Dirt Music

Dirt Music

First edition cover
Author	Tim Winton
Country	Australia
Language	English
Publisher	Picador
Publication date	2001
Pages	465
ISBN	0-330-36323-9
OCLC	48561064
Dewey Decimal	823/.914 22
LC Class	PR9619.3.W585 D57 2001

Dirt Music by Tim Winton is a Booker prize shortlisted novel from 2001 and winner of the 2002 Miles Franklin Award. The harsh, unyielding climate of Western Australia dominates the actions and events of this thriller.

Plot summary

Georgie, the heroine of the book, becomes fascinated in watching a stranger attempting to poach fish in an area where nobody can maintain secrets for very long; disillusioned with her relationship with the local fisherman legend Jim Buckridge, she contrives a meeting with the stranger and soon passion runs out of control between two bruised and emotionally fragile people.

The secret quickly becomes impossible to hide and Jim wants revenge, whilst the smuggler hikes north via Wittenoom (out of respect for his father who died of mesothelioma in the town) and Broome to an island off the remote coast of Kimberley beyond Kununurra to escape a confrontation. His subsequent struggles to survive in the hostile environment and, knowing that he must try to literally cover his tracks, give this book its gripping denouement.^[1]

Album

Tim Winton and Lucky Oceans chose the music for the book's "soundtrack". Released in CD form in Australia in 2001, the two disc set includes both bluegrass and classical music. The music is embodied by a quote from the book: "Anything you could play on a verandah. You know, without electricity. Dirt music."

Track listing

Disc One (bluegrass)

1. "Every Morning" performed by Keb' Mo' - 2:58
2. "Long Time Gone" performed by Tim O'brien and Darrell Scott - 3:34
3. "Watching the Wheels" performed by David Hyams - 2:25
4. "Got to Have You be My Man" performed by Rory Black - 2:21
5. "I Remember When I Was Young" performed by Matt Taylor and the White Pointers - 4:26
6. "Down by the Riverbed" performed by Backsliders - 5:09
7. "I Scare Myself" performed by Renee Geyer with Uncle Bill - 4:26
8. "I'll Be Gone" performed by Mud Crab Trio - 3:52
9. "Goodnight, Irene" performed by Lucky Oceans - 2:08
10. "He Fades Away" performed by June Tabor - 4:27
11. "A River Runs Through My Heart" performed by Broderick Smith - 4:19
12. "Look at the Moon" performed by Lucky Oceans with the White Pointers - 3:52
13. "White Point Breakdown" performed by Lucky Oceans with the White Pointers - 2:00
14. "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" performed by Sensitive New Age Cowpersons - 2:58
15. "I Drew My Ship into the Harbour" performed by Eliza Carthy, John Reed & Tristan Chipolata - 5:34
16. "Kokomo Blues" performed by Ten Cent Shooters - 3:58
17. "Keep Your Lamp Trimmed and Burning" Jim Fisher and the White Pointers - 2:57
18. "One" performed by Lucky Oceans - 1:02
19. "Nobody's Fault but Mine" performed by Matt Taylor and the White Pointers - 3:12
20. "Dirt Floor" performed by Chris Whitley - 2:10

Disc Two (classical)

1. "Djilile" composed by Peter Sculthorpe and performed by the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra - 4:33
2. "Symphony No. 5: III. Romanza (Lento)" composed by Ralph Vaughan Williams and performed by the London Philharmonic Orchestra - 10:56
3. "Piano Quintet in G minor, Op. 57: III. Scherzo (Allegretto)" composed by Dmitri Shostakovich and performed by Australia Ensemble - 3:24
4. "St Matthew Passion: No. 53 Befiehl du deine Wege" composed by Johann Sebastian Bach and performed by the Stuttgart Hymnus Boys' Choir & the Stuttgart Chamber Orchestra - 1:29
5. "Cantus In Memoriam Benjamin Britten" composed by Arvo Pärt and performed by the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra - 7:40

Film Adaptation

A film adaptation of Dirt Music is in development, to be directed by Phillip Noyce. Originally, Heath Ledger was expected to play the role of Luther Fox, but due to scheduling conflicts with The Dark Knight, Ledger withdrew. In 2007, Rachel Weisz and Colin Farrell were cast in the roles of Georgie Jutland and Luther Fox^[2] but filming was delayed. In 2010, it was reported that Russell Crowe would star in the film.,^[3] although Noyce said the script was still being worked on.

References

1. "Tim Winton : Dirt Music : Book Review". Mostly Fiction. 2003-02-22. Retrieved 2006-10-22.
2. "Farrell to star in Dirt Music". Perth Now.
3. "Russell Crowe to star in Aussie film". Digital Spy.

External links

• BBC News Dirt Music paints a bleak picture
• ABC Shop Dirt Music
• Personal Trauma/Historical Trauma in Tim Winton’s Dirt Music | Barbara Arizti - Academia.edu

Links Related to the Film Adaptation

• IMDB Dirt Music (2009)
• Heath Ledger And Rachel Weisz Playing Dirt Music
• Empire Movies:Farrell Joins Dirt Music
• Colin Farrell Fansite: Dirt Music
• Perth Now: Farrell to star in Dirt Music
• Weisz and Farrell Get Buried in 'Dirt'
• Trailers/Cast/Previews