VALE RUBY HUNTER

On Wednesday I was thinking that I had not listened to Ruby in a while, making a mental note (as you do) to pull it out in the near future. On Thursday morning the news came through that Ruby Hunter had died.

Ruby Hunter was born in 1954; the Ngarrindjeri, Pitjantjarra, Kookatha singer and songwriter was a member of the Stolen Generation and she met fellow member Archie Roach when they were both teenagers living on the streets. Their partnership in life and music (subject of a documentary) was a truly great one full of love, life and inspiration to any who came across its path.

Ruby was renowned for her colourful outfits, flamboyant and often feathery headresses (which she made herself); but above all, an overwelmingly warm and considerate nature.

Both Ruby and Archie came to recording later in life, although the two started performing together around 1983. In 1990 I had the pleasure of interviewing Archie Roach after the release of what was to become his breakthrough album Charcoal Lane.

As flamboyant as Ruby was, Archie was modest, quiet and restrained in his thoughts. He talked with thanks and reverence of working with Paul Kelly who had produced and encouraged the album, but you could not mistake the love that burned in his eyes so much louder than his softly spoken words when he talked of Ruby.

Ruby released her debut album Thoughts Within in 1994 and won a Deadly for Female Artist of the Year in 2000, Outstanding Contribution to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Music in 2003 and Excellence in Film and Theatrical Score in 2004.

Ruby was also the inspiration behind the Black Arm Band, and she and Archie performed as part of that musical collective, whose performances at the Sydney Festival and then all over the world have significantly expanded the knowledge and awareness of contemporary Australian Indigenous music.

Ruby had been due to perform at the Adelaide Festival with Archie. Festival Director Paul Grabowsky (who recorded Ruby with Hunter and Roach) was deeply saddened by the news. “Ruby was one of the truly great voices of our country,” he said, “and as a member of the Stolen Generation, her story, so beautifully and candidly told, is a truly emblematic one; to hear her tell it was an honour.”

At Federation Square, on the day Prime Minister Kevin Rudd issued his apology Ruby Hunter and Archie Roach performed the song of the Stolen Generation that Archie wrote, They Took the Children Away. As Archie could not hold back the tears it was once again in Ruby’s arms that he found comfort.

Ruby Hunter passed away in the arms of Archie Roach, surrounded by family.

On Thursday night my house basked in the wonderful sounds of Ruby Hunter’s voice once again, and as I listened to her sing Archie’s Down City Streets, Ruby was in all our hearts.

A funeral service will be held for Ruby Hunter Friday 5 March, at The Riverland Field Days Site, outside Bamera, South Australia.