Tempus Fugit

About the album

A free digital single by Sydney/Bendigo pop icons The Cannanes to celebrate the memory of Prime Minister Gough Whitlam. The Cannanes' Fran

Gibson writes - "On 11 November 1975, my modern history teacher ran into my classroom. In a shocked tone, she told the class that Gough Whitlam had been sacked by the Governor General. I was at a boarding school in Queensland full of graziers daughters. There was wild jubilation and rejoicing. I was alone in my outrage and misery. Unbeknownst to me, 1000km south, a 13 year old Stephen O’Neil walked out of school and made his way to the steps of Parliament House in Canberra . . .The country was in a furor. Nothing has ever seemed so important since. Gough Whitlam represented a hope to us that Australia could and would be a brilliant country with governing principles based on social justice and equality, fostering education, creativity and intelligence, with a positive role to play in world affairs. Not everyone agreed with this view. We were in Flagstaff Arizona recording when the news of Gough’s death came. Though we had known it must only be a matter of time, the fact was still a shock. We wrote this song immediately. A tiny token of respect for a wonderful man. His legacy is a light on the hill for this country."