Midnight Oil – Diesel And Dust (1987)

“The time has come/To say fair’s fair/To pay the rent/To pay our share/The time has come/A fact’s a fact/It belongs to them/Let’s give it back/How can we dance when our earth is turning/How do we sleep while our beds are burning”. Well, if you didn’t sung this song ever, if you don’t memorized this lyrics long time ago, really man, where do you lived? And even if we’re in 2011 everything is still goddamn actual. I can go further with “Put down that weapon or we’ll all be gone/You can’t hide nowhere with the torchlight on/And it happens to be an emergency/Some things aren’t meant to be/Some things don’t come for free” or “Your dreamworld is just about to end” and Peter Garrett seems to had back than a magic crystal ball.
It’s not fair, rather productive, to compare an apple to a kiwi, neither one band to another, but Midnight Oil was always what R.E.M. never could and never will be. If the uncertain label of “politically correct” is really applicable for any band, I would name Midnight Oil without any hesitation. And they were “Rockly correct” as well.Formed as Farm in Sydney in 1972 by drummer Rob Hirst, bass guitarist Andrew James and keyboard player/lead guitarist Jim Moginie, Peter Garrett joined the band in 1975 by answering an advert. It was in 1976 when they switch their name from Farm to Midnight Oil and one year later joined guitarist Martin Rotsey. A major contribution for the band career had manager Gary Morris who was able to negotiate favorable contracts with tour promoters and record companies, but also had a good relation with many journalists.
Their debuted with album “Midnight Oil” in 1978, but the major breakthrough came with thir fifth album “10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1” in 1982 and from this point all of their albums were top ten products in the Australian Top. “Ten-to-one” It’s also notable for staying on the Australian album charts for over 100 weeks.
“Diesel and Dust” was their number eight studio album released in August 1987, produced by Warne Livesey and the band. Because the line “shit falls like rain on a land that is brown” from the song “Gunbarrel Highway”, this track it was excluded from the U.S. version, so the American version was cut 3:38 minutes shorter. 😀

Full track list (46.37 minutes)

“Beds Are Burning” (Rob Hirst, James Moginie, Peter Garrett) – 4:14
“Put Down That Weapon” (Moginie, Hirst, Garrett) – 4:38
“Dreamworld” (Moginie, Garrett, Hirst) – 3:36
“Arctic World” (Moginie, Garrett) – 4:21
“Warakurna” (Moginie) – 4:38
“The Dead Heart” (Hirst, Moginie, Garrett) – 5:10
“Whoah” (Moginie, Garrett) – 3:50
“Bullroarer” (Hirst, Moginie, Garrett) – 4:59
“Sell My Soul” (Moginie, Garrett) – 3:35
“Sometimes” (Moginie, Garrett, Hirst) – 3:53
“Gunbarrel Highway” (Midnight Oil) – 3:38

The facts are facts. “Diesel and Dust” peaked at No. 1 on the Australian albums charts for six weeks, No. 21 on the Billboard 200 charts in 1988, and No. 19 on the UK albums charts. “Beds Are Burning” was their biggest international hit single peaking at No. 6 in Australia, No. 17 on the Billboard Hot 100, No. 6 on the UK singles charts. “The Dead Heart” peaked at No. 6 in Australia, it charted on the Hot 100[28] and in the UK. “Put Down that Weapon” also charted in Australia, while “Dreamworld” charted on Billboard’s Mainstream Rock Tracks and at No. 16 on its Modern Rock Tracks.
The lyrics of “The Dead Heart” tell the story of colonization from an indigenous point of view but some critics felt they reinforced the “primitive” stereotype. Use of the bullroarer was criticized as belonging to sacred rituals not rock songs. “The Dead Heart” had been written in response to a request by organizers of the 1985 ceremony to return control of Uluru to its indigenous caretakers. Midnight Oil had originally resisted adding an indigenous group to a concert bill, however the organizers insisted, arguing that the band would reach a wider audience within the predominantly Caucasian urban centers. Midnight Oil requested that all royalties from the song go to indigenous communities. In addition, two indigenous groups, Warumpi Band and Gondwanaland, toured with them.
Following the 1988 American tour in support of Diesel and Dust with Australian band Yothu Yindi, Midnight Oil launched the “Burning Bridges” album with various artists contributing including Paul Kelly, Scrap Metal, Coloured Stone, Hunters & Collectors, James Reyne, The Saints, Crowded House, INXS and Yothu Yindi. All sales proceeds were donated to the National Coalition of Aboriginal Organizations.

“Diesel And Dust” is an important piece of Rock History, songs like “Beds Are Burning”, “Put Down That Weapon”,”Dreamworld”, “Arctic World”, “Warakurna”, “The Dead Heart” , “Whoah”, “Bullroarer” or “Sell My Soul” are unerasable from somebody’s ears after you heard them once.

Unfortunately Garrett announced his decision to quit Midnight Oil on 2 December 2002, to refocus on his political career. He won the seat of Kingsford Smith at the 2004 General Election for the Australian Labor Party and was selected as Shadow Minister for Climate Change, Environment, Heritage and the Arts. On Thursday, 29 November 2007, Prime Minister elect, the Hon Kevin Rudd MP, named Garrett as Minister for the Environment, Heritage and the Arts.
The other members of the band continued to work together but not under the Midnight Oil name, bringing the band’s career to a close.

On 14 March 2009, a reformed Midnight Oil, with Garrett returning to the microphone, headlined the Sound Relief concert in Melbourne. In a Channel V interview prior to the Sound Relief concert, Hirst joked that he wished Midnight Oil could reform for reasons other than a natural disaster.

So, the story may goes on. 🙂

Midnight Oil – Official Site