G'day.
As you'd imagine, being a subject on Australian Story G'day.
As you'd imagine, being a subject on Australian Story
As you'd imagine, being a subject takes a fair bit of time.
And that means there are some notable Australians
who have led amazing lives
who we simply haven't been able to feature because they are too busy.
This year, every now and again,
we're going to try something different
so we can take you inside their lives.
First up is somebody we've hoped to have on the program for decades,
Australian music legend and environmental activist
Midnight Oil frontman Peter Garrett.
(INTRO OF MIDNIGHT OIL'S 'BLUE SKY MINE')
PETER GARRETT: I'm not a stage-fright person.
I love to have a go. So I did.
I've served in high office. I've been in an amazing band.
You know, I got kissed on the arse by that rainbow, no question.
Occasionally I've been booted as well.
Occasionally I've been booted You show no remorse.
You show no concern.
Once stuff's happened, you can't change that.
There's nothing, although I think about the past,
that's going to change what happened in the past.
So I really do tend to concentrate on...on the mo.
LEIGH: Come and sit in, Pete.
They're kind of chairs you sink right into. LEIGH: Come and sit in, Pete.
They're kind of chairs you sink right into.
Trying to get the heights right? Yeah.
So if you sit in and just see if you're comfortable, and then...
And then we can put more cushions in. Is that alright?
I'm absolutely happy.
Alright. Everyone happy?
Everyone's phone's off?
And... Everyone's phone's off?
And... Yeah, I've put mine away.
And... OK. OK.
Um...Pete, I found out before,
we are actually in the location
where you recorded a fair bit of this new album.
Your producer told me that he had to clean some scuff marks off the floor
because you've got so much physicality when you're recording
that, um, yes, you left little traces of Peter Garrett here.
With every record I've been involved with, you know,
I really do like to just try and get as deep into it as I possibly can,
and I'm shutting everything else out a little bit.
And, you know, if that means that the odd door gets leant on
or a mic gets wrangled in the process,
then I don't really notice that.
You know, I'm so, like...
I get very intense about
the business of actually trying to communicate
the lyric or the song or the idea into that microphone,
the lyric or the song or the idea into that mixing desk,
and then wherever it goes after that.
There's an element of obsession in it for us who do this stuff,
which says to yourself, "OK, when I get out of here,
"I will go and buy the milk, and I'll walk the dog
"and I'll do those things,
"and life will have that degree of normalcy," which I treasure.
But when I'm in this zone, this very special, rare place,
I'm just going to forget all of that,
and I'm just going to really try and pour my guts into
and I'm just going to really what it is I'm doing.
And we're talking about rock here, what it is I'm doing.
And we're talking about rock here, Leigh.
It's 4/4 time.
There's five or six chords.
You know, it's not rocket science, in a way,
but getting it to work well is much more about feel
than it is about, you know, technical prowess.
So how do you decide when something's going to be
So how do you decide a solo project versus a band project?
Well, I mean, the Oils have always done side projects,
Well, I mean, the Oils but Midnight Oil music came first.
So now that we've come off the road but Midnight Oil music came first.
So now that we've come off the road from touring full time,
there's a bit of space for a few songs to get taken up and used.
# The god of the schoolyard, shut out by the noise
# Last rites and the feasting
# Men acting like boys... #
Is it intimidating to put something out by yourself?
Uh, no, not really.
It's fun.
Uh, you get to call the shots.
I love sharing and collaborating with people,
and working with the Oils was one of the great big respect moments
of my entire working life.
But it's also lovely - and I'm sure the others say the same thing -
to be in a studio yourself,
and you're stirring the pot,
you're deciding what ingredients go in,
and you're fiddling around with your own thoughts
and you're fiddling around and your own way of approaching it,
as opposed to taking other people into account.
# It's said no-one's an island
# Nor it's meant to be
# Shouting at the night sky
# What's become of me?
# Oh, yeah... #
You've had a long career now.
Can you remember the first time You've had a long career now.
Can you remember the first time that you ever held
a Midnight Oil album in your hands and thought,
a Midnight Oil album in your hands "Oh, made an actual album"?
You know, it feels like yesterday.
(LAUGHS) No, really.
I mean...
Younger people watching this will sort of go, "Whatever,"
but people of my generation will go, "Yeah, you're damn right."
but people of my generation I mean, it just goes so fast.
It doesn't matter how many people say that to you.
Until you experience yourself, you're not ready for it.
You know, I googled your age before, and I went, "70?! What? No!
You know, I googled your age before, "He's not... He can't be 70."
Well, that's what I say "He's not... He can't be 70."
Well, that's what I say every morning, but...
Um, no, look, I do remember the joy of it.
I never thought that I'd get to make a record.
