This week I’ll be continuing with my A-Z Challenge of 1980s music and this week is brought to you by the letter M. The letter M gets a big ‘Yay!’ from me, because I’ll be talking about my favourite band – Midnight Oil.
I became a fan back in the early 1980s when I was in High School (*cough*) and bought practically every album. Even though they were my favourite, I never did get to see them live, so I was stoked to hear the announcement earlier this year of them reforming and doing tours. I was anxious to get hold of a ticket to see them at their Sydney concert and I was fortunate to become a ticket holder. So, hubby and I will be going to Sydney in November to see them live and as it’s the time of my birthday, it will be the best birthday present ever! 🙂
Formed in 1975, Midnight Oil were a pub band; mainly playing in Narrabeen in Sydney’s northern beaches. Despite receiving next to no commercial radio support, their first album, released in 1978, made it in the Australian Top 50. By the time of the release of their third album, the pub rock scene was at its height and Midnight Oil were playing to packed houses. Released in 1982, Midnight Oil’s next album 10,9,8,7,6,5,4,3,2,1 became a huge success in Australia and stayed in the charts in excess of 200 weeks. By this time Midnight Oil were well known for their support of environmental and social justice issues.
In 1986, they toured the Australian outback with the Warumpi band, which became known as the ‘Blackfella/Whitefella’ tour. The release of their album Diesel and Dust in 1987 gave them international recognition. Midnight Oil would tour the United States, and in 1990 played outside the Exxon office in New York in order to draw attention to the environmental disaster caused by the oil tanker Exxon Valdez. In 2000, the band performed at the closing ceremony of the Sydney Olympic Games with the word ‘Sorry’ emblazoned across their clothing, in reference to the Stolen Generation.
The band officially disbanded in 2002 when lead singer, Peter Garrett, announced his departure to pursue a career in politics. Since then, Midnight Oil has remained a cultural icon. ‘Power and the Passion’ and ‘Beds are Burning’ were listed in the Top 30 Best Australian songs of all time; the band has won 11 ARIA (Australian Recording Industry Association) Awards and has been inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame.
Other bands formed or who had hits in the 1980s starting with the letter M include:- Men at Work, (The) Models, Machinations, Mental as Anything, Mondo Rock, Madness, Moving Pictures.
Do you have a favourite band that you have never seen? What other bands of the 1980s that begin with the letter M can you think of?
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