^^^ This was kind of big deal when it happened; I was already a fan, but it was cool being in high school and knowing a band I dug was also on the right side of history...
Bedlam Bridge Opening with some atmospherics and builds itself into a moderate song ... It kind of reminds me of a Roger Waters solo style song. I cannot draw a direct reference to what the lyrics are actually saying ... At times it seems like it is about a post apocalyptic world, or some form of poetic description of where we are, or some form of reference of hope in God ... I really can't pin the lyrics down. It's a pretty good song though. Lyrics In this city with no footpath there's a building with no people There is crime and gun decisions There's a street of heat and hawkers, there's a house of hope drifters There's a gang that shoots then listens There's a place that knows no poverty, a town without pollution There's a soul with good intentions There are canyons full of movie stars, churches made of metal There are mountains made of muscle We have leaders who are anxious, we have captains not courageous Captains tumbling into madness But there's a main who makes no enemies, a body never breathless No ambition ever hopeless Up on bedlam bridge somebody is waiting Up on bedlam bridge I'm shot to heaven Oh, up on bedalm bridge, waiting In these locked and shackled neighbourhoods, bridge and tunnel diplomats See the golden ghetto's creeper Crazy flags from history, songs for the White House gangsters Guns for hellgate railway sleepers But there's a main who makes no enemies, a body never breathless No ambition ever hopeless So how stands the city on this winters night? The city on the hill or so they said The snow is falling down around the armoury The city's closing in around my head Up on bedlam bridge... Drive, won't you drive the engines harder, drive Drive, won't you turn the engines over, drive
Forgotten Years This is one of the best songs on the album for me. A song of reflection with a leaning towards reminding us that no matter what we have been through, don't regret it, embrace all the things that we are and have been through and remember, don't store memories in a cell of bitterness. Lyrics Few of the sins of the father, are visited upon the son Hearts have been hard, our hands have been clenched in a fist too long Our sons will never be soldiers, our daughters will never need guns These are the yrs between These are the yrs that were hard fought and won Contracts torn at the edges, old signatures stained with tears Seasons of war and peace, these should not be forgotten yaers Still it aches like tetanus, it reeks of politics How many dreams remain? This is a feeling too strong to contain The hardest years, the darkest yrs, the roarin' yrs, the fallen yrs These should not be forgotten yrs The hardest yrs, the wildest yrs, the desperate and divided yrs We will remember, these should not be forgotten yrs Our shoreline was never invaded, our country was never in flames This is the calm we breathe, this is a feeling too strong to contain Still it aches like tetanus, it reeks of politics Signatures stained with tears, who can remember We've got to remember The hardest... Forsaking aching breaking yrs, the time and tested heartbreak yrs These should not be forgotten yrs The blinded yrs, the binded yrs, the desperate and divided yrs These should not be forgotten yrs, remember
^^ Forgotten Years carries a message that is pretty easy to interpret. Bedlam Bridge on the other hand is possibly the most cryptic song they ever wrote. Where is the city of which he speaks? I seem to recall reading somewhere that New York City was an inspiration, but the references to canyons and movie stars suggest Los Angeles. But then there are references to snow falling, and I didn't think it snowed in LA. "City on a hill" suggests Washington DC. Perhaps the city is no particular city, just a generic city environment, though mention of the White House almost certainly places it in the USA. And, once again, what and where is Bedlam Bridge?
An internet search for "Bedlam bridge" returns mostly references to the song. However there is a link to a band of that name. It's possible, but unlikely, that they named themselves after the song. It's more likely that Bedlam bridge is either a real thing or a well-known thing from fiction, possibly in Ireland. Bedlam is also, as you probably know, the name of an infamous psychiatric hospital in London, and the source of the term "bedlam" as slang for madness and chaos. The place is still operating, now under the name "Bethlem", and hopefully under more enlightened conditions regarding treatment of the patients. That suggests that the name is a variant of "Bethlehem". Is the Bedlam of the song a reference to madness, to a place called Bedlam, or both? Your guess is as good as mine. It could refer to the Bethlehem in Palestine that was the birthplace of Jesus, but then why a bridge? I'm sure some smartarse will say "Because every song has to have a bridge"...
Blue Sky Mining is my favourite Midnight Oil album. I love all the others, but for me this is the album that's all killer, no filler, and an amazing ride from start to finish. I love what producer Warne Livesy does on the albums he produced. Really inventive, with great intertwining guitars... Absolutely brilliant album and a great follow-up to D&D.