I wanted to share it with my gran, you know,
who didn't really understand the business at all
and said, "Oh, that's very nice, dear."
And so, how did you join Midnight Oil?
It's answering an ad in the Sydney Morning Herald
It's answering an ad put in there by Rob and Jim.
They had a schoolboy band that was touring up and down the coast.
And I loved to sing. I was in choirs at school.
And I loved to sing. I was in a church choir.
Technically, I probably wasn't I was in a church choir.
Technically, I probably wasn't much of a singer back in the day,
Technically, I probably wasn't but that wasn't the point.
It was what you brought to it.
Tell us about this bloke.
# Too busy making a living to make any money now... #
Really the first film clip we're looking at, isn't it?
Really the first film clip And we're very young.
And the voice is a little high And we're very young.
And the voice is a little high and there's a bit of hair.
I think this is the first clip we ever made.
So different to video clips of today.
Yeah. 25 minutes, one camera.
And I don't even know where it got showed, but, um...
And I don't even know Yeah, we're very young.
So how old do you reckon you are Yeah, we're very young.
So how old do you reckon you are there?
So how old do you reckon you are I'm thinking 22, 23 maybe.
(SINGS HIGH NOTE)
Most Australians know you with the shaved head.
What was the origin of that?
Oh, look, it's an old story What was the origin of that?
Oh, look, it's an old story that goes back to when, uh,
Andrew, my brother, and I were trying to get photos published
in a surfing magazine at the time.
We had an underwater camera, in a surfing magazine at the time.
We had an underwater camera, but we kept on getting frustrated.
Either the photos weren't good enough,
or there were strands of hair across the...
You know, because you had to print them in the old days.
You know, because you had to You couldn't just Photoshop it out.
So I got it cut short to...to deal with that
for being in the water a lot.
And when I got it cut very short,
I thought I looked like And when I got it cut very short,
I thought I looked like someone that worked in a bank
and I thought, "That's not right. I'm in a band."
So I got it all taken off, and that was what happened.
We all have these sliding doors moments in our lives.
We all have these sliding doors Do you ever stop and think,
"Jeez, well, what if I just hadn't read the paper that day?"
Or, "What if I hadn't got around to ringing?"
No, exactly.
And I was working on a building site,
and for me, it was an alternative to lugging bricks.
and for me, it was an alternative Do you believe in fate?
Uh, no, not in the sense that most people do.
But I believe in it the same way as I believe in luck.
I think fate plays a role, and I think luck plays a role,
but it only plays a role in dealing with
what the individual or the collective have brought to it.
Like, you just can't sit in a room by yourself sort of going... (HUMS)
..and then fate will sort of intervene.
You need to be out and about.
You need to be moving forward.
You need to be active. You need to be trying.
And then maybe occasionally, you know,
you might get a bit of a lift from the universe.
So, are you religious? Do you believe in God?
I used to be, uh, more religious than I am now.
I still believe in the imminence of...of...of creation, if you like.
I still believe in the imminence And the sense that what our...
..very inarticulate views of what God are
..very inarticulate views are worth having and sharing.
But I don't believe, um...
..and I don't subscribe to orthodox conventional religions at all.
..and I don't subscribe to orthodox And I think, you know, they're...
Particularly now, I think that And I think, you know, they're...
Particularly now, I think that they're not contributing
to the healing and the goodwill in the world.
What are your memories of the early gigs with the band
when you first started pulling decent-sized audiences?
You know, Rob is, without any question,
probably the finest visual drummer and physical drummer
that the country has ever produced -
maybe the world, you know -
as well as being a great singer and songwriter.
And to have Martin and Jim on either side...
(SINGS INDISTINCTLY)
..doing what they do with their guitars,
they're producing a textural interplay,
they're producing which is completely underrated.
And I'll be going, which is completely underrated.
And I'll be going, "Wow, listen to this..."
And I'll be going, I mean, for me, that's the thing.
I wasn't looking at the audience and thinking, "How can I impress you?"
I was listening to the band and thinking,
I was listening to the band "Wow, they're impressing me."
And that gave me the fuel.
Um, OK, how about this one?
(MIDNIGHT OIL PLAYS 'POWER AND THE PASSION')
That's the Capitol Theatre and it's the band...
..yeah, really playing seriously, as though its life depends on it,
..yeah, really playing seriously, which it actually did.
Because we'd come back with Place Without A Postcard.
We were broke. The record company overseas had dropped us.
We were broke. The record company # Oh, the power and the passion
# Sometimes you've got to take the hardest line. #
I think we were just ferociously determined
to prove to ourselves that what we were doing
to prove to ourselves had some worth and some value,
and that it was OK to sing about politics,
which is part of life.
And if the record company didn't like it, well, too bad.
And if the record company Here we were.
Greetings, New York.
This is Midnight Oil.
