Classical Composer Reaction/Analysis to MIDNIGHT OIL: Beds Are Burning | The Daily Doug (Ep. 592) 

It makes me incredibly happy as an indigenous person myself to see people talking about songs like this and being positive, great video

The Trombonist and French Horn player were borrowed from fellow Aussie band Hunters and Collectors for the session.

Fun fact about Midnight Oil's lead singer, Peter Garrett - he actually ended up getting elected to Australian Parliament, and served as an MP for the Labor party for 9 years, and even carried the portfolios of Environment and Education Minister at separate times. He's a man who has made many immovable contributions to Australian society, art and culture.

Peter Garrett was possibly the most energetic Frontman I've had the pleasure to see live - and I've seen many, although few who were 6' 4" 😊

Midnight Oil was one of the best bands I’ve ever seen live, Peter Garrett’s energy on stage is just electrifying. You should do more songs by them as they have many great songs.

Crowded House looms....... Neil Finn is a legendary songsmith .Doug would like everything he's ever written.

Thanks for showing love to us Aussies 👍 Great reaction Doug.

The Church's Under the Milky Way is my favorite Australian rock song, and would be an excellent addition to your library of great choices.

This song was banned in my home country, South Africa, because the lyrics also applied to the situation in the country. Midnight Oil subsequently toured SA. If. I'm not mistaken, Peter Garrett went into politics.

One of the great bands of the last 45 years. Absolutely kinetic on stage in the 80s. Intriguing and creative musical arrangements, and powerful lyrics calling us all to change the world for the better. Peter Garrett was absolutely riveting on stage. I always say Midnight Oil was everything The Clash ever hoped to be. And yes---they did tour with some live brass instruments on some of their tours.

Midnight Oil were obviously huge in Australia well before "Beds are burning". Their album "10,9,8,7,6,5,4,3,2,1" was so unique and completely different to anything else on the charts at the time. It was truly ground breaking music.

Terence here from South Africa, showing big love to our Australian peeps...love Midnight Oil, love the Diesel and Dust album, the songs are incredible...especially (and my best) Dreamworld, Warakurna, Bullroarer is outstanding....very deep, emotional and meaningful songs!!!

I'm an American who came across Diesel and Dust when it came out. A few years later I happened to catch them in concert at a small outdoor amphitheater in Townsville, Australia. I was mesmerized and this was definitely one of the best concerts I have ever seen. No fancy light show, just a group of extremely talented musicians playing a very tight set with charismatic Peter Garret dancing in his oddly animated, energetic style. This band was born to play live. Australians told me to buy their previous CD, "10,9,8,7,6,5,4,3,2,1" which is absolutely amazing.

This is such a great song. Interesting and unique voice. One of the great choruses of the 80s.

If you want another band from Australia, I have several: The Models: "I Hear Motion" The Church: "Under the Milky Way" Icehouse: "Great Southern Land"

The Dead Heart is another great Midnight Oil rocker. Their late 80's work was exceptional.

Good one! I was fortunate enough to see Midnight Oil on this tour and the next one, too. They were outstanding live. Tight, energetic, visually captivating, and truly original in their entire performace. They had real horn players standing in the back of an off-road vehicle. The stage presence of the band was incredible.

According to Wikipedia (if you trust them!), there are two horn players and a cellist listed on the album. Glad Reed - trombone John Ockwell - cello Jeremy Smith - French horn

You need to see a live recording for some of their other songs - on stage live they are without out doubt utterly mesmerising and without compare.

On May 30, 1990, Midnight Oil interrupted their North American tour for a “special guerrilla action” outside of Exxon Oil headquarters on the crowded Avenue of the Americas in midtown Manhattan. The agitprop event from the back of a flat-bed truck drew more than 10,000 people out of the nearby office buildings and onto the street. The Oils were responding to one of the worst environmental disasters in US history when 11 million gallons of oil were spilled onto the pristine Alaskan coastline by the Exxon Valdez. Nearly twenty five years on the effects of the spill on the landscapes and wildlife of southern Alaska are still being felt.

Diesel and Dust/Blue Sky Mining...both albums most excellent, front to back!! 🎶 🎵 Great listens!!

The Oils have developed quite a bit over the years and decades. An early song I would recommend is "Head over Heels" from their eponymous first album. Others are "Armistice Day", "Power and the Passion", "Blue Sky Mine", "Bushfire", "We are not afraid".

