The tapes contain recordings of stories, songs, and vocabularies in a number of North Queensland languages and English. The following descriptions are taken from notes in Norman B Tindale's hand on the tape boxes. The 'AS' identification numbers listed below refer to the 'S. A. Museum Speech and Sound Collections' register (AA 338/12/4), a document compiled by Tindale for research purposes in 1964. It is possible to consult the 'S. A. Museum Speech and Sound Collections' register and find a link to relevant pages in Tindale's journals where fuller descriptions are often found.

Recordings are as Follows:

1. 'Recorded at Palm Island (Qld) by Jack Doolan, rec[eive]d March 1964.
   Kandju Tribe No.1 by 'Friday' Bush of Kandju Tribe, Coen District [..]. Bandicoot & Rat Story & stealing of fire; Eaglehawk (Monpia) Story & how he became black; Rat and mouse searching for water; how a young man gets a wife; long disertation in Kandju; long text in English [AS 681]. Song by Friday Bush with grunts at end of each & [..] asking son in law for food. 5 verses. Continued on tape 2 [AS 682]'.
   [CD 1. Tracks 1-5. Tape No. 9621; TT77; P. Is. Doolan 1; AS 681-682]
   
   
2. 'Recorded at Palm Island (Qld) by Jack Doolan, rec[eive]d March 1964.
   Kandju Tribe No.2. Friday & Bob continuation of Friday's song from No.1 [AS 682 cont.].
   Long statement in Kandju about old people asking younger ones for food, old man & crippled wife; English version of above; Jack Doolan's explanation of the above sequence [AS 683]. 'Bob Robertson of Kandju Tribe: story of attack on his people when he was a boy; English version. Father speared at dawn. Surrendered mother & sister [AS 684]'.
   [CD 2. Tracks 1-8. Tape No. 9621; TT77 & Tape No. 9622: TT78; P. Is. Doolan 2; AS 682-683]
   
   
3. 'Recorded at Palm Island Qld by Jack Doolan, rec[eive]d March 1964.
   Kandju Tribe No.3. Bob Robertson Kandju Tribe tells story of a day hunting with his father; same in English. Speared plain turkey, next day emu went too far, killed emu. Men came from Archer River but father killed one of them. Exhausted (= drunk) but recovered by next day. Mari = black men. Bob on vocabulary of above text. Bob's analysis of Friday's mode of speech as a part [..]; Aiabatu man (his father was Aiabatu). Vocabulary based on list in No 20 of Harvard-Adel. Univ Expd. (Harvard and Adelaide Universities Board for Anthropological Research Expedition: see AA 346) from same man in 1938. Bob used different words in 8 out of the first 26 words. At least 6 show differences; at 3 are due to faulty transcription on my part in 1938 [AS 685]'.
   [CD 3. Tracks 1-5. Tape No. 9622; TT78; P. Is. Doolan 3; AS 685]
   
   
4. 'Recorded at Palm Island Qld by Jack Doolan, rec[eive]d March 1963.
   Kandju Tribe No.4. Vocab Bob Robertson, Kandju Tribe [AS 686]'.
   [CD 4. Tracks 1-5. Tape No. 9622; TT78 & Tape No. 9623; TT79; P. Is. Doolan 4; AS 686]
   
   
5. 'Recorded at Palm Island Qld by Jack Doolan, rec[eive]d March 1963.
   Kandju Tribe No.5. Bob Robertson [AS 687]'. Note the 'Transcription Tapes' are out of sequence.
   [CD 5. Tracks 1-3. Tape No. 9624AB; TT81; P. Is. Doolan 5; AS 687]
   
   
6. 'Recorded at Palm Island Qld by Jack Doolan, rec[eive]d March 1963.
   Kandju Tribe No.6. (Part only used) Bob [AS 688]'.
   [CD 6. Tracks 1-2. Tape No. 9624; TT81; P. Is. Doolan 6; AS 688]
   
   
7. 'Palm I. Qu. Jack Doolan recorder. July 1963.
   Bob Robertson of Kandju tribe: kinship terms; verbs; spears, names of; counting 1-5; check of N.B. Tindale's 1938 vocabularies [AS 689]'.
   [CD 7. Tracks 1-3. Tape No. 9623; TT79; P. Is. Doolan (7)GK; AS 689]
   
   
8. 'Palm I. Series recorded by J. Doolan for N.B. Tindale, 30 Aug. 1963.
   George Watson (ŋidja nn.) of Jordan Creek, QLD. Ma:mu burial custom [AS 693]; names of native cutting implements [AS 694]; English version of burial custom (part 1) [AS 695]'.
   [CD 8. Tracks 1-8. Tape No. 9623; TT79 & Tape No. 9624; TT80; P. Is. Doolan (8) & GK; AS 693-695]
   
   
9. 'Palm Island Series recorded by J. Doolan for N.B. Tindale. 30 Aug. 1963.
   Ma:mu. George Watson (ŋidja nn.). Second part of English version of Ma:mu burial custom following death of a chief [AS 696]; story of two brothers [AS 697]'.
   [CD 9. Tracks 1-6. Tape No. 9624; TT80 & Tape No. 9624AB; TT81; P. Is. Doolan (9)GK; AS 696-697]
   
