single of the Year" for "Treaty". [19] [20]

In May 2001 "Treaty" was selected by Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) as one of the Top 30 Australian songs of all time. [14]

Musical style

Musically the song is a mixture of Yolngu and balanda styles. The timbres of the song include the balanda rock ensemble of electric guitars, keyboard and drumkit, and on occasion balanda voices. The Yolngu sounds include the lead singer's vocal quality, and the traditional instruments, bilma (ironwood clapsticks) and yidaki . The song's text is partly in English and partly in Gamatj, and the form of the song, while conforming to the balanda rock structure of verses and choruses with an instrumental break, and the process of intensity through repetition of short motifs, is nevertherless that of a djatpangarri , a form of Yolngu popular music. [21]

Mandawuy Yunupingu recalled hearing the djantpangarri / djedbangari song "Storm" which originates from Yirrkala in the Northern Territory. He incorporated the beat into the musical composition. [22] [23]

Videos

There were two video clips for "Treaty". The first features footage of the 1988 Barunga Festival where the Barunga Statement is shown in its final stages of preparation, and Prime Minister Hawke is shown participating didjeridu-playing and spear-throwing competitions. [11] As the Barunga Statement is presented to the Prime Minister, he is accompanied by the Minister for Indigenous Affairs, Gerry Hand. Also included in this first clip are images of the band in concert, and footage from the Gove Peninsula of industrial bauxite mining, ceremonial dancing led by Witiyana in the bush and children dancing on the beach. [11] According to the director, Stephen Johnson, it was never his intention to make a consciously "political" video.

A second clip for "Treaty" was made to accompany the Filthy Lucre remix. It was also directed by Stephen Johnson [11] and dispenses with the overtly political shots of the previous video. The video features images of the band in concert as well as footage from the Gove Peninsula of ceremonial dancing led by Witiyana in the bush, Witiyana and Milkayngu dancing with their instruments on the beach, Mandawuy Yunupingu singing over a blazing fire and children dancing on the beach with portable stereo given to them by Mandawuy Yunupingu. [5] [1]

We wanted to portray Yolngu people having a good time... we had the political stuff in the first clip... it is political enough in the sense that it is showing a positive, healthy and strong side of Aboriginal culture - that's the best message of all... I wanted people to dance, pick up on the movements and Yolngu style of dancing.

— Stephen Johnson [11]

Track listing

Yothu Yindi original version

  1. "Treaty" (Paul Kelly, Mandawuy Yunupingu, Stuart Kellaway, Cal Williams, Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu, Milkayngu Mununggurr and Witiyana Marika) – 3:35
  2. "Yolngu Boy" (Mandawuy Yunupingu) – 4:14

Filthy Lucre remix version

Australian 12"/CD/Cassette

  1. "Treaty" (Filthy Lucre Remix) – 6:52
  2. "Treaty" (Radio Mix) – 4:08
  3. "Treaty" (Dub) – 7:30

US CD single

  1. "Treaty" (Filthy Lucre Radio Edit) - 4:05
  2. "Treaty" (Filthy Lucre Remix) - 6:53
  3. "Treaty" (Djulpan/Seven Sisters Mix) - 5:50 (William Orbit remix)
  4. "Treaty" (Album Version) - 3:36

US 12"

  1. "Treaty" (Djulpan/Seven Sisters Mix) - 5:46
  2. "Treaty" (VCO Buzz Mix) - 5:25
  3. "Treaty" (A Cappella) - 0:25
  4. "Treaty" (Filthy Lucre Mix) - 6:55
  5. "Treaty" (Filthy Lucre Dub) - 7:27

Personnel

Production details

Charts

Weekly charts

Weekly chart performance for "Treaty"
Chart (1991–1992)Peak
position
Australia (ARIA) [24] 11
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders) [25] 9
Netherlands (Single Top 100) [26] 29
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade) [27] 33
UK Singles (OCC) [28] 72
US Dance Club Songs ( Billboard ) [29] 6