The whole album is excellent, as is their 1982 banger 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. Great band.

Great to see you checking out one of Australia’s best bands. Their lyrics are their biggest strength. They don’t pull any punches with any political topic they write about. Plenty of other great songs to check out from the Oils. Power and the Passion, Truganini, Read About It, Blue Sky Mine, King of the Mountain, US Forces , Kosciusko , Short Memory etc.

What a welcome surprise! Dreamworld and Blue Sky Mine are also good.

One of my all-time favorite bands! Rising Seas, which is on their latest album and addresses climate change, is well worth a listen. Read About It, The Dead Heart, Blue Sky Mine, Dreamworld, Power and the Passion, Put Down That Weapon, and Best of Worlds are but a handful of outstanding songs from this epic band. Thanks for your reaction!

I love Midnight Oil. Finally got to see them live in London on their farewell tour last year. It was magnificent.

Great to see us Aussie's getting a look in on this channel Doug...cheers m8. I believe (& arguably most "Oil" fans would agree) that their best album was 10,9,8,7,6,5,4,3,2,1. I really think you should do a "Side 1" & "Side 2" review of that album. It's brilliant. Wait until you hear the song - "US Forces". Other Aussie bands to look up are Cold Chisel (song - Bow River). That band & front man Jimmy Barnes was (& still is) legendary, in these parts of the woods. If you like "Led Zeppelin" then listen to the 2000's version of that band called "Wolfmother". They have plenty of hits. The song "Woman" on their 1st & self-titled album is short 'n' sweet but sensational...Try it 1st. There's Heaps of more bands I could mention but if I could leave you with one of my all time favorite aussie songs it would be "It's a long way there", released in the late 1970's by the Little River Band. Fantastic guitaring, harmonies.....just a fun fun song. Take care ;-)

Thank you Doug. Australian fan for a long time. Love your work. Peace to you and all people on earth.

I've recently started singing this at karaoke. What a tune......💌

Great band, this song gets so much recognition, it'd be nice to see another one of their popular songs under review too, maybe "Blue Sky Mine"

The beginning is from the movie “Once upon in the West”. It’s a squeaking windmill

Thank you for reacting to MIdnight OIl. They are brilliant in concert.

Midnight Oil fan of 40 years, best live band I have ever seen, always a message in their music. Great to see someone thoroughly research their subject👍Cheers from🇦🇺

One of the great 80s tunes for many reasons!

Also the band they toured with... Yothu Yindi was fantastic.

This was a great song to dance to back in the day. First those basslines would get your feet going... The lyrics also work in the Native American movement, which reminds me of a wonderful song back in the 1970s: Indian Reservation by Paul Revere and the Raiders. "They took the whole Cherokee Nation... Put us on this reservation... Took away our native tongue... And taught their English to our young..." Those lyrics had a GREAT effect on me when I first heard them as a 9 year-old boy in 1972.

The apotheosis of their live performances (at least as far as RU-vid is concerned) is their “Oils on Water” show; that version of their song “Stand in Line” is one of the fiercest live performances ever recorded.

You need to do Hunters and Collectors. Another iconic Aussie band.

one of the best Auddie tunes & Band. I love to spin the vinyl 45 of this at Festivals here in the U.K. always gets a good reaction. "Blue Sky Mine" is another great tune from them.

a great song with a great groove and meaningful lyrics

Lots of great modern prog bands come from Australia. Caligula's Horse (Doug reacted to Graves), Karnivool, Ne Obliviscaris, Twelve Foot Ninja, Be'lakor. And a band that recently was in the running for 2023 Eurovision title Voyager.

I love this band...I grew up listenning to them. Love this song.

Good Memories on this one, Doug thanks for bringing them back. I've followed, on and off, your channel and it really is a cut above others of the genre. There is one band I'd love to hear your thoughts on and that's Del Amitri, an extremely underrated band in my opinion. Nothing Ever Happens was their big hit, but I think Spit In The Rain is probably a more interesting place to start. Hope you can get to them sometime. Thanks again from a fan in Yorkshire, England.

Went to the same uni at the same time as Peter Garret. What a wild live show they put on back in the '80's, 90's. Can you play their wonderful instrumental, "Wedding cake Island" please Doug. (Wedding cake Island is a bunch of rocks that barely break the surface of the pacific ocean about 120 meters out from Coogee beach, Sydney). Human rights/environmental activists. Champions of the underclass.

