“Ignore all the references to northern NSW, “Flame Trees” is definitely about Elizabeth”

DAN SCHMIDT

Ask any true-blue northern suburbs local about Aussie rock and they’ll tell you a thing or two about a thing or two.

One of those things of two is that AC-DC are from Adelaide, and the other thing is that “Flame Trees” by Cold Chisel is definitely about Elizabeth.

Elizabeth Vale local and amateur music historian Mack Errdacker spoke with the Adelaide Mail while we were both waiting in the Centrelink line.

‘Chisel’s hit “Flame Trees” is about Elizabeth, everybody knows that’ said Mack ‘yeah, there’s a lot of references to northern New South Wales, the film-clip is in New South Wales, and the writer has stated it’s about Grafton, New South Wales, but that’s all just hearsay, it’s about Elizabeth’.

‘Where everyone is confused is “Grafton” sounds a lot like “graffed on”, as in “graffiti-ed on”. So the writer actually said this song is about the place “graffed on”, and nowhere is more graffed on than Elizabeth. Case closed’.

Continuing to listen because we had nothing better to do, Mack continued ‘Their song “Khe Sanh”, that’s also about Elizabeth, don’t worry about all those Vietnam war references. “Standing on the outside” is also about Elizabeth, it’s about standing on the outside of the Rose & Crown looking in after you’ve been kicked out’.

When asked if Jimmy Barnes’ recent single “Shutting Down our Town” is about Elizabeth, Mack revealed that he had never actually listened to any other music aside from Cold Chisel’s greatest hits album.