Year-end charts

Year-end chart performance for "Treaty"
Chart (1991)Position
Australia (ARIA) [30] 29

Certifications

RegionCertification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA) [31] Gold35,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yothu Yindi</span> Australian musical group

Yothu Yindi are an Australian musical group with Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal members, formed in 1986 as a merger of two bands formed in 1985 – a white rock group called the Swamp Jockeys, and an unnamed Aboriginal folk group consisting of Mandawuy Yunupingu, Witiyana Marika, and Milkayngu Mununggur. The Aboriginal members came from Yolngu homelands near Yirrkala on the Gove Peninsula in Northern Territory's Arnhem Land. Founding members included Stuart Kellaway on bass guitar, Cal Williams on lead guitar, Andrew Belletty on drums, Witiyana Marika on manikay, bilma and dance, Milkayngu Mununggurr on yidaki, Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu on keyboards, guitar, and percussion, past lead singer Mandawuy Yunupingu and present Yirrnga Yunupingu on vocals and guitar.

<i>Homeland Movement</i> 1989 studio album by Yothu Yindi

Homeland Movement is the debut studio album by Australian rock band Yothu Yindi that was released in April 1989 on the Mushroom Records label. The album peaked at number 59 on the ARIA Chart in 1992.

<i>Tribal Voice</i> 1991 studio album by Yothu Yindi

Tribal Voice is the second studio album by Yothu Yindi, released in September 1991 on the Mushroom Records label. The album peaked at number 4 on the ARIA Charts and was certified 2× Platinum.

<i>Freedom</i> (Yothu Yindi album) 1993 studio album by Yothu Yindi

Freedom is the third studio album by Australian band, Yothu Yindi released in 1993. The album peaked at number 31 on the ARIA charts.

<i>Birrkuta – Wild Honey</i> 1996 studio album by Yothu Yindi

Birrkuta – Wild Honey is the fourth studio album by Australian band, Yothu Yindi. It was released in November 1996 via Mushroom Records. It was co-produced by Lamar Lowder and Andrew Farriss.

<i>One Blood</i> (Yothu Yindi album) 1998 studio album by Yothu Yindi

One Blood is the fifth studio album by Australian group, Yothu Yindi that was released internationally in 1998 via Epic Records and in Australia in July 1999. The album peaked at number 43 on the ARIA charts.

<i>Garma</i> (album) 2000 studio album by Yothu Yindi

Garma is the sixth and final studio album by Australian band, Yothu Yindi that was released in August 2000 via Mushroom Records. The album peaked at number 66 on the ARIA Charts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mandawuy Yunupingu</span> Australian musician (1956–2013)

Mandawuy Djarrtjuntjun Yunupingu, formerly Tom Djambayang Bakamana Yunupingu, and also known as Dr Yunupingu, was a teacher and musician, and frontman of the Aboriginal rock group Yothu Yindi from 1986. He was an Aboriginal Australian man of the Yolŋu people, with a skin name of Gudjuk.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Galarrwuy Yunupingu</span> Aboriginal Australian activist (1948–2023)

Galarrwuy Yunupingu, also known as James Galarrwuy Yunupingu and Dr Yunupingu, was an Indigenous Australian activist who was a leader in the Aboriginal Australian community. He was involved in Indigenous land rights throughout his career. He was a Yolngu man of the Gumatj clan, from Arnhem Land in the Northern Territory. He was the 1978 Australian of the Year.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yirrkala</span> Town in the Northern Territory, Australia

Yirrkala is a small community in East Arnhem Region, Northern Territory, Australia, 18 kilometres (11 mi) southeast of the large mining town of Nhulunbuy, on the Gove Peninsula in Arnhem Land.

Yunupingu, also spelt Yunupiŋu, is the family name of a number of notable Aboriginal Australians from the Yolŋu people of Arnhem Land, who are closely connected with the Marika and Gurruwiwi families.