   
10. 'Palm Island Series recorded by J. Doolan for N.B. Tindale. 30 Aug. 1963.
    Ma:mu George Watson [ŋiidja) of Jordan Ck. Qu. (a) story of two brothers (completion) [AS 698] (b) story of how adjacent islands originated [AS 699] (c) story of red clay [AS 700] (d) love song Ma:mu [AS 701] (e) love song Djiru [AS 702] (f) fencing song Djiru. '[Love song Ma:mu] seems to be same song as sung to me earlier' [AS 703]'. Note Tracks 1-3 is a repeat of CD 9. Tracks 5-6. Completion of the story of two brothers commence on Track 4.
    [CD 10. Tracks 1-9. Tape No. 9624AB; TT81; AS 689-703]
    
    
11. 'Palm Island Series rec[eive]d, 30 Aug. 1964
    George Watson (Ngidja) Ma:mu. Story of hot springs on Herbert River and the turtle [badjigal] [AS 706]; Story of birds stealing fire in Ma:mu, Ngidja (George Watson); version in English [..] continued next reel [AS 707]'.
    [CD 11. Tracks 1-5. Tape No. 9672; TT130; Palm I. 1/64; AS 706-707]
    
    
12. 'Palm Island Series rec[eive]d, 30 Aug. 1964.
    George Watson (Ngidja) Ma:mu. Continuation of story of Birds stealing fire from the Rainbow [AS 707, 2nd part]; story of the Mouse stealing the water from the Blue Tongue Lizard [AS 708]; story of Father and four sons on Hinchinbrook Is., Ma:mu version [AS 709]'.
    [CD 12. Tracks 1-7. Tape No. 9672AB; TT130 & Tape No. 9673; TT131; Palm I. 2/64; AS 707-709]
    
    
13. 'Palm Island Series rec[eive]d, 30 Aug. 1964.
    Ma:mu. Ngidja (George Watson). Continuation of story of Rock on Hinchinbrook Is., Father & 4 sons [AS 709, part 2]. English version is completed on next reel.'
    [CD 13. Tracks 1-3. Tape No. 9673; TT131; Palm I. 3/64; AS 709]
    
    
14. 'Palm Island Series, Jack Doolan recording.
    ŋidja (George Watson). Continuation of story of rock on Hinchinbrook Is., Father & 4 sons. English version continued and concluded [AS 709, part 3]. Story of man who killed a woman [AS 710]; short message from Jack Doolan to NBT. Indicates he has tapes & is continuing collections.
    [CD 14. Tracks 1-5. Tape No. 9673; TT131 & Tape No. 9674; TT132; Palm I. 4/64; AS 709-710]
    
    
15. 'Palm Island Series recorded by Jack Doolan.'
    Copy of story of father and four sons on Hinchinbrook I. by Ngidja, George Watson, Ma:mu Tribe. 1 x 3 inch reel.
    [This tape has not been transferred to CD]
    
    
    
16. 'Palm Island, J. Doolan. Informant George Watson Ma:mu.
    Story of Lakes Eacham and Barrine, by George Watson (Ngidja), Ma:mu Tribe. [AS 715, part 1]. Recorded by J. Doolan.'
    [CD 16. Tracks 1-5. Tape No. 9674; TT132; Palm I. 5/64; AS 715]
    
    
17. 'Palm Island, J. Doolan. Informant George Watson Ma:mu.
    George Watson (Ngidja). Lakes Eacham & Barrine continued [AS 715, part 2]; short song (Djiru) sung in Ma:mu language [AS 716]. Recorded by J. Doolan.'
    [CD 17. Tracks 1-7. Tape No. 9674; TT132 & Tape No. 9675; TT133; Palm I. 6/64; AS 715-716]
    
    
18. 'Palm Island, J. Doolan. Informant George Watson.
    Ma:mu, George Watson (Ngidja). Story of Ma:mu (Wardibara) man who was a cannibal and lived in a cave on the upper Innisfail River, N. Queensland, by George Watson (Ngidja) [AS 717, part 1]. Recorded by J. Doolan.'
    [CD 18. Tracks 1-3. Tape No. 9675; TT133; Palm I. 7/64; AS 717]
    
    
19. 'Palm Island, J. Doolan. Informant George Watson.
    Continuation of story of cannibal who lived in a cave on Innisfail River [As 717 part 2], informant George Watson, recorded by J. Doolan. Gidjia story. Man who found that his brother was committing adultery with his two wives. Djirbal story told in Ma:mu language by George Watson [AS 718, 1st part]'.
    [CD 19. Tracks 1-8. Tape No. 9675; TT133 & Tape No. 9676; TT134; Palm I. 8/64; AS 717-718]
    
    
20. 'Palm Island, J. Doolan. Informant George Watson Ma:mu.
    English version of Gidjia story. Djirubal story told in Ma:mu language by George Watson (Ngidja) [AS 718, part 2]; message from George Watson to N.B. Tindale introducing his brother Toby [AS 719]'.
    [CD 20. Tracks 1-4. Tape No. 9676; TT134; Palm I. 9/64; AS 718-719]