Early 80s in Australia was a time of deep debate about Aboriginal tribes' rights, especially land rights. Ayers Rock being the big flashpoint, as it was considered a holy site, IIRC. A lot of artists covered this issue, but the one I'd recommend from a tiny bit earlier was "Solid Rock" by Goanna.

That rhythm you hear is the theme from Peter Gunn.

Great video - I love this group and this album, which came out right as I had graduated from high school. Diesel and Dust might make a good album review. The themes of this song are carried throughout - and the song variety is really great.

Midnight Oil has shown a commitment to social justice, environmental and economic issues throughout much of this career. The album "Earth and Sun and Moon" doesn't hold back.

Ahh, Uncle Doug.... you have arrived at the Oils. One of my favourite tracks. Trivia bit - Pete Garrett completed a law degree but didn't enter the bar. He also served in the Australian parliament for a while as a minister.. The fx you hear at the start and finish, is the noise of a squeaky windmill. Other bands... Cold Chisel, Birds of Tokyo, AC DC, LRB, Powderfinger, Warumpi Band, Alice Skye, Dan Sultan and Huners and Collectors. ... then there are the Kiwi artists...heaps of them...Crowded House, Split Enz, Dragon, Lorde, Jon Stevens... have fun exploring down under. The Oils did have a minor hit in 1980 with the wonderful surf rock number, "Wedding Cake Island".

Another Australian artist I think you would like is Xavier Rudd. He is also heavily into Indigenous peoples rights and is a multi-instrumentalist including playing the didgeridoo and drums at the same time. All his songs are great but Spirit Bird is beautiful with great lyrics. Love your channel, keep it up 👍🏻

Doug, i love what you do since a long time! I'd LOVE to se you react to Soul Sacrifice from Santana Live at Woodstock, come on! It's aweeeesome !

I am a fan of the Oil's earlier albums, specifically 10,9,8,7.... and Red sails in the Sunset. Almost anything off these 2 are fantastic, and show the development of the Oil's. Jimmy Sharmans Boxers off RSITS is a standout.

Amazing song, the message is so strong. And your deep approach to check it out, and bring it to us is another treasure! There is very interesting instrumental Australian trio called Dirty Three. One of a kind, violin player later played a huge role in Nick Cave's works. And of course Nick Cave is also very important Australian artist. :) Thanks a lot for your share in music world, I really love it, your attitude is so inspiring! I'm hooked since the first vid I saw. :)

The Oils were fantastic, but some other incredible Australian bands not to be overlooked (not that they are in our country) are Cold Chisel (Jimmy Barnes/Ian Moss) & The Angels. While INXS are generally well known overseas, we are fortunate to have such have a wealth of talent in this country Love your work Doug. Very much enjoying your channel 👍

I remember seeing this on MTV for the first time, instantly hooked me...the next two albums after this one were very good also...love the oils!!

Midnight Oil are a great band rabbit hole to fall down. Songs like Power and the Passion, Read About It, Pictures, Progress, Put Down That Weapon, Truganini, and My Country are all great, and there's plenty more where that came from.

Hi Doug, thx for all these songs explained by you. I have an old song from the late 60ties. He s one of my alltime favourites. I am from Germany and know the Music from Volker Kriegel very well. Volker Kriegel - Ingfried Hoffmann - Dave Pike 1969 NDR (G) - Slums On Wheels For me one of the best Hammond Solos ever

Thanks Doug, always look forward to your content. Thanks also for showing some love to us Aussies.

The most underrated band of the 1980s. Their musicianship and arranging skills are second to none.

Classic Aussie bands. Prepare for the enslaught of requests.

Love to see a reaction to Australian band The Angels. 😎

Another underrated Australian band from the 80s is Big Pig. Check out their 1987 album "Bonk". It has mostly percussion with synth and harmonica.

Great reaction to a great song

Mate! You're next Australian song should be the studio version of "Am I Ever Gonna See Your Face Again" by The Angels. Then look up a live version and listen to the crowd participation.

This is the song that got me into the Oils, and it hooked me completely. Great arrangements, always. Never a bad album, but this is one of the best.

Thanks to MTV, This song was hot when i was in Junior High. I still love it to this day! Good pick for the day Doug!

Midnight Oil absolutely rules.

the first Australian band I heard, that I know of

It’s wonderful to see you having a listen to the Oils. If I could go so far to recommend something to you, it would be their concert from in 2017 - Armistice Day: Live at The Domain, Sydney. It is powerful! And has the late Bones Hillman right there…

I love watching your reactions. They mirror mine so well, yet are far better-educated.

