Midnight Oil are an Australian rock band composed of Peter Garrett, Rob Hirst (drums), Jim Moginie and Martin Rotsey (guitar). The group was formed in Sydney in 1972 by Hirst, Moginie and original bassist Andrew James as Farm: they enlisted Garrett the following year, changed their name in 1976, and hired Rotsey a year later. Peter Gifford served as bass player from 1980 to 1987, with Bones Hillman then assuming the role until his death in 2020. Midnight Oil have sold over 20 million albums worldwide as of 2021.
Diesel and Dust is the sixth studio album by Australian rock band Midnight Oil, released in August 1987 by SPRINT Music label under Columbia Records. Diesel and Dust was produced by Warne Livesey and the band. It is a concept album about the struggles of Indigenous Australians and environmental causes, issues important to the band. It drew inspiration from the Blackfella/Whitefella Tour of remote Indigenous communities with the Warumpi Band and Gondwanaland in 1986. The album peaked at No. 1 on the Australian Kent Music Report Albums Chart for six weeks.
Grinspoon are an Australian rock band from Lismore, New South Wales, formed in 1995 and fronted by Phil Jamieson on vocals and guitar with Pat Davern on guitar, Joe Hansen on bass guitar and Kristian Hopes on drums. Also in 1995, Grinspoon won the Triple J-sponsored Unearthed competition for Lismore, with their post-grunge song "Sickfest". The name "Grinspoon" was taken from Dr. Lester Grinspoon, an associate professor emeritus of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, who supported marijuana for medical use.
Icehouse are an Australian rock band, formed in Sydney in 1977 as Flowers. Initially known in their homeland for their pub rock style, the band later achieved mainstream success playing new wave and synth-pop music and attained Top 10 singles chart success locally and in both Europe and the U.S. The mainstay of both Flowers and Icehouse has been Iva Davies supplying additional musicians as required. The name "Icehouse", adopted in 1981, comes from an old, cold flat Davies lived in and the strange building across the road populated by itinerant people.
Bernard Joseph Fanning is an Australian musician and singer-songwriter. He was the lead vocalist of Queensland alternative rock band Powderfinger from its formation in 1989.
"Cold Hard Bitch" is a song by Australian rock band Jet, released as the fourth single from their 2003 debut album, Get Born. The song was written by band members Chris Cester, Nic Cester, and Cameron Muncey. Heavily inspired by prior heavy bands such as AC/DC, the song is one of the heaviest in the group's catalog, being a tough hard rock tune with a simplistic chord structure.
"Look What You've Done" is a song by Australian rock band Jet, released on 8 March 2004 as the third international and fourth US single from their debut studio album, Get Born (2003). The single was initially issued in the United Kingdom in March before being released in Australia the following month. In the United States, it was serviced to rock radio formats in October 2004.
20,000 Watt R.S.L. is a compilation album by Australian rock band Midnight Oil released on 13 October 1997 on their own label Sprint Music. The word "Collection" appears on the front of the CD along the hinge in the same type face as the title and the name of the band and may have been intended as part of the album's title; however, it does not appear on the spine. The release has also been distributed inside a cardboard sleeve which adds "Midnight Oil: The Hits" to the album art, distinguishing it as a compilation album.
The Cloudland Dance Hall, originally called Luna Park, was a famous entertainment venue located in Bowen Hills, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It was demolished in 1982 and the site was subsequently developed into an apartment complex.
"Burden in My Hand" is a song by the American rock band Soundgarden. Written by frontman Chris Cornell, "Burden in My Hand" was released on September 18, 1996, as the second single from the band's fifth studio album, Down on the Upside (1996). The song topped the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, where it spent five weeks at number one. The song was included on Soundgarden's 1997 greatest hits album, A-Sides.
"Bleed It Out" is a song by American rock band Linkin Park. The song was released as the second single from their third studio album, Minutes to Midnight. The single was released on August 17, 2007.
"Power and the Passion" is the second single from Midnight Oil's 1982 album 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. The song is one of the band's most famous, and it was performed on every Midnight Oil tour since the issue of 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 as well as at the WaveAid concert.
APRA's Top 30 Australian songs was a list created by the Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) in 2001, to celebrate its 75th anniversary. A panel of 100 music personalities were asked to list the "ten best and most significant Australian songs of the past 75 years". The top ten songs, in numerical order, were announced on 28 May 2001 at the APRA Awards. The next twenty were not ordered and had been released nearly four weeks earlier, on 2 May, in a media statement by APRA representative Debbie Kruger.
"The Dead Heart" is a song by Australian rock band Midnight Oil. It was first released as a single in Australia in 1986 and in the United Kingdom and the United States in 1988 after it had been included on the 1987 album, Diesel and Dust. It peaked at number four on the Australian singles chart and at number 11 on the U.S. Mainstream rock chart.
"Rock 'n' Roll Train" is a song by Australian rock band AC/DC. It is the first track on the album Black Ice to receive radio airplay. The band released a 7-inch vinyl single that featured the song "Rock 'n' Roll Train" on Side A, and "War Machine" on Side B. The 7-inch single came in a sleeve with its own unique artwork. The 7-inch vinyl was also made available in the United States through some independent record shops.
"Blue Sky Mine" is a song by Australian rock band Midnight Oil, released in February 1990 as the first single from their seventh studio album, Blue Sky Mining (1990). The song was inspired by the experiences of workers at the Wittenoom asbestos mines who contracted various asbestos-related diseases. The "blue" refers to blue asbestos, and the "sugar refining company" mentioned in the lyrics refers to the Colonial Sugar Refining Company Ltd, the owner of the mines.
The discography of Australian rock group Midnight Oil consists of thirteen studio albums, forty-three singles, two EPs, five video albums, seven live albums, and six compilation albums. The band have sold over 20 million albums.
"Put Down That Weapon" is a song by Australian rock band Midnight Oil. The song was released in December 1987 as the third single from their sixth studio album, Diesel and Dust.
"Forgotten Years" is a song by Australian rock band Midnight Oil, released in April 1990 as the second single from their seventh studio album, Blue Sky Mining (1990). The song peaked at No. 26 on the Australian Singles Chart, No. 1 on the US Billboard Modern Rock Chart and No. 11 on the Billboard Album Rock Chart.
"King of the Mountain" is a song by Australian rock band Midnight Oil, released in 1990 as the third single from their seventh studio album, Blue Sky Mining (1990). It peaked at No. 25 on the Australian Singles Chart, No. 3 on the US Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart, and No. 20 on the Billboard Album Rock Tracks chart.