I always thought bedlam bridge was about was the bridge between bedlam (chaos, uproar etc) and the promised land, which we could attain if we had the courage... Peter Garrett is a committed christian (although he keeps it on the downlow) so I guess it could have some spiritual meaning. great song
That makes complete sense now. Thanks mate. Perhaps being a Christian myself I could notice the references that seemed obvious but I hadn't put the pieces together about the bridge between chaos and paradise. Good on ya!
Blue Sky Mining holds my interest for the first half, but it’s been a while since I listened to the whole thing straight through. Forgotten Years is fantastic, and I love Stars Of Warburton, but overall the album feels less uniquely Midnight Oil in the way it sounds, so that through me off a bit.
Easy album and song guide Midnight Oil - 1978 Midnight Oil - the album thread track 1 Powderworks Midnight Oil - the album thread track 2 Head over heals Midnight Oil - the album thread track 3 Dust Midnight Oil - the album thread track 4 Used and Abused Midnight Oil - the album thread track 5 Surfing with a spoon Midnight Oil - the album thread track 6 Run by night Midnight Oil - the album thread Run by night live 1981 - Midnight Oil - the album thread track 7 Nothing lost ... nothing gained Midnight Oil - the album thread Head Injuries - 1979 Midnight Oil - the album thread track 1 Cold cold change Midnight Oil - the album thread track 2 Section 5 (bus to Bondi) Midnight Oil - the album thread track 3 Naked flame Midnight Oil - the album thread track 4 Back on the borderline Midnight Oil - the album thread track 5 Koala sprint Midnight Oil - the album thread track 6 No reaction Midnight Oil - the album thread track 7 Stand in line Midnight Oil - the album thread Stand in line live 1981 - Midnight Oil - the album thread track 8 Profiteers Midnight Oil - the album thread track 9 Is it now? Midnight Oil - the album thread Bird Noises EP 1980 Midnight Oil - the album thread track 1 No time for games Midnight Oil - the album thread track 2 Knife's edge Midnight Oil - the album thread track 3 Wedding cake island Midnight Oil - the album thread track 4 I'm the cure Midnight Oil - the album thread Live at the Melbourne Show Grounds 1980 - Midnight Oil - the album thread Place Without A Postcard 1981 Midnight Oil - the album thread track 1 Don't wanna be the one Midnight Oil - the album thread don't wanna be the one live - Midnight Oil - the album thread track 2 Brave faces Midnight Oil - the album thread Brave faces live in 1982 - Midnight Oil - the album thread track 3 Armistice day Midnight Oil - the album thread Armistice day live 1982 - Midnight Oil - the album thread track 4 Someone else to blame Midnight Oil - the album thread track 5 Basement Flat Midnight Oil - the album thread track 6 Written in the heart Midnight Oil - the album thread track 7 Burnie Midnight Oil - the album thread track 8 Quinella holiday Midnight Oil - the album thread track 9 Love's on sale Midnight Oil - the album thread track 10 If Ned Kelly was King Midnight Oil - the album thread track 11 Lucky country Midnight Oil - the album thread 10,9,8,7,6,5,4,3,2,1 - 1982 - Midnight Oil - the album thread track 1 Outside world Midnight Oil - the album thread track 2 Only the Strong Midnight Oil - the album thread Only the Strong Live Midnight Oil - the album thread track 3 Short Memory Midnight Oil - the album thread Short Memory live Midnight Oil - the album thread track 4 Read About It Midnight Oil - the album thread Read About It Live Midnight Oil - the album thread track 5 Scream in Blue Midnight Oil - the album thread track 6 U.S. Forces Midnight Oil - the album thread track 7 Power and The Passion Midnight Oil - the album thread track 8 Maralinga Midnight Oil - the album thread track 9 Tin Legs And Tin Mines Midnight Oil - the album thread track 10 Somebody's trying to tell me something Midnight Oil - the album thread Red Sails In The Sunset 1983 - Midnight Oil - the album thread track 1 When the Generals Talk Midnight Oil - the album thread track 2 Best Of Both Worlds Midnight Oil - the album thread track 3 Sleep Midnight Oil - the album thread track 4 Minutes To Midnight Midnight Oil - the album thread track 5 Jimmy Sharman's Boxers Midnight Oil - the album thread track 6 Bakerman Midnight Oil - the album thread Bakerman demo, with vocals Midnight Oil - the album thread track 7 Who Can Stand In the Way Midnight Oil - the album thread track 8 Kosciuszko Midnight Oil - the album thread track 9 Helps Me Helps You Midnight Oil - the album thread track 10 Harrisburg Midnight Oil - the album thread track 11 Bells And Horns In The Back Of Beyond Midnight Oil - the album thread track 12 Shipyards Of New Zealand Midnight Oil - the album thread Oils On Water - Live On Goat Island 1985 - Midnight Oil - the album thread Best of both worlds Midnight