Midnight Oil - Red Sails in the Sunset (1984)

Midnight Oil - Red Sails in the Sunset (1984)

Tracklist front / back album covers

Side one

1. "When the Generals Talk"   3:32

2. "Best of Both Worlds"   4:05

3. "Sleep"   5:09

4. "Minutes to Midnight"   3:20

5. "Jimmy Sharman's Boxers"   7:10

6. "Bakerman"   0:52

Side two

7. "Who Can Stand in the Way"   4:33

8. "Kosciusko"   4:47

9. "Helps Me Helps You"   3:44

10. "Harrisburg"   3:46

11. "Bells and Horns in the Back of Beyond"   3:30

12. "Shipyards of New Zealand"   5:53

Midnight Oil Band Members / Musicians

Peter Garrett – lead vocals (except tracks 1, 8)

Peter Gifford – bass guitar, backing vocals, Chapman stick (tracks 3, 7)

Rob Hirst – drums, percussion, backing vocals, lead vocals (tracks 1, 8)

Jim Moginie – guitars, keyboards, arrangements (brass, string)

Martin Rotsey – guitars

Charlie McMahon – didgeridoo (track 9)

Kazufumi Ohhama – arrangements (brass, string)

Producer – Nick Launay, Midnight Oil at Victor Aoyama Studio, Tokyo, Japan

Live production – Michael Lippold

Engineer – Gary Fox, Nick Launay

Assistant Engineer – Yoshi Yuki Kaneko, Shigeo Miyamoto

Mixing – Nick Launay at Victor Aoyama Studio, Tokyo, Japan

Business consultant – Gary Morris

Lighting – Ronnie James

Office coordinator – Stephanie Lewis

Tour Manager – Neil Thompson

Yasutaka Kato – cover design, design, graphic design

Tsunehisa Kimura – artwork, cover art

Red Sails in the Sunset is the 5th studio album by Australian group Midnight Oil which was released in October 1984 under the Columbia Records label. It was recorded and produced in Tokyo, Japan and is significant for becoming their first No. 1 album in Australia – it also entered the United States Billboard 200. The cover image, by Japanese artist Tsunehisa Kimura, depicts Sydney Harbour after a hypothetical nuclear strike. Some of its tracks were performed live in January 1985 at a Sydney Harbour Goat Island concert to celebrate radio station Triple J's 10th birthday, which was simulcast on ABC Television and subsequently re-broadcast on their then-Tuesday night music program Rock Arena. In 2004 the film footage later became part of a DVD album, Best of Both Worlds. Red Sails in the Sunset contains the only Midnight Oil tracks with lead vocals provided by their drummer Rob Hirst, "When the Generals Talk" and "Kosciusko". The album spawned two singles, "When the Generals Talk" and "Best of Both Worlds" but neither appeared on the Australian singles chart.

At the 1984 Countdown Music Awards, the album was nominated for Best Australian Album.