20,000 Watt R.S.L.
Greatest hits album by
Midnight Oil
Released13 October 1997[1]
Recorded1979–1997
GenreRock[2]
Length75:55
LabelSprint Music / CBS Records
Midnight Oil chronology
Breathe
(1996)		 20,000 Watt R.S.L.
(1997)		 Redneck Wonderland
(1998)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic [3]

20,000 Watt R.S.L. is a compilation album by Australian rock band Midnight Oil released on 13 October 1997 on their own label Sprint Music.[4][5] The word "Collection" appears on the front of the CD along the hinge in the same type face as the title and the name of the band and may have been intended as part of the album's title; however, it does not appear on the spine. The release has also been distributed inside a cardboard sleeve which adds "Midnight Oil: The Hits" to the album art, distinguishing it as a compilation album.

The compilation covers the majority of Midnight Oil's career, starting with their 1979 album Head Injuries, and includes tracks from all their major studio releases (and one EP), even including two songs from the forthcoming Redneck Wonderland album, which was released after this compilation in 1998.[5] The compilation does not include any material from the band's eponymous 1978 debut album or the Bird Noises EP (1980). The liner notes contain an essay on the band by Australian author Tim Winton.

The album peaked at #1 on the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) album charts,[6] and achieved 5×Platinum sales, it also peaked at #18 in New Zealand.[7]

In 2012, Midnight Oil released the 2-disc compilation album Essential Oils, a more comprehensive summary of the band's career, and which includes material from all of the band's studio albums and EPs between 1978 and 2002. There is only one song ("What Goes On") included in 20,000 Watt R.S.L. that is not included in Essential Oils.

Background

Midnight Oil are an Australian rock band from Sydney formed in 1976 with vocalist Peter Garrett, drummer Rob Hirst, bass guitarist Andrew James and keyboardist/lead guitarist Jim Moginie,[4][5] Guitarist Martin Rotsey joined in 1977[5] and Midnight Oil established their own record label Powderworks,[5] they released their second album Head Injuries on this label in October 1979.[5] Founding bass guitarist James left due to illness in 1980, he was replaced by Peter Gifford, Gifford was himself replaced by Bones Hillman in 1987.[4][5]

Australian Top Ten singles were "Power and the Passion", "The Dead Heart", "Beds Are Burning" and "Blue Sky Mine".[6] Aside from chart success both "Power and the Passion" and "Beds Are Burning" were listed by Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) in the Top 30 best Australian songs of all time in 2001.[8] Through a long and distinguished career, the band became known for its driving hard-rock sound, intense live performances and political activism, particularly in aid of anti-nuclear, environmentalist and indigenous causes.[9]

The title refers to the Returned Servicemen's League, whose clubs the band has performed in, and the typical power used by a public address system.[10]

Track listing

Songwriters according to Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA):[11]

  1. "What Goes On" (Garrett, Hillman, Hirst, Moginie, Rotsey)[12]
  2. "Power and the Passion" (Garrett, Hirst, Moginie)[13]
  3. "Dreamworld" (Garrett, Hirst, Moginie)[14]
  4. "White Skin Black Heart" (Garrett, Hillman, Hirst, Moginie, Rotsey)[12]
  5. "Kosciuszko" (Hirst, Moginie)[15]
  6. "The Dead Heart" (Garrett, Hirst, Moginie)[14]
  7. "Blue Sky Mine" (Garrett, Hillman, Hirst, Moginie, Rotsey)[16]
  8. "US Forces" (Garrett, Moginie)[13]
  9. "Beds Are Burning" (Garrett, Hirst, Moginie)[14]
  10. "One Country" (Garrett, Moginie)[16]
  11. "Best of Both Worlds" (Hirst, Moginie)[15]
  12. "Truganini" (Hirst, Moginie)[17]
  13. "King of the Mountain" (Hirst, Moginie)[16]
  14. "Hercules" (Garrett, Hirst, Moginie)[18]
  15. "Surf's Up Tonight" (Garrett, Hillman, Hirst, Moginie, Rotsey)[19]
  16. "Back on the Borderline" (Garrett, Hirst, James)[20]
  17. "Don't Wanna Be the One" (Garrett, Hirst, Moginie, Rotsey)[21]
  18. "Forgotten Years" (Hirst, Moginie)[16]

Charts

Certifications

Album

Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[27] 5× Platinum 350,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Video

Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[28] 5× Platinum 75,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Personnel

Midnight Oil
Additional personnel

References

  1. ↑ "Midnight Oil".
  2. ↑ Fricke, David (2004). "Midnight Oil". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. pp. 541–542. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
  3. ↑ Stephen Thomas Erlewine. "Midnight Oil – 20,000 Watt R.S.L.: Greatest Hits". AllMusic. Retrieved 22 May 2014.
  4. 1 2 3 McFarlane, Ian (1999). "Encyclopedia entry for 'Midnight Oil'". Encyclopedia of Australian Rock and Pop. Allen & Unwin. ISBN 1-86448-768-2. Archived from the original on 13 August 2004. Retrieved 20 October 2008.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Midnight Oil discography". Australian Rock Database. Magnus Holmgren. Archived from the original on 27 September 2012. Retrieved 20 October 2008.
  6. 1 2 "Midnight Oil discography". Australian Charts Portal. Retrieved 20 October 2008.
  7. ↑ ""20,000 Watt R.S.L" album charting". Australian Charts Portal. Retrieved 16 December 2008.
  8. ↑ Kruger, Debbie (2 May 2001). "The songs that resonate through the years" (PDF). Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA). Archived from the original (PDF) on 30 October 2008. Retrieved 20 October 2008.
  9. ↑ Fricke, David (2004). "Midnight Oil Biography". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 3 November 2007. Retrieved 21 October 2008.
  10. ↑ (Powderworks) 20,000 Watt RSL Title - Meaning
  11. ↑ "APRA search engine". Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA). Archived from the original on 17 May 2007. Retrieved 20 August 2008. Note: requires user to input song title e.g. WHAT GOES ON
  12. 1 2 from Redneck Wonderland (1998)
  13. 1 2 from 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 (1982)
  14. 1 2 3 from Diesel and Dust (1987)
  15. 1 2 from Red Sails in the Sunset (1984)
  16. 1 2 3 4 from Blue Sky Mining (1990)
  17. ↑ from Earth and Sun and Moon (1993)
  18. ↑ from Species Deceases (1985)
  19. ↑ from Breathe (1996)
  20. ↑ from Head Injuries (1979)
  21. ↑ from Place without a Postcard (1981)
  22. ↑ "Australiancharts.com – Midnight Oil – 20,000 Watt R.S.L.". Hung Medien. Retrieved 30 November 2018.
  23. ↑ "Offiziellecharts.de – Midnight Oil – 20,000 Watt R.S.L." (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 30 November 2018.
  24. ↑ "Charts.nz – Midnight Oil – 20,000 Watt R.S.L.". Hung Medien. Retrieved 30 November 2018.
  25. ↑ "ARIA Charts – End Of Year Charts – Top 100 Albums 1997". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 31 December 2014.
  26. ↑ "ARIA Top 100 Albums for 1998". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
  27. ↑ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2014 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 31 December 2014.
  28. ↑ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2012 DVDs" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 1 December 2021.
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