We decided to play some songs in the street for you today.
REPORTER: Peter Garrett and Midnight Oil
have won international acclaim for their music.
One American critic describes them as
simply the best rock band in the world,
but the medium also carries a message.
We chose a special location - the front of the Exxon Building.
I'll leave you to work out why.
Alright. Have a look at this one.
Goat Island, unquestionably.
I mean, it was amazing that we actually got the permission
I mean, it was amazing to do the show there.
We did this amazing broadcast.
And, yeah, it's one of those ones
where every single thing that could go right actually did go right,
including the big ship that came across
just as we were finishing US Forces.
# No stranger to brutality
# Now they'd like to be someone else
# No end to the hostility
# Now they wanna be somewhere... #
You're a very distinctive person, both in looks and talent.
You're a very distinctive person, How does that sit with you?
I don't really analyse myself much, Leigh.
I'm not very introverted or...
I don't spend a lot of time I'm not very introverted or...
I don't spend a lot of time hopefully gazing at my navel.
I just... I don't think about it too much.
I just go off and do. Just move through the world?
Pretty much.
When you first started out, did you actually kind of think about,
"Well, this is what I'm going to be like on stage.
"This is how I'm going to make my voice sound"?
"This is how I'm going No. Not at all.
And, I mean, I had Rob behind me,
which was incredible,
for that entire career.
I was just responding to the music.
You do get an energy from your audience.
Yeah. You know?
Exactly. An adrenaline.
Exactly. Now, where is...
I think this is the one I'm looking for.
Actually, that's doing the film clip Dead Heart,
and here are kids from Mutitjulu community dancing.
Such a special and important thing for us to do as a band.
Often remarked on,
but I think the legacy is incredible.
but I think It left an indelible imprint on us.
It changed us, It left an indelible imprint on us.
It changed us, made us better people,
It changed us, you know, it made us understand
that white Australia did have a black history,
and we made some friends there for life.
How about those kids? Kids are great.
They're just... And their inherent kind of musicality.
Absolutely. Yeah, yeah, yeah. No, no.
And it was always the case when you play to those remote communities,
a lot of people would sit back and...
And we were loud, um, probably too loud sometimes,
but the kids would just be straight up and in your face, you know,
dancing their heads off.
One of the most iconic moments in Australian music and activism
was Midnight Oil taking the stage
at the 2000 Sydney Olympic closing ceremony
dressed in black with the word 'sorry' emblazoned on you,
a reaction to the then prime minister John Howard's refusal
to apologise to the Stolen Generations.
What do you remember about the lead-up to that performance
and taking the stage?
So we knew that when we were asked to do it, we would do something.
We had a lot of toing and froing and discussion, very Midnight Oil.
And in some ways, that was just pretty consistent
with how we were doing things previously.
with how we were doing things We'd done actions of all kinds,
sometimes to only a handful of people.
It just happened to be a much bigger audience this time.
I mean, I realised it was going to work when suddenly I could just see
this huge wave of athletes from all countries
running towards us, you know, waving their hands in the air.
And then you saw the crowd go up in the stands,
with the exception of Mr and Mrs Howard.
And I just felt that it was a summation of what we'd done
over the years
to be in that spot at that time,
and to pull it off without falling flat on our faces.
The song you sang was Beds Are Burning.
I'd say the first three chords of that song
are possibly the most recognisable and iconic opening
in Australian music history.
(INTRO OF 'BEDS ARE BURNING') # Bam, bam, bam. #
I reckon 95% of people over the age of 40 could identify that song
from the opening two seconds.
Can you recall how those stark chords came to be there?
Can you recall how those stark chords No.
(LAUGHS) No.
(LAUGHS) Sorry, Leigh.
Get him out. Get Rob Hirst in. (LAUGHS)
Get him out. Get Rob Hirst in. We were mucking around with it...
Um, I mean, it was written before we went out into the desert,
Um, I mean, it was written in its initial phase.
I mean, Rob had this great chorus,
you know, so we thought, "Oh, that's such a strong chorus."
you know, so we thought, The words were fantastic.
And it was just a case of how would The words were fantastic.
And it was just a case of how would the band make a song from that?
And we were fiddling around with things over time.
And I think that either Jim, or Rob and Jim, or Martin,
they were playing and they just came up with...
This is how we're going to sort of get in there,
keep it as simple and as truncated, in a way, as possible
keep it as simple and as truncated, before you pick up on that beat.
('BEDS ARE BURNING' PLAYS)
# Out where the river broke... #
I mean, look, everybody brings whatever they can
I mean, look, everybody brings to a song like that,
and we just were able, to a song like that,
and we just were able, on this occasion at least,
and we just were able, to bring something to it
which lifted it up to where it needed to be.
