W.O.C.K On Vinyl: Puffing Billy - Whistles In The Hills EP (1964) / Alan Rowe - The Puffing Billy Song [Single] (1975)

Before things get too serious here at Rock On Vinyl, I thought it might be fun to post a song / album at the end of each month, that could be categorized as being either Weird, Obscure, Crazy or just plain Korny.

"The Puffing Billy" song, published by Allan's Music, is about  Victoria's famous narrow-gauge railway train, fondly called "Puffying Billy", which runs through the beautiful Dandenong Ranges some twenty-six miles (41km) from Melbourne. The winding track joins the picturess mountain areas of Belgrave and Emerald.

This tourist attraction is wholly maintained by the 'Puffing Billy ' Preservation Society, a dedicated group of enthusiasts, who keep the train running, much to the delight of thousands children and adults each year. 'Puffing Billy' would undoubtedly be on of the most photographed trains in the world.

Alan Rowe, himself a keen railway enthusiast, wrote this song because of  "Billy's" fame and popularity.  On this recording you can hear the train's familar "puff, puff" and "whoo, whoo" in addition to the music and lyrics.  

WHISTLES IN THE HILLS

During the first years of this century, the Victorian Government was engaged in a large scale expansion of its railway system as it attempted to open up the state for settlement, As part of- this expansion four narrow (2 foot 6 inch) gauge lines were built, this being an inexpensive way of bringing rail service to outlying communities - particularly those in mountainous terrain.

Of the four lines, two captured the imagination of the people of Victoria. The Upper Ferntree Gully-Gembrook line in the Dandenong Ranges near Melbourne (known to all as "Puffing Billy") and the Colac-Beech Forest line in the Otway Ranges, known affectionately as "The Beechie". Of these, only a portion of one remains to remind us of a leisurely but dignified past.

Each locomotive operating on the Puffing Billy Railway has its own rich history and identity. The NA Class locomotives were originally referred to as ‘narrow gauge’. This was later abbreviated to NA Class.

The NA locomotive is the only class to have operated on the Upper Fern Tree Gully to Gembrook railway prior to closure in 1954. In fact prior to 1978, they were the only locomotives to run on Puffing Billy Railway. Other locomotives now on the line are "foreign" to the Puffing Billy Railway, although G42, the Climax, and the Tractor Appliance Company Limited (T.A.C.L) can claim association through the Moe to Walhalla railway, where they operated alongside each other on a timber tramway that branched off at Collins Siding, near the township of Erica.

PUFFING BILLY

Puffing Billy now runs on the 8-mile portion of the original railway between Belgrave and Lakeside - no longer as a common carrier but as a tourist attraction. Normal services to Gembrook were withdrawn in 1953 when a landslide near Selby caused the closure of the line.

A reprieve for the railway came in 1954 with the formation of the Puffing Billy Preservation Society, a non-profit organization whose aim is to preserve and operate this unique line as part of our heritage.

Puffing Billy then ran regularly between Upper-Ferntree Gully and Belgrave (the 4-mile section unaffected by the landslide) until 1958, when the extension of the Melbourne electric suburban service to Belgrave curtailed operations.

Determined that the little train would not be lost, the Society undertook to restore the narrow gauge beyond Belgrave. This labour of love by many people brought about the triumphant reopening of the line as far as Menzies Creek in 1962, and the extension to Emerald some three years later.

The locomotives used on the Puffing Billy line are the Narrow Gauge "A" (NA) Class of the V.R. Of the original l7 locomotives, only six remain to run Puffing Billy.

Top to Bottom: Puffing Billy NA Class Locomotives - 3A, 6A, 7A, 8A, 12A, 14A

THE BEECHIE:

In an attempt to reduce train miles on the Colac-Beech Forest-Crowes and Moe-Walhalla lines where traffic was particularly heavy, two Garratt engines (G41 and G42) were purchased in 1926 from the firm of Beyer Peacock & Co., Manchester, England. These were considerably bigger than the NAs and were capable of hauling twice the load.

After their introduction, these engines took over most of the duties on their two lines until 1954 when, with the closure of the line between Moe and Erica, G42 was transferred to Colac.