<i>Yolngu Boy</i> 2001 Australian film

Yolngu Boy is a 2001 Australian coming-of-age film directed by Stephen Maxwell Johnson, produced by Patricia Edgar, Gordon Glenn, Galarrwuy Yunupingu and Mandawuy Yunupingu, and starring Sean Mununggurr, John Sebastian Pilakui, and Nathan Daniels. Yolngu Boy is based around three Aboriginal teenage boys linked by ceremony, kinship and a common dream-to become great Yolngu hunters, in a remote community at Yirrkala in North-East Arnhem Land in the Northern Territory of Australia. The feature film traces the metaphorical journey of the three young Aboriginal teenagers caught in a collision between the modern world and traditional Aboriginal culture where they hunt wild animals in the morning using spears and play football while listening to hip hop rap music in the afternoon. The project involved a significant number of community members in the cast and crew of the film.

Saltwater Band are an Indigenous roots band from Galiwin'ku on Elcho Island, around 560 kilometres from Darwin. The members are Yolngu and they sing mostly in Yolngu languages. Their songs are a mixture of traditional songs and reggae/ska influenced pop. One member of the band, the late Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu, is a close relative of Mandawuy Yunupingu of Yothu Yindi and was a past member of Yothu Yindi.

The Sixth Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards was held on 6 March 1992 at the World Congress Centre in Melbourne. Hosts were international guest, Julian Lennon and local Richard Wilkins, they were assisted by presenters, Spinal Tap, Rod Stewart, Mick Jones and others to distribute 24 awards. There were live performances and for the first time the awards were televised.

Barunga, formerly known as Beswick Creek and then Bamyili, is a small Aboriginal community located approximately 80 kilometres (50 mi) southeast of Katherine, in the Northern Territory of Australia. It is part of the Roper Gulf Region local government area. At the 2011 census, Barunga had a population of 313.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Djäpana</span> 1989 single by Yothu Yindi

"Djäpana", subtitled Sunset Dreaming, is an 1989 song by Australian musical group Yothu Yindi.

<i>Healing Stone (The Best of Yothu Yindi)</i> 2012 greatest hits album by Yothu Yindi

Healing Stone (The Best of Yothu Yindi) is the first greatest hits album by Australian band, Yothu Yindi. It was released in November 2012 to coincide with the band's ARIA Hall of Fame induction, and it peaked at number 88 on the ARIA Charts.

Witiyana Marika is an Aboriginal Australian musician, filmmaker and elder, known for being a founding member of the band Yothu Yindi and producer of the film High Ground.

Gavin Campbell is an Australian club DJ and remixer based in Melbourne, Victoria. He created the dance music production outfit known as Filthy Lucre, which is known for its 1991 remix of Yothu Yindi's single, "Treaty", known as "Treaty ".

