Farm: 1972–1976 In 1971 drummer
Rob Hirst, bass guitarist Andrew James, and
keyboard player/lead guitarist
Jim Moginie were performing together. They adopted the name "Farm" in 1972,
1976–1981 After changing its name to Midnight Oil, the group began to develop an aggressive, punk-hard rock sound for their
pub rock audiences. According to
Countdown producer Michael Shrimpton, the band had arrived late for rehearsal and, due to the show's very tight schedule and budget, there was a strict policy that latecomers were not allowed to appear; and, as such, they were told they could not perform that day. In response, the group declared that they would never appear on the show, a promise they faithfully kept.
Countdown presenter
Molly Meldrum shaved his head bald, imitating Garrett, for its final show on 19 July 1987 and expressed regret that Midnight Oil had never appeared on the show. Fans of the group were drawn to the band's "us and them" mindset, and fan loyalty to the Oils' ideas and music was fierce. Two venues at which they built significant fan bases from their early live performances were the Sydney northern beaches
pub The Royal Antler at
Narrabeen and the Bondi Lifesaver club near Sydney's
Bondi Beach. Politically oriented rock of the style produced by the band was something of a new concept for the Australian music scene, and Peter Garrett quickly earned a reputation as one of the most charismatic and outspoken musicians in the country. He recalled that there were dangers in playing the pub scene:
Rise to fame: 1982–1985 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 Their Australian breakthrough and first international recognition came in 1982, with the release of
10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, which included the singles "
Power and the Passion" and "
Read About It". The album peaked at No. 3 and "Power and the Passion" peaked at No. 8. in the UK it was released on
CBS. Live concert footage of "Short Memory" was used in the Australian independent anti-nuclear war movie
One Night Stand. A promotional video for "Best of Both Worlds", later on
Best of Both Worlds, received airplay worldwide on cable music TV station MTV. Garrett ran as a
Nuclear Disarmament Party (NDP) candidate for a New South Wales seat in the
Australian Senate during the December
1984 federal election, Garrett obtained 9.6% of votes but was unable to obtain the required quota of 12.5%. In April 1985, Garrett, with some 30 other members, walked out of the national conference and resigned from the NDP claiming it had been infiltrated by a
Trotskyist group. Although unsuccessful in that federal election, Garrett was now a recognised public figure. The band was galvanised by the experiences and made them the basis of
Diesel and Dust, released in 1987 and produced by
Warne Livesey. "
Beds Are Burning" was their biggest international hit single, peaking at No. 6 in Australia, No. 6 on the UK singles charts. A fracas developed between Morris, accepting awards for Midnight Oil, and former
Countdown compere Ian Meldrum who was presenting: Meldrum objected to Morris making political commentary from the podium. In 1990 Midnight Oil played an impromptu lunchtime set in front of
Exxon headquarters in New York with a banner reading, "Midnight Oil Makes You Dance, Exxon Oil Makes Us Sick," protesting the
Exxon Valdez oil spill the previous year. It peaked at No. 20 on the
Billboard 200 No. 47 on
Billboard Hot 100 and No. 1 on both their Mainstream and Modern Rock Tracks charts, The name refers to the practice of
ghostwriting, wherein famous writers contribute under assumed names in order to remain anonymous. Ghostwriters' line-ups – both live and in the studio – changed considerably through the years, with only founders Hirst and Grossman being mainstays. Between successive album releases Hirst and Grossman returned to active involvement with Oils and Gurus respectively. Ghostwriters have released
Ghostwriters (1991),
Second Skin (1996),
Fibromoon (1999) and
Political Animal (2007). Morris, accepting awards for Midnight Oil, was criticised for a speech lasting 20 minutes. and appeared on the
Billboard 200. Top 50 on
Billboard 200, In 1993, the band also participated in the
Another Roadside Attraction tour in Canada and collaborated with
The Tragically Hip,
Crash Vegas,
Hothouse Flowers and
Daniel Lanois on the one-off single "
Land" to protest forest
clearing in British Columbia.
