Gurrumul was born on Elcho Island near Arnhem Land
Born blind the first son of Ganyinurra and Nyambi Yunupingu
Because of his handicap he grew to be intensely shy
Never learning Braille, to use a guide dog or a white cane
And at four years old was he taught himself to play
A toy piano and an accordion without any other help
Then he played the guitar left handed and upside down
I was just one of the things he needed to do
With music being an important part of his life time
He was part of the Yothu Yindi band and had success
Then he created his own music with a number albums
That took the world by storm with a number of platinum records
And ARIA awards for his music in his people's language
But he had ongoing liver and kidney problems that plagued
That led in the end to his death on 25th July,2017
On that day we lost a great Australian and Aborigine
In these days of change for all of us in this world
He was a breath of fresh air for Australians proud.
© Paul Warren Poetry
This poem has not been translated into any other language yet.
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