Stephen Maxwell Johnson is an Australian filmmaker, best known for his films Yolngu Boy (2001) and High Ground (2020). He is also known for directing Yothu Yindi's music videos in the late 1980s to early 1990s.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Nimmervoll, Ed. "Yothu Yindi". HowlSpace – The Living History of Our Music (Ed Nimmervoll). Archived from the original on 26 July 2012. Retrieved 10 February 2014.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 "Charting the genius of Yothu Yindi". University of Sydney. 22 October 2009. Archived from the original on 13 December 2010. Retrieved 18 March 2010.
  3. ↑ "Yothu Yindi - Charts & Awards - Billboard Singles". allmusic . Retrieved 8 November 2008.
  4. 1 2 Howie-Willis, Ian (2001). "Barunga Statement". The Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies (AIATSIS). Archived from the original on 17 July 2011. Retrieved 4 November 2008.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 McFarlane, Ian (1999). "Encyclopedia entry for 'Yothu Yindi'". Encyclopedia of Australian Rock and Pop. Allen & Unwin. ISBN   978-1-86448-768-8. Archived from the original on 30 September 2004. Retrieved 4 November 2008.
  6. ↑ "George Negus Tonight Profiles - Transcripts - Mandawuy Yunupingu". Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). 8 July 2004. Retrieved 6 November 2008.
  7. ↑ "APRA 2001 Top 30 Songs". 2 May 2001. Retrieved 6 November 2008.
  8. ↑ "The American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP)". ASCAP . Retrieved 6 November 2008.
  9. ↑ "YOTHU YINDI ANNOUNCED AS 2012 HALL OF FAME INDUCTEE". Australian Recording Industry Association. 26 October 2013. Archived from the original on 30 December 2012.
  10. ↑ "The Music Lesson". ABC Australian Story. 8 July 2013.
  11. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Hayward, Philip, ed. (1998). "12: Yothu Yindi: Context and Significance". Sound Alliances: Indigenous Peoples, Cultural Politics, and Popular Music in the Pacific. London: Cassell. ISBN   978-0-30470-050-9 . Retrieved 18 March 2010.
  12. 1 2 3 "Yothu Yindi discography". Australian Charts Portal. Retrieved 4 November 2008.
  13. ↑ Holmgren, Magnus; Warnqvist, Stefan. "Yothu Yindi". Australian Rock Database. Passagen.se (Magnus Holmgren). Archived from the original on 27 September 2013. Retrieved 4 March 2014.
  14. 1 2 Kruger, Debbie (2 May 2010). "The songs that resonate through the years" (PDF). Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA). Retrieved 16 March 2010.
  15. ↑ "Here Are The Songs That Made Triple M's 'Ozzest 100'". Musicfeeds. 27 January 2018. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
  16. 1 2 "The Voice referendum live updates: Triple J host's protest live on air". news.com.au.
  17. ↑ Staff Writer. "triple j's Blak Out Reacts To The Voice Result By Playing 'Treaty' On Repeat". themusic.com.au. Retrieved 15 October 2023.
  18. ↑ "1991 APRA Music Award Winners". APRA AMCOs. Archived from the original on 5 July 2019. Retrieved 5 July 2019.
  19. ↑ "1992: 6th Annual ARIA Awards". ARIA Music Awards. Archived from the original on 26 September 2007. Retrieved 6 November 2008.
  20. ↑ "ARIA Awards 2008: History: Winners by Artist: Yothu Yindi search results". Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA). Archived from the original on 13 February 2009. Retrieved 6 November 2008.
  21. ↑ Stubington, Jill; Dunbar-Hall, Peter (1994). "13". Yothu Yindi's 'Treaty': Ganma in Music. Vol. 13. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. pp. 243–259. doi:10.1017/S0261143000007182. JSTOR   852915. S2CID   153678918.{{cite book}}: |journal= ignored (help)
  22. ↑ "Treaty - Yothu Yindi". Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies. 20 June 2019. Retrieved 30 July 2019.
  23. ↑ Marett, Allan; Yunupingu, Mandawuy; Langton, Marcia; Gumbula, Neparrŋa; Barwick, Linda; Corn, Aaron (2006), The National Recording Project for Indigenous Performance in Australia: year one in review. In Backing Our Creativity: the National Education and the Arts Symposium, 12-14 September 2005 (PDF), Australia Council for the Arts, pp. 84–90, retrieved 31 July 2019
  24. ↑ "Yothu Yindi – Treaty". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
  25. ↑ "Yothu Yindi – Treaty" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
  26. ↑ "Yothu Yindi – Treaty" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
  27. ↑ "Yothu Yindi – Treaty". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
  28. ↑ "Yothu Yindi: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
  29. ↑ "Yothu Yindi Chart History (Dance Club Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
  30. ↑ Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010 (PDF ed.). Mt Martha, Victoria, Australia: Moonlight Publishing. p. 307.
  31. ↑ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 1991 Singles" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.