Breathe to Capricornia Breathe was released in 1996. It was produced by
Malcolm Burn and had a loose, raw style with almost a low-key sound. They returned to No. 1 on the ARIA albums charts Later album releases include the electro tinged hard rock
Redneck Wonderland in 1998, live album
The Real Thing in 2000 and the more stripped back
Capricornia in 2002 again renuniting with producer
Warne Livesey, all charted into the ARIA Top Ten. At the 2001
APRA Awards ceremony "Beds are Burning" was shown on video and introduced by
Australian Democrats Senator Aden Ridgeway as an
Indigenous spokesperson on Reconciliation. were false. However
Ghostwriters, founded by drummer Hirst and
Hoodoo Gurus bass guitarist
Rick Grossman and including former Oils guitarist
Martin Rotsey, performed six tracks including the Oils' song "When the Generals Talk", whilst
Peter Garrett gave a speech introducing a reformed
Crowded House. Aside from Ghostwriters, Hirst has also been a member of
Backsliders, performed with former Olympian
Paul Greene, with fellow Backsliders member
Dom Turner on
The Angry Tradesmen, and, with Rotsey, assisted on
Jim Moginie's solo album
Alas Folkloric in 2006.
2009 reformation On the evenings of 12 and 13 March 2009 a reformed Midnight Oil, with Garrett, played at the
Royal Theatre in Canberra. The following day, 14 March they headlined the
Sound Relief concert in Melbourne. This event was held at the
Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) to raise money for victims of
Victoria's February bushfire disaster. The event was held simultaneously with a concert at the
Sydney Cricket Ground.
Reunion, the Great Circle Tour, Midnight Oil: 1984 and Armistice Day On 4 May 2016 it was announced on the band's website that Midnight Oil intended to reform and embark on a tour in 2017 (their first concerts in Australia since 2002 and their first world tour since 1997). Such plans were confirmed in February 2017, when the band announced
The Great Circle Tour, which kicked off in April. After three warm up concerts in their native Australia, the band toured Brazil, the U.S., Canada, Europe, South Africa, Singapore and New Zealand before going back to play a series of concerts around the whole of Australia. The band performed 77 concerts in 16 countries during the tour. In March 2018, the band announced the release of a new documentary film entitled
Midnight Oil: 1984. Directed by Ray Argall, the film primarily consists of previously-unseen footage from the band's tour in support of
Red Sails in the Sunset. The film was given an Australian cinematic release in May 2018, an Australian DVD/Blu-ray release the following July and a limited North American and New Zealand cinematic release that August. One of the Great Circle tour's final concerts was held on
Armistice Day at The Domain, in
Sydney on 11 November 2017. Both shows at the Domain (the band also performed there on 17 November) were filmed and recorded, being turned into the live album and film
Armistice Day: Live at the Domain, Sydney. The film was given a one-night cinematic release on 24 October 2018. On 9 November 2018,
Armistice Day was released as a live album, as well as on DVD and Blu-ray. In December 2018, the band announced a European and UK tour for June and July 2019. The band were also announced as the headlining act of the Big Red Bash festival, taking place in Birdsville, Queensland. In April 2019, the band announced headlining shows in
Thirroul and
Canberra as warm-up shows for their European tour. With the announcement came news that the band intended to record new material for a projected 2020 release.
2020: The Makarrata Project and "Gadigal Land" On 7 August 2020, Midnight Oil released their first song in 18 years titled "
Gadigal Land", with all earnings going to organisations promoting the
Uluru Statement from the Heart. The song featured poetry spoken in the
Gadigal language. It is the first song from a mini-album titled
The Makarrata Project, whose name is related to one of the elements of the
Uluru Statement, a
Yolngu word approximating a peace agreement or type of treaty. "Gadigal Land" peaked at number 5 on the Australian digital sales song chart.
The Makarrata Project was released on 30 October 2020 and reached Number 1 in the Australian albums chart on 6 November 2020. The surviving members of Midnight Oil announced Hillman's death in a statement that remembered him as "the bassist with the beautiful voice, the band member with the wicked sense of humour, and our brilliant musical comrade." They announced the single on Twitter: "The uncompromising song, released on the eve of [the United Nations Climate Change Conference] (
COP26), adds the band's unique voice to billions of others around the world seeking a safe, habitable, and fair future for our planet." The band featured no bassist in the video, leaving only a bass guitar in a stand in the background beside the drums as a tribute to Hillman. On 26 November 2021, the band officially announced the album
Resist, which was released 18 February 2022. With the announcement of the album came the release of national Australian tour dates for 2022, which the band confirmed would be their last, while simultaneously confirming that the band will continue to make music together in the future.
Resist: The Final Tour concluded on 3 October 2022 at the
Hordern Pavilion in Sydney with a 40-song, three-and-a-half-hour set from the band. 2024 saw the release of Paul Clarke's documentary on the band
Midnight Oil: The Hardest Line. On 20 January 2026, it was revealed that Hirst had died at the age of 70. == Legacy ==