Beds Are Burning


"Beds Are Burning" is a 1987 song by the Australian rock band Midnight Oil, the first track from their album Diesel and Dust. This song was released as the second single from the album.
It reached No. 1 in New Zealand, South Africa and Canada, No. 3 in the Netherlands, No. 5 in France, No. 6 in the United Kingdom, Australia and Ireland, No. 17 in the United States and Sweden.
It is one of The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll and it was named number 95 on VH1's 100 Greatest One Hit Wonders of the 80s and number 97 by the Triple J Hottest 100 of All Time in 2009.
In May 2001, Australasian Performing Right Association celebrated its 75th anniversary by naming the Best Australian Songs of all time, as decided by a 100 strong industry panel. "Beds Are Burning" was declared third behind the Easybeats' "Friday on My Mind" and Daddy Cool's "Eagle Rock".
In January 2018, as part of Triple M's "Ozzest 100", the 'most Australian' songs of all time, "Beds Are Burning" was ranked number 9.

Composition

After Midnight Oil toured through the Outback in 1986, playing to remote Aboriginal communities and seeing first hand the seriousness of the issues in health and living standards, Peter Garrett wrote "Beds Are Burning" to criticize how said populations were often forcibly removed from their lands, highlighted by the pre-chorus lines "it belongs to them, let's give it back". Considering such a local affair inspired a worldwide hit, Garrett commented "Who would have thought an Aboriginal land rights song would travel that far?" There are specific references to certain Australian places and politics, such as Kintore Ranges and the town of Yuendumu, vehicles produced by the Holden company, the "It's Time" slogan and the notion of "fair go".

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart Peak
position

Year-end charts

Chart Rank
Belgium 47
Canada Top Singles 6
Europe 84
Netherlands 25
Netherlands 30
South Africa 10

Certifications and sales

Other appearances