This song live is the best. The leads on guitar send shivers down the spine❤

Make sure you go see the new doko out in a few weeks/months worldwide - Midnight Oil: The hardest line - just premiered to sell outs at the Sydney Film Festival - in fact it opened the 2-week festival!

Midnight Oil is great! I still listen after all these years. One of those timeless bands whose sound never gets old and outdated.

Oh man, I'm a huge Midnight Oil fan. They have lots of great songs. Go through some of their catalog....

You have to also review “Blue Sky Mine”. Activism in songs - there should be more of this. BTW the “tell” in this song is the phrase “fair is fair” it is very Australian and core to our beliefs of equality and equity for all

another great song of Midnight oil is

Interesting that you react to this great song from the past on the same day that Adam Reader (Professor of Rock) released his deep dive into this song as well.

One of the most underappreciated bands of all time. They deserved to be as big as bands like U2 and REM. Their fourth album, "10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1" (1982), is a total masterpiece. I'm glad I got to see them live in 2017.

For some truly unique Australian music, with composition that will really stretch your understanding, I invite you to listen to the departed genius, Gurrumul. A first nations man from the far North of Australia, Dr Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu was born blind, into a very musical family, with thousands of years of storytelling heritage. Gurrumul, like so many Indigenous Australians, had to develop his music abilities without formal training. He taught himself to play guitar, and played in a family band which garnered success called "Yothu Yindi." But it was following this, as a solo artist, that Gurrumul so generously shared his magical talents with the world. His music is rooted in ancient Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander traditions, his lyrics tell of the Dreamtime, a method of storytelling which invokes the land, creatures, sea & sky. One note - There is an inferior version of one of Gurrumul's songs quite popular on You Tube in a duet with Delta Goodrem, I'd recommend listening to his solo performances with his own musicians or the duet with the sublime Sarah Blasko first.

The horns are provided by a couple of members of Hunters & Collectors. This is a driving, shout-along-a-Pete song, although my own favourite is One Country. I saw them twice, the latter being their last UK concert in UK in July 22.

Their album Earth And Sun And Moon is excellent wall to wall, as well as their album Blue Sky Mining.

Brass has to be real. That would be outrageously accurate for 1987.

Great review mate... cheers from Oz 😊

my brother played this in his truck and now I like it

I remember listening to this song at 4am, in my car, driving to work. On a good day they would play it on Rock FM.

It's not synthesised brass. The horn section, I believe, was the horn section from the band Hunters and Collectors who heavily used horns in their band.

"hearing this makes me want to dive into more music from this band . . " (super awesome, you will not be disappointed) . . . " from other Australian bands" (super duper awesome). #1 with a bullet for me is The Church, awesome two guitar band where the two guitars have actual conversations with each other. Their song "Reptile" is sublime. Also the bands The Hoodoo Gurus, Icehouse, Hunters & Collectors, INXS and yes, Crowded House/Split Enz (those wacky Kiwis from nearby) just to name a few. Soooooo much fabulous music from that region of the world.

One of my favorites from the 80s

The driving guts of the oils left with Peter Gifford

Power and the Passion is a great song by them too… an absolutely dirty sick riff on that one, and a drum solo too

The album before this I really go into: "10,9,8,7,6,5,4,3,2,1"

Professor of Rock has a video on this song and band today. Very informative.

Would highly recommend some songs by Cold Chisel, which never made it to America but had enormous success in their home country. Their main singer Jimmy Barnes remains one of the most popular singers in Australia. Their main songwriter Don Walker is my favorite and has some clever lyrics in all of his songs. Their most well-known song is Khe Sanh, which was one of the most controversial songs in Australia when it was released but has since been a national landmark.

The first reaction RU-vidr to understand this song. I am impressed. From the land downunder

I love Diesel And Dust, the album that Beds are Burning came from, but if you want to be musically surprised listen to their 1982 album 10,9,8,7,6,5,4,3,2,1.

A classic amongst european 80's youth, even a music reference and standard in our rock lovers life

There is a great live version of this performed at the closing ceremony to the Sydney 2000 Olympics which in effect was raising the middle finger to the then Prime Minister.

You really should feature the previous 2 albums 10 to 1 and red sails in the sunset. You won't regret it. ❤

Yes, real brass. Definitely trombone, and probably french horn too.