"Power and the Passion" is the second single from Midnight Oil's 1982 album ''

10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 ''10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1'' is the fourth studio album by Midnight Oil that was released on vinyl in 1982 under the Columbia Records label. It peaked at No. 3 on the Australian Kent Music Report Albums Chart and remained on the chart fo ...

'' (following "US Forces"). The song is one of the band's most famous, and it was performed on every Midnight Oil tour since the issue of ''10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1'' as well as at the

WaveAid WaveAid was a fund raising concert held on Saturday, 29 January 2005, as a means for raising funds for the victims of the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake, known as the Boxing Day tsunami. It was held at the Sydney Cricket Ground and broadcast on ...

concert. At the 1983 Countdown Music Awards, the song won Best Australian Single. In January 2018, as part of

Triple M Triple M is an Australian commercial radio network owned and operated by Southern Cross Austereo. The network consists of 40 radio stations broadcasting a mainstream rock music format and 5 digital radio stations. The network dates back to ...

's "Ozzest 100", the 'most Australian' songs of all time, "Power and the Passion" was ranked number 29.

Lyrics and composition

The lyrics mention former Australian prime minister

Gough Whitlam Edward Gough Whitlam (11 July 191621 October 2014) was the 21st prime minister of Australia, serving from 1972 to 1975. The longest-serving federal leader of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) from 1967 to 1977, he was notable for being the ...

and his dismissal in 1975, as well as the

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spy base, which remain controversial issues in Australia to this day. The song also makes reference to the

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Big Mac The Big Mac is a hamburger sold by the international fast food restaurant chain McDonald's. It was introduced in the Greater Pittsburgh area in 1967 and across the United States in 1968. It is one of the company's flagship products and signat ...

and paraphrases

Emiliano Zapata Emiliano Zapata Salazar (; August 8, 1879 – April 10, 1919) was a Mexican revolutionary. He was a leading figure in the Mexican Revolution of 1910–1920, the main leader of the people's revolution in the Mexican state of Morelos, and the ins ...

with the line "It's better to die on your feet than to live on your knees." The song includes a drum solo by

Rob Hirst Robert George Hirst (born 3 September 1955) is an Australian musician from Camden, New South Wales. He is a founding member of rock band Midnight Oil on drums, percussion and backing vocals (sometimes lead vocals) from the 1970s until the band ...

; it is the only studio recording by Midnight Oil to feature a drum solo.

Legacy

In May 2001 the Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA), as part of its 75th Anniversary celebrations, named "Power and the Passion" as one of the Top 30 Australian songs of all time. It was the second Midnight Oil song in the list with "Beds Are Burning" declared third behind the

Easybeats The Easybeats were an Australian Rock music, rock band that formed in Sydney in late 1964. They enjoyed a level of success that in Australia rivalled The Beatles. They became the first Australian rock act to score an international hit, with th ...

' "

Friday on My Mind "Friday on My Mind" is a 1966 song by Australian rock group the Easybeats. Written by band members George Young and Harry Vanda, the track became a worldwide hit, reaching no. 16 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart in May 1967 in the US, no. ...

" and Daddy Cool's " Eagle Rock". It was performed by the band at the 2009

Sound Relief Sound Relief was a multi-venue rock music concert held on 14 March 2009, which was announced by the Premier of Victoria, John Brumby on 24 February 2009. The event was organised by Michael Gudinski, Michael Chugg, Amanda Pelman, Joe Segreto & To ...

concert in Melbourne. On 5 June 2012, the song was released as

downloadable content Downloadable content (DLC) is additional content created for an already released video game, distributed through the Internet by the game's publisher. It can either be added for no extra cost or it can be a form of video game monetization, enabli ...

for the video game ''

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''.

Music video

The video for "Power and the Passion" was filmed in 1982 amongst the "Woolloomooloo Mural Project" in Sydney, NSW, Australia.

Track listing

# "Power and the Passion" - 4:45 # "Power and the Passion" (Dub Version) - 4:39

Compilations

This track was placed on the band's collection 20,000 Watt R.S.L. More recently, the title of the collection Flat Chat was derived from the lyrics of this song. However, this song was not featured on that collection. A newly remastered version was then featured on the band's second "greatest hits" album, Essential Oils (Midnight Oil album), in 2012.

US 12-inch version

The US 12-inch single release features a little-known specially remixed version, mixed by Francois Kevorkian and Dominic Malta at RPM Sound Studios specifically for the North American market. This special version, which runs for 6:40, did not appear on the 12-inch single as released elsewhere in the world, including in Australia, whose 12-inch single featured the standard album version which runs for 5:38. The remix features echo effects added to

Peter Garrett Peter Robert Garrett (born 16 April 1953) is an Australian musician, environmentalist, activist and former politician. In 1973, Garrett became the lead singer of the Australian rock band Midnight Oil. As a performer he is known for his signa ...

's vocals and a continuation or reprise of

's drum solo after the nominal ending of the song.

Live versions

Live versions of "Power and the Passion" were not available legally until 2004, when the '' Best of Both Worlds'' CD/two-DVD set featured two. One (on the ''Oils on the Water'' CD/DVD) was from early 1985 (the '' Red Sails in the Sunset'' tour) and the other (on the ''Saturday Night at the Capitol'' DVD) was from 1982 ( the ''10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1'' tour). The song's drum solo was often performed significantly faster.

Personnel

- lead vocals *

Peter Gifford Peter Gifford (born 5 April 1955), sometimes known as "Giffo," is an Australian musician. From 1980 until 1987, he played bass guitar, Chapman Stick and sang backing vocals for Australian rock band Midnight Oil. Midnight Oil Gifford is credi ...

- bass, backup vocals * Martin Rotsey - guitar *

Jim Moginie James Moginie (born 18 May 1956) is an Australian musician. He is best known for his work with Midnight Oil, of which he is a founding member, guitarist, keyboardist and leading songwriter. Career In addition to Midnight Oil, Moginie has work ...

- guitar, keyboards *

- drums, percussion ;with *

Gary Barnacle Gary Barnacle (born 1959 in Dover, England) is an English saxophonist, flautist, brass instrument arranger, composer, and producer. Barnacle is primarily noted for his session work and live work, including various Prince's Trust concerts a ...

, Peter Thoms, Luke Tunney - brass

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

References

{{Authority control 1983 singles APRA Award winners Midnight Oil songs 1982 songs Columbia Records singles Song recordings produced by Nick Launay Songs written by Jim Moginie Songs written by Peter Garrett Songs written by Martin Rotsey