| Diesel and Dust | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | August 1987 | |||
| Recorded | January–April 1987 | |||
| Studio | Albert (Sydney) | |||
| Genre | Alternative rock | |||
| Length | 46:37 | |||
| Label | Sprint /Columbia | |||
| Producer | Warne Livesey, Midnight Oil | |||
| Midnight Oil chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Singles from Diesel and Dust | ||||
| ||||
Diesel and Dust is the sixthstudio album by Australianrock bandMidnight Oil, released in August 1987 by SPRINT Music label underColumbia Records.Diesel and Dust was produced byWarne Livesey and the band. It is a concept album about the struggles ofIndigenous Australians and environmental causes, issues important to the band. It drew inspiration from the Blackfella/Whitefella Tour of remote Indigenous communities with theWarumpi Band andGondwanaland in 1986. The album peaked at No. 1 on the AustralianKent Music Report Albums Chart for six weeks.
Diesel and Dust has been critically lauded since its release.Rolling Stone editors named it the best album of 1988 (the year of its United States release),[1] and later ranked it the 13th greatest record of the 1980s.[2][3] In October 2010,Diesel and Dust was listed at number 1 in the book,100 Best Australian Albums.[4] In December 2021, the album was listed at no. 5 inRolling Stone Australia's "200 Greatest Albums of All Time" countdown.[5]
Midnight Oil spent several months in mid-1986 on the Blackfella/Whitefella Tour ofoutback Australia with indigenous music groupsWarumpi Band andGondwanaland, playing to remote Aboriginal communities and seeing first hand the seriousness of the issues in health and living standards.[6] The tour was criticised by some journalists for being a one-off event instead of a long-term attempt to build bridges between communities.[7] The band was galvanised by the experiences and made them the basis of their next album,Diesel and Dust, which was released in August 1987 and produced byWarne Livesey and the band.[8] The album focused on the need for recognition by white Australia of past injustices involving the Aboriginal nation and the need for reconciliation.Peter Gifford left the band before the album's release due to extensive touring schedules,[9] and was replaced on bass guitar byBones Hillman, formerly ofThe Swingers.[8] The track "Gunbarrel Highway" was not included on the United States version of the album, reportedly, because the line "shit falls like rain on a world that is brown" was deemed too offensive for US audiences.[10]
Diesel and Dust peaked at No. 1 on the Australian albums charts for six weeks,[11] No. 21 on the USBillboard 200 in 1988,[12] and No. 19 on theUK Albums Chart.[13] "Beds Are Burning" was their biggest international hit single, peaking at No. 6 in Australia,[11] No. 17 on the USBillboard Hot 100[14] and No. 6 on theUK Singles Chart.[13] "The Dead Heart" peaked at No. 4 in Australia,[11] and charted on the Hot 100[14] and in the UK.[13] "Put Down that Weapon" also charted in Australia,[11] while "Dreamworld" charted onBillboard'sMainstream Rock Tracks and at No. 16 on itsModern Rock Tracks.[14]
At theAustralian Recording Industry Association (ARIA)1988 Awards ceremony, Midnight Oil won "Best Cover Art" forDiesel and Dust. The album cover was designed by photographer Ken Duncan (b.1954, Mildura, VIC) and visual artist Wart (also known as Jen Waterhouse) (b.1958, Geelong, VIC). It also won "Best Single" and "Best Song" for "Beds Are Burning".[15][16] A fracas developed between Gary Morris, their manager who was accepting awards for Midnight Oil, and formerCountdown compereIan Meldrum who was presenting: Meldrum objected to Morris making political commentary from the podium.[16]
There were concerns aboutDiesel and Dust and Midnight Oil's attempts to expressindigenous issues towhite urban audiences – namely, the question "who holds the power to tell whose history?"[7] The lyrics of "The Dead Heart" tell the story ofcolonisation from an indigenouspoint of view, but some critics felt they reinforced the "primitive"stereotype.[7] Use of thebullroarer was criticised as belonging to sacred rituals, and therefore not appropriate for rock songs.[7] "The Dead Heart" had been written in response to a request by organisers of the 1985 ceremony to return control ofUluru to its indigenouscaretakers; Midnight Oil originally resisted being added to a concert bill that they believed should contain indigenous groups, but the organisers insisted, arguing that the band would reach a wider audience within the predominantlyCaucasian urban centres.[17] Midnight Oil requested that allroyalties from the song go toindigenous communities.[18] In addition, two indigenous groups, Warumpi Band and Gondwanaland, toured with them.
Hirst said, "There's been a kind of folky element in Midnigjht Oil for a very long time. I think you first heard it in songs like "Kosciusko", but it really burst forward when we didDiesel and Dust."[19]
Following the 1988 American tour in support ofDiesel and Dust with Australian bandYothu Yindi, Midnight Oil launched theBurning Bridges album with various artists contributing, includingPaul Kelly, Scrap Metal, Coloured Stone,Hunters & Collectors,James Reyne,The Saints,Crowded House, andINXS.[6] All sales proceeds were donated to the National Coalition of Aboriginal Organisations.[6]
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [20] |
| Daily Record | [21] |
| The Encyclopedia of Popular Music |  [22] |
| Los Angeles Times | [23] |
| PopMatters | 9/10[24] |
| Rolling Stone | [25] |
| The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [26] |
| The Village Voice | B+[27] |
According to Australian rock music historianIan McFarlane, Midnight Oil "reached the peak of its powers with the release of the groundbreakingDiesel and Dust... [it] is arguably one of the greatest Australian albums of all time. Powerful, dynamic and passionate songs like 'Beds are Burning', 'Put Down that Weapon', 'Dreamworld', 'The Dead Heart' and 'Sell My Soul' were statements of intent and a call to action backed by the strength of their convictions".[6] Mark Deming ofAllMusic called the record "an artistic success and a triumph for leftist politics" which "makes clear that the bandmembers could apply their intelligence and passion to less aggressive material and still come up with forceful, compelling music".[20]
All tracks are written byPeter Garrett,Rob Hirst,Jim Moginie, except where noted.
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Beds Are Burning" | 4:14 | |
| 2. | "Put Down That Weapon" | 4:38 | |
| 3. | "Dreamworld" | 3:36 | |
| 4. | "Arctic World" | Garrett, Moginie | 4:21 |
| 5. | "Warakurna" | Moginie | 4:38 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6. | "The Dead Heart" | 5:10 | |
| 7. | "Whoah" | Garrett, Moginie | 3:50 |
| 8. | "Bullroarer" | 4:59 | |
| 9. | "Sell My Soul" | Garrett, Moginie | 3:35 |
| 10. | "Sometimes" | 3:53 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 11. | "Gunbarrel Highway" | Garrett,Peter Gifford, Hirst, Moginie,Martin Rotsey | 3:38 |
Weekly charts[edit]
| Year-end charts[edit]
|
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Australia (ARIA)[41] | 7× Platinum | 490,000^ |
| Canada (Music Canada)[42] | 3× Platinum | 300,000^ |
| France (SNEP)[43] | 2× Platinum | 600,000* |
| Germany (BVMI)[44] | Platinum | 500,000^ |
| Netherlands (NVPI)[45] | Gold | 50,000^ |
| New Zealand (RMNZ)[46] | Platinum | 15,000^ |
| Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[47] | 2× Platinum | 100,000^ |
| United Kingdom (BPI)[48] | Gold | 100,000^ |
| United States (RIAA)[49] | Platinum | 1,000,000^ |
* Sales figures based on certification alone. | ||
| Studio albums | |
|---|---|
| Live albums | |
| Compilations | |
| EPs | |
| Singles |
|
| Related articles |
|