Oil - the album thread When the generals talk Midnight Oil - the album thread Minutes to midnight Midnight Oil - the album thread Sleep Midnight Oil - the album thread Only the strong Midnight Oil - the album thread Short memory Midnight Oil - the album thread Kosciuszko Midnight Oil - the album thread US forces Midnight Oil - the album thread Jimmy Sharman's Boxers Midnight Oil - the album thread Back on the borderline Midnight Oil - the album thread Tin legs and tin mines Midnight Oil - the album thread Don't wanna be the one Midnight Oil - the album thread Power and the passion Midnight Oil - the album thread Read about it Midnight Oil - the album thread Harrisburg Midnight Oil - the album thread Stand in line Midnight Oil - the album thread Species Deceases 1985 - Midnight Oil - the album thread track 1 Progress Midnight Oil - the album thread track 2 Hercules Midnight Oil - the album thread track 3 Blossom and Blood Midnight Oil - the album thread track 4 Pictures Midnight Oil - the album thread Diesel and Dust 1987 - Midnight Oil - the album thread track 1 Beds are burning Midnight Oil - the album thread track 2 Put down that weapon Midnight Oil - the album thread track 3 Dreamworld Midnight Oil - the album thread track 4 Arctic world Midnight Oil - the album thread track 5 Warakuma Midnight Oil - the album thread track 6 The dead heart Midnight Oil - the album thread The dead heart - extended version - Midnight Oil - the album thread track 7 Whoah Midnight Oil - the album thread track 8 Bullroarer Midnight Oil - the album thread track 9 Sell my soul Midnight Oil - the album thread track 10 Sometimes Midnight Oil - the album thread Sometimes live - bootleg - Midnight Oil - the album thread Sometimes live 1989 - Midnight Oil - the album thread track 11 Gunbarrel Highway Midnight Oil - the album thread Blue Sky Mining 1990 = Midnight Oil - the album thread track 1 Blue sky mine Midnight Oil - the album thread track 2 Stars of Warburton Midnight Oil - the album thread track 3 Bedlam Bridge Midnight Oil - the album thread track 4 Forgotten years Midnight Oil - the album thread Midnight Oil and Exxon - Midnight Oil - the album thread Peter Garret and Jimmy Barnes (live) - Dreams of ordinary men (Dragon) - Midnight Oil - the album thread - Locomotive Breath (Jethro Tull) - Midnight Oil - the album thread
Stop bumping please, Mark. I am following this thread for new posts, it's annoying to find the only new post is a "bump".
Man, did The Killers pull out a cracking version of Forgotten Years at last years AFL Grand Final, or what?
I go for place without a postcard. Hard to get a decent vinyl of it tho. Got a pristine copy of diesel and dust.
Great powerful songs on Postcard, but the mix is a bit murky in places, especially Written In The Heart, which is restrained when it should have soared. Brave Faces is in my Oils top 3.
I'm a french fan and my son (17) dicovered them this year and love them (but they're not popular in the youth, not popular at all except one song).
that is so people who haven't seen the thread yet may get a chance to. it is less likely when languishing on pages 10-14
A real suprise at the time. I was reminded of Johnette Napolitano of Concrete Blonde fame covering Beds Are Burning at her solo shows during one her Aussie tours.
Mountains Of Burma I had to have a chuckle to myself, I have been listening to this song to get a feel for it over the last couple of weeks, and I could have sworn he was singing Mountains of birds .... I just brought up the song and lyrics and had an aha! moment ... I had been wondering what the Mountains of birds song was about lol ..... Anyhow this is a slow tempo song, with a lot of atmosphere. Midnight Oil had become so adept at writing at this point they didn't write any bad songs. Towards the end of the song we get guitars with bite that appeals to some of us who were a little more fond of the earlier songs. This is a good track. Lyrics The tucker box is empty now, the heart of Kelly's country cleared The gangers on the southern line, like the steam trains have disappeared Pelicans glide, miracles up in the sky We vote for the government, with axes in his eyes Mountains of Burma, the road to Mandalay In the mountains of Burma, light years away, mountains of Burma Will the sons of Solidarity, still march on May Day And will the sisters of the seventies, still fight for equal pay There's no on eon the Reeperbahn, no more blankets handed out for land We feed an economy, that's got blood on it's hands Mountains of Burma... Pack your bags full of guns and ammunition Bills fall due for the industrial revolution Scorch the earth till the earth surrenders Soldiers of armies, storm empty fields In a traveller's trance, on the way to the high frontier Sleepwalkers stumble, cable cars run aground Imaginary enemies, form high above the clouds In the Mountains of Burma...
