Sleep, Australia, Sleep - Paul Kelly

Sleep, Australia, sleep

The night is on the creep

Shut out the noise all around

Sleep, Australia, sleep

And dream of counting sheep

Jumping in fields coloured brown

Who’ll rock the cradle and cry?

Who’ll rock the cradle and cry?

Sleep, Australia, sleep

As off the cliff the kingdoms leap

Count them as they say goodbye

Count down the little things

The insects and birds

Count down the bigger things

The flocks and the herds

Count down our rivers

Our pastures and trees

But there’s no need to hurry

Oh, sleep now, don’t worry

'Coz it’s only a matter of degrees

Fog, Australia, fog

Just like the boiling frog

As we go we won’t feel a thing

Who’ll rock the cradle and cry?

Who’ll rock the cradle and cry?

Sleep, my country, sleep

As off the cliff the kingdoms leap

Count them as they pass on by

Our children might know them

But their children will not

We won’t know 'til it’s gone

All the glory we’ve got

But there are more wonders coming

All new kinds of shows

With acid seas rising

To kiss coastal mountains

And big cyclones pounding

And firestorms devouring

And we’ll lose track of counting

As the corpses keep mounting

But hey, that’s just the way this old world goes

Sleep, my country, sleep

As we sow so shall we reap

Who’ll rock the cradle and cry?