Ends of the Earth
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"Ends of the Earth" is a Longest Johns original written by Robbie Sattin, detailing some of the horrors faced by 19th century British convicts transported to Australia. It was the first single released from the 2026 album of the same name, with a music video posted to YouTube on 25 March 2026 and the song released to streaming services two days later.
Between 1788 and 1868, the British government sentenced around 162,000 convicts to transportation to Australia. The most common crime was simple larceny — that is, theft of goods worth one shilling or less — for which the sentence was seven years. More serious or repeated offenses could earn longer terms, up to life. Convicts were assigned to work for free settlers or retained by the government directly for public projects; while some educated or skilled workers were employed as record-keepers or in their original trades, many others were set to factory work or agricultural labor. Although transportation was seen as a more humane alternative to capital punishment, the work could be grueling and convicts often faced deplorable treatment and conditions. Good behavior could sometimes earn a Ticket of Leave (a predecessor to modern systems of parole) or other form of early release; however, no provision was made for return passage, so many transportees, by choice or necessity, went on to settle in Australia permanently. This labor force and influx of population played a key role in Britain's early colonization of the continent.[1]
Factoids
Van Diemen's Land was the colonial name for Tasmania, named for Anthony van Diemen, the Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies who sponsored the 1642 voyage that first brought Europeans to the island. In the 19th century, its name became synonymous with the particularly brutal penal settlements it hosted.[2]
Salt horse was slang for meat, usually beef, preserved with so much salt as to be practically unidentifiable, such that it could just as easily have been horse meat or some equally unappetizing alternative.[3]
A hulk is a ship no longer fit for seagoing use converted to house prisoners. Convicts were often housed in such hulks while awaiting transportation.[4]
Robbie mentioned during the album launch listening party that the inspiration for this song came from a book called The Fatal Shore, about the British colonization of Australia and convict transportation system.
Lyrics
Very kindly provided by the band.
I stole some white linen, you took some old bread
When prisons are busting where can you be sent?
Overseas, overseas, down to Van Diemen's Land
We beg to return from this blood sodden sand
No more we will wander the valleys and dales
For under the red and white whip we did sail
No country beneath us to bear our despair
And seven long years is a curse and a snare
{Chorus}
Oh no, where must we go?
Cast to the winds off into the unknown
Oh no, pray for our souls
When it's down, down, down
To the ends of the earth we are bound
The salt horse is rancid, the bread it is grim
Take what you can 'fore the maggots get in
And what of the brew? Well, our barrel runs dry
And half way from Rio it's hard to come by
{Chorus}
Have some class
The gin-soaked, shivering mass
Will lead the advance
Cut from the roots, discarded at last
All together (Lost and sold for George's gold)
Rattle and bang on your chains (As a cog of conquest I've been told)
For down in the terror we rot together (Taken from the hulks of London away)
Slaves, rats and beggars forever sing (To carve a brand new world)
{Chorus 2x}
To the ends of the earth we are bound