Blue Sky Mining

Midnight Oil | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (March 1, 2008)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Sbme Special Mkts.
• ASIN: B0012GN0VM
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (49 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #22,974 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #62 in Music > World Music > Australia & New Zealand

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Followup to Diesel and Dust is worthy protest rock, October 18, 2003

By 

Daniel J. Hamlow (Narita, Japan) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Blue Sky Mining (Audio CD)

The social and corporate protest of Midnight Oil extends to their followup to Diesel And Dust. However, the sound is kind of muted compared to that superlative work. The lyrics, however, have evolved in poignancy and speak volumes more than the other album.

Heralded by a wailing bluesy harmonica, "Blue Sky Mine" tells the story of a worker who has ethical, anti-corporate principles, "but if I work all day on the blue sky mine/there'll be food on the table tonight". More than that, the company deceives its shareholders by fudging the books. "Who's gonna save me?" cries the worker plaintively, but there is hope: "In the end the rain comes down/washes clean the streets of a blue sky town."

An aborigine can't believe that despite the hypermart malls, industrial technology, and ATMs, that he can see the "Stars Of Warburton" waiting for him. He wishes for buffalos, wallaby stew, sandstone cliffs, all hallmarks of his culture. Warburton is not only a town, but the name of an aboriginal reserve located in the east end of West Australia province.

An eerie sound reminiscent of Phil Collins' "In The Air Tonight" is prevalent in "Bedlam Bridge". The instrumentation later picks up, but the title place is the gateway to "a place that knows no poverty/a town without pollution." That is in contrast to the upscale apartments, where one sees "the golden ghetto's creeper."

"Forgotten Years" has a strong guitar riff and pace bringing back the "diesel and dust", and it's a story how the older generation of aboriginals fought in World War II, lost the rights to their lands ("contracts torn at the edges/old signatures stained with tears") had it tougher than the younger generation, who have it easy. This is a call to never forget those years, "the hardest years, the darkest years/the roarin' years, the fallen years". The best song here.

The somber "Mountains Of Burma" criticizes "a government that has axes in its eyes" and hopes years of activism, from workers marching on May Day, to females fighting for equal pay, won't give way to complacency. What do we indeed do when "bills fall due for the industrial revolution"?

"King Of The Mountain" decry the destruction of land for the benefit of the sugar cane industry. There's a poignant verse of the destruction sung in rapid-fire punk anger: "I can't take the hands from my face/there are some things we can't replace."

The slow "River Runs Red" is downright depressing and condemns corporate ravishment of the land: "So you cut all the tall trees down/you poisoned the sky and the sea/you've taken what's good from the ground/but you left precious little for me." And the force behind it is the dollar. The song rises to a crescendo with the chorus repeats: "River runs red/black rain falls/on my bleeding land."
"Shakers And Movers" is a worrying but catchy Byrdsy song about what's done in the name of the "great god of development" Key line here: "Tomorrow's child takes concrete footsteps/and they'll drink champagne or be damned."

"One Country" is Garrett at his philosophical best. The song lines are mostly age-old questions that have been debated by intellectuals for years: "Who hands out equal rights/who starts and ends that fight" or "Who'd like to change the world", "Who gets to work for bread". And in typical Dylanesque style, he says "don't call me the tune, I will walk away." This hints that we have to figure it out for ourselves. But "One country/one understanding" is what it amounts to.

The narrator of the somber final track "Antarctica" is a snowplow that at one point says "There must be one place left in the world/where the skin says it can breathe/there's gotta be one place left in the world/it's a solitude of distance and relief."

Blue Sky Mine may not have the punch of Diesel And Dust, but that is replaced by more pressing concerns against the sugar industries exploiting aboriginal lands and environmental rapine that takes place in the name of the "great god of development." A great companion to Diesel And Dust.

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Incredibly varied album...every track is great., June 16, 2001

By 

Moses Alexander (Alabama, USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Blue Sky Mining (Audio CD)

Easily one of the top 4 or 5 Midnight Oil albums, as well as one of the albums responsible for their popularity. Not only is it musically superb, but it has some extremely sharp lyrics as well (a standar MO feature...but particulary potent here.) From the blistering harmonica solo in "Blue Sky Mine" to the infectious beats of "Forgotten Years" to the swirling sonic mass of screaming guitars on "River Runs Red" to the etereal calm of "Antarctica" this album is not only one of Midnight Oil's best, but one of the best I own. I was only a little kid when this came out too, but its music and lyrics are timeless.

This is the best example of what I call "late middle period" Midnight Oil (including albums like "Diesel & Dust" "Blue Sky Mining" "Species Deceases") Along with "Diesel & Dust" "10, 9, 8..." "Earth & Sun & Moon" "Head Injuries" & "Red Sails in the Sunset", this is one of the best places to dive into the world of Midnight Oil. I HIGHLY recommend this.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Flame Burns Brightest, July 5, 2002

By 

Rowyn B. Adriano (Brooklyn, NY United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Blue Sky Mining (Audio CD)

Midnight Oil only entered my consciousness with "Diesel and Dust" but i have been an interested fan ever since. I got this album in an analog tape format 12 years ago, and indeed has deteriorated through countless listenings and age.

Despite being a highly political rock band, the Oils come across effortlessly as credible and talented. In other words, they can back up their beliefs with the solid musicianship as good as anyone else. From the all-out rockers "Blue Sky Mine," "King of the Mountain," and "Forgotten Years" to heartfelt slowburners "Mountains of Burma," "Shakers and Movers" and "River Runs Red," this album ranks as their defining, landmark work, just slightly above "Diesel and Dust" (which put them into commercial territory - and thus, gaining a wider audience).

I had the pleasure of watching them play live in NYC recently - something i never thought would happen - and that was the best $[money] i ever spent. Seeing Peter Garrett sing "One Country" - their best ballad ever - I am not Australian, and though perhaps the Oils had their country in mind, i always thought it was the perfect song, the perfect plea, for the people of this planet to come together. Forget "We are the World;" this is the heart-to-heart stuff, right here.