Saw them once, in Denver years ago in an audience full of Aussies. A personal highlight.
The current political times we find ourselves in makes them continue to be relevant. We need more bands like them right now.
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â â â â ⌠Iâd forgotten all about Beatbox.
Was that SBS? Did that replace Basiaâs Rock Around The World? Or did it replace Lee Simonâs Nightmoves on Ch.10?
Canât place itâŚ
It was Saturday morning ABC. Vox pops with the yoof on the issues of the day cut with music videos, with a strong leaning towards live performances, and interviews with bands.
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The golden days of music TV⌠Rock Arena, Nightmoves, Countdown still running, Rock Around The World, Sounds, BeatboxâŚ
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Rob Hirst
What a drummerâŚ
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Rob Hirst 
My nephewâs drum teacher (for a while)
Also had been in some bandâŚ
Very sad.
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Oof, Rob Hirst is a tough one to deal with. Legend.
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That is a great loss! One of the best and most principled of musos.
He will be missed more than some shortarse designer who got the headlines lately because he was able to hire models taller than him.
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Pancreatic cancer. Extremely hard to detect before it is inoperable. And when it is âoperableâ the treatment is worse than the disease. (If you donât know, look up Whippleâs operation)
If only someone had the technology to identify those most at risk so there could be earlier intervention, saving lives from what is now a common cancerâŚ
But this is not likely to happen in this country⌠hey,@Bacchusfox ?
You forgot the ambiguously titled âEat Carpetâ
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Weâre just ignoring Recovery?
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I love that he basically used one drum kit his entire career.
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This is sad news, and he is a big loss to music. Best Ozzie drummer by far that l have ever heard.
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Just this week reported on the news that Australian scientists have developed a blood test which could detect the very early stages of pancreatic cancer. ie prior to symptoms. Not sure of the exact details as it was on in the background, but I believe they were hoping to get Medicare to subsidise the tests. Itâs a $1400 cost if not covered. It would be a wonderful step forward if this test is more accessible.
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Really sad about Rob Hirst.
Must have seen the Oils about a dozen times spanning many decades.
Had one of the best nights of my life at an Oils show at the Music Bowl on a stinking hot summers night probably 89/90ish.
Hirstâs drumming and presence was a big part of that.
Seemed like an intelligent and genuinely nice fellow.
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This is worth a look.
Extraordinary coincidence when Hirstâs daughter from a teenage pregnancy finds out who her father isâŚ
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That was the Concert for the Kids (28th March 1991, so says setlist.fm). It was hot on the heels of the Blue Sky Mining shows at the Tennis Centre. From memory, the concert was arranged, sold and played in reasonably quick time. The Tennis Centre shows were good, but they really didnât go into the back-catalogue too deeply - it was mainly D&D and Blue Sky Mining, with a few from Red Sails thrown in.
The Myer Music Bowl gig was far better - the band was much looser, with many more deep cuts played - the highlight for mine being Jimmy Sharmanâs Boxers, performed with the Salvation Army Brass BandâŚ
I have very fond memories of that show too!..
Edit: Just remembered⌠one of the support acts was an indigenous rap act called Brainspeak (or something along those lines). Now, you need to remember this was a LONG time before Hilltop Hoods & Baker Boi. The crowd were polite initially, but got impatient. It was a stinking hot night, and the bouncers (whoâd patted people down on the way in for concealed grog) had clearly not done a particularly thorough jobâŚ
Edit 2: Two of my favourite Oils gigs were at Kooyong (Species Deceases tour I think?) and the 21st Century Dance Club in Frankston (2000 Watt RSL Club tour). At the first one my mate (an uber Oils fan) decided it would be a good idea to polish off a bottle of Southern Comfort beforehand. It didnât go well for him - he was arrested for D&D, locked-up overnight to dry-out and missed the entire show. At the second one, it was packed to the rafters and hotter than hell inside. The band was very rough and ready. They had a chooklotto wheel up on stage with them, with a whole bunch of older/obscure songs listed on it. Every 3 or 4 songs theyâd spin the wheel, and whatever came up they played. Canât remember every one we got, but US Forces and Back On The Borderline (both of which theyâd long since stopped playing) were two of them.
Edit 3: I mean, just look at this Kooyong 1985 setlist!!!..
Best of Both Worlds, No Reaction, Blossom and Blood, Progress, Armistice Day, Short Memory, Only the Strong, Brave Faces, Somebodyâs Trying to Tell Me Something, Pictures, Scream in Blue, US Forces, Kosciusko, Lucky Country, Cold Cold Change, Back on the Borderline, Power and the Passion, Read About It, 1st encore: [Minutes to Midnight, Jimmy Sharmanâs Boxers, Donât Wanna Be the One, Hercules, Stand in Line], 2nd encore: [Surfing With a Spoon, Powderworks]
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With the passage of time, im struggling to remember exactly which summer this show was that i attended.
Only the venue is vivid, and how much more i enjoyed an open air show rather than the tennis centre shows we also attended.
I know i wasnt long out of school (VCE was 1987 for myself).
Perhaps it was prior to the Blue Sky Mining tour ?
Pretty sure this book has a listing of all their shows and setlistsâŚ
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I was at the Kooyong Species Deceases show, it was Sunday night if I remember correctly.
While I have a few issues with Midnight Oil & Peter Garrett in particular, they were an incredibly powerful band in their prime & Hirst was the star of the show
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I was at the 21st gig as well. The place was packed and it was loud. My memory might not be correct but Iâm sure US Forces was the song that came up on the first spin. It was a great gig. Pity the revolving dance floor wasnât on that night.