Nursery rhyme riff worth 5 percent of `` Down Under '' royalties . ` ` Kookaburra '' is a popular nursery rhyme in Australia . `` Down Under '' was composed and performed by Men at Work founding member Colin Hay in 1978 . It's about an Australian bird that sings and dances to the tune of its own song, but it doesn't sing very well because he has no voice at all. `` Down Under '' reached No . 1 in Australia , the U.S. , Britain and Canada .
Nursery rhyme riff worth 5 percent of `` Down Under '' royalties . ` ` Kookaburra '' is a popular nursery rhyme in Australia . It's about an Australian bird that sings and dances to the tune of its own song, but it doesn't sing very well because he has no voice at all. `` Down Under '' reached No . 1 in Australia , the U.S. , Britain and Canada .