Gurrumul is the debut solo album for Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu. It is performed in a mixture of both Yolngu and English. The album has received praise for connecting on a deeply emotional level, as it tells the story of a persecuted people group (aboriginal Australians) as well as the singer's own suffering with both racial persecution and his visual impairment.
It reached number three on the ARIA charts,The ARIA Report issue 1021 won ARIA awards for Best World Music AlbumSBS news Arnhem Land's Gurrumul wins ARIA award and Best Independent ReleaseNews.com.au 2008 Aria Award Winners and won a Deadly for Album of the Year. The track "Gurrumul History (I Was Born Blind)" also won a Deadly for Single of the Year.Northern Territory News Gurrumul Deadly at Awards
The album reached 3× Platinum sales in excess of 210,000. In October 2010, it was listed in the top 30 in the book, 100 Best Australian Albums. On November 23, 2012, the album was certified Silver in the United Kingdom for sales of 60,000 copies. It is the best-selling Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander music album in Australian history, launching Yunupingu's international solo career and establishing him as one of Australia's most significant musical artists.
In 2018, the album was inducted into the National Film and Sound Archive's Sounds of Australia collection of historic recordings, the first recording selected in its first year of eligibility. In December 2021, the album was listed at no. 20 in Rolling Stone Australia’s ‘200 Greatest Albums of All Time’ countdown.Rolling Stone’s 200 Greatest Australian Albums of All Time. Rolling Stone Australia, Rolling Stone Australia, 06 December 2021. Retrieved 06 December 2021.
Track listing All tracks written by Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu.
Charts
Weekly charts Chart (2008–09)Peakposition
Year-end charts Chart (2008)Position Australian Albums (ARIA) 21 Australian Artist Albums (ARIA) 5
Chart (2009)Position Australian Albums (ARIA) 53 Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade) 92
Certifications
References