Unlike the Gembrook line, the Beech Forest line was not close to a large centre of population, so the Beechie was never fated to become a thriving tourist line. In the final years of operation, many rail fan excursions were run but these are hot sufficient to keep a railway operating, and on the 30th June, 1952, a tired G42 pulled the last train into Colac, closing the door on the last genuine operating narrow gauge line in the state.

The G42 was displayed at the Puffing Billy Preservation Society's museum at Menzies Creek until 1977 until transferred to Belgrave, where restoration to operation began in earnest in the late 1980's. As a quirk of ferroequinology history, Australian Portland Cement at Fyansford had also selected the WAGR Ms-class design for their locomotive needs. The boiler of their No.1 had been saved by the PBPS and was overhauled and fitted to G 42 during its rebuilding. G 42's original boiler is now displayed at Menzies Creek Museum.

After a very thorough and expensive restoration, G 42 was returned to service on 11 March 2004 when she moved under her own steam for the first time in 42 years. Today G 42 continues to satisfy its original design brief by eliminating double-heading of the NA locomotives on Puffing Billy's heaviest weekend trains.

For more information regarding Puffing Billy and its train services and tourist activities on offer, take a look at their website

Puffing Billy Locomotive 7NA

Side One: Storylines

1. Before the journey we hear the characteristic beat of the air compressor as Puffing Billy engine 7NA approaches the train. The fireman releases the air in the train line, there is a crash of couplers and the engine is on the train. Oil and hot water bubble on the compressor as the air hose is connected and the cock opened. Compressor beats rapidly speed up as it charges the Westinghouse air brakes before the train starts on the downgrade out of Belgrave.

2. Our journey begins! From Belgrave platform the compressor is heard in the background. The train departure announcement is made over the P.A. system, bell rings, guard whistles, engine whistles and the train rumbles out of the platform. As the sound of the air pump fades into the distance, a whistle echoes in the hills.

3. A whistle and a long echo announce the train's approach to Selby where it makes a brief stop. Another whistle (with echo) and the exhaust blasts reverbarate across the valley as the engine stamps out of the station and passes into the distance.

4. The train is heard as it approaches the landslide site, rolling up to the 2-chain radius curve, creaking around it and then puffing gently to a halt on the straight deviation. The stop is made to allow Sociely ticket examiners to change cars. This done, the guard whistles, engine replies then blasts around a 2 1/2-chain curve, car flanges screaming their protest against the rail. As the last cars pass, the engine finds a "greasy" patch of rail, slips, recovers, and then the train disappears round a bend as another whistle echoes trom hill to hill.

Side Two: Storylines

1. Engine No. 7NA approaches through the forest near belgrave. Weeds and Eucalyptus oil on the rails cause the engine to slip madly but the driver quickly makes a perfect recovery and the train passes up the grade with little loss of momentum.

2. Back on Belgrave platform, we listen to Puffing Billy returning. The train slowly climbs the 1 in 4O grade into the platform and stops. As happy passengers leave the carriages, the P.A. system sounds forth with connecting train information.

"Beechie"

GARRATT  ENGINE G42 (THE BEECHIE)

3. On a wet, cold and windy Wednesday (9/5/62) we overtake G42 on the weekly goods train to Beech Forest and pace it by car. Suddenly one of the engine units slips and the safety value blows off with its characteristic high-pitched whistle.

4. Near McDevitt on a 1 to 30 grade, G42 finds that the combination of wet rail, wet sand, 2-chain radius curves and a load of about 70 tons makes thye going heavy and slips every few feet, first one engine unit, then the other. Steam shrouds the engine, leaking at every available home and joint. Eventually the traion had to be divided.

5. With the sound of the the timber mill and magpies in the background, the train is heard approaching Beech Forest station. As it passes our microphone, a flat wheel on one of the wagons clunks by.

This month's WOCK of Vinyl post is yet again another Obscure post due to the rarity of the recordings but also ticks the O box for the two OP Shops I sourced them from [both on the same day]. What are the Odds folks?  

"The Puffying Billy Song" is ripped to FLAC while the "Whistles In The Hills" was ripped to MP3 (non-music content) with some de-clickling applied.  EP Cover artwork and label scans included.

Thanks to the Puffying Billy Website for all locomotive photos displayed in this post.

Puffying Billy EP's Link (85Mb)