# The time has come
# To say fair's fair... #
And this idea of "the time has come",
I always thought that we needed to recognise
the urgency of the time that we were in
and just have a way of just, you know, almost barking that out.
But then you come back into the choruses...
# How can we dance when our earth is turning?
# How do we sleep while our beds are burning? #
Midnight Oil, 'cause you always did sing about politics,
you could have ended up being a niche band
because maybe half the audience would be alienated from the lyrics.
But the exact opposite thing happened.
But the exact opposite thing You've extreme mainstream popularity.
How do you explain that?
Well, I think it's partly down to the music and the songwriting,
in as much as there's plenty there for people to get into,
even if they don't want to listen to the words straightaway.
But also we're not really saying, "This is what you've got to think."
We're saying, "This is what we think."
We're saying, (ABC NEWS THEME PLAYS)
WOMAN: Tonight, speculation over.
Peter Garrett joins the Labor ranks,
saying he's ready for the Canberra challenge.
OK. This is a political montage.
I, Peter Robert Garrett,
do swear that I will well and truly I, Peter Robert Garrett,
do swear that I will well and truly serve the Commonwealth of Australia.
do swear that I will well and truly Well, yeah.
I mean, coming into politics
and all the media attention I mean, coming into politics
and all the media attention that you'd expect.
Were you ready for that, 'cause you had a profile?
Oh, look, it comes with the turf, I suppose.
Even the combative side of it, when you're getting criticised,
maybe unfairly, by people on the other side.
maybe unfairly, It's all a part of it.
"The time has come It's all a part of it.
"The time has come to say fair's fair."
SPEAKER: Order. (LAUGHTER)
There's a bit of mockery because you had the high profile
with Peter Costello,
with the, you know... Yeah, the silly dancing.
with the, you know... BOTH: Yeah.
In politics you have to compromise and be accountable in a way
that you just don't have to when you're an activist or an advocate.
What did being on the inside teach you?
Well, it taught me how important government is.
I mean, I already knew that before I went in.
I mean, I already knew that It's partly why I did.
But it taught me how important it is, and how,
if government gets it right, it can make big changes
that...that improve the lives of people in a country.
It also was a reflection of this idea
that you never really want to see how a sausage is made
before you...before you chomp on it with your tomato sauce,
because it is a long, interminable, sometimes conflicted process.
But that's the nature of the beast.
And I think that we hold our politics up, quite rightly,
to the light of inquiry and criticism.
But I think we need to do it in a realistic way
But I think we need to do it to recognise that
we haven't worked through the best way to be democratic.
It's a work in progress.
I think you wrote something in your book, like
from the day you get there until the day you leave,
from the day you get there it's an exercise in losing skin.
Yeah. Well, that goes without saying.
I mean, it's partly the adversarial nature of politics.
I mean, there were people on the other side of the house
that wanted to say anything they could
about people on that...our side.
And, look, I was a high-profile entrance to politics.
And most of those people have found that situation pretty difficult
and probably not lasted at all.
I was the only non-factionalised member of the cabinet.
I was in the cabinet for two terms.
It's a tremendous honour,
and you're doing things which hopefully make a difference.
and you're doing things Politics is a bit like life in that
you never can be quite sure Politics is a bit like life in that
you never can be quite sure what's going to come along,
who's going to be up, who's going to be down.
Was Anthony Albanese someone that you envisaged
becoming PM one day?
Not really. No.
MAN: And then...
I mean, when I was MAN: And then...
I mean, when I was in the parliament,
Anthony was the manager of government business in the House
as well as a senior cabinet minister.
as well as So his capacity was pretty clear.
But, uh, no, I didn't really think
that necessarily that's where he was going to end up,
that necessarily but I'm glad he has.
Do you follow it closely now?
Not as closely as I probably did when I first got out,
Not as closely as I probably did but, uh, look, close enough.
What's your earliest memory?
My earliest memory is, uh, believe it or not,
under a Hills Hoist clothesline looking at a blue sky.
There you go. Wow.
There you go. Yeah. Born in Australia.
Very sadly, you lost your dad as a teenager
when he died of an asthma attack.
And then, tragically, your mum perished in a house fire
And then, tragically, when you were in your early 20s,
and you were the only other person when you were in your early 20s,
and you were the only other person in the house,
that you tried to rescue her, but that it was impossible.
I'm so sorry that that happened to you.
Well, um, thank you for reflecting that back, Leigh.
And I've got a fair distance between that event and today,
and the only abiding memory I have of -
apart from the affection that you have from your mum
and the sense that
there was something about that that was quite difficult -
is to know what she was like as a person,
and if I find bits and pieces of that in my life or in others,
and if I find bits and pieces then I can really celebrate it.
And so that's really honouring the life that she lived.
And, look, you don't have to look far or wide
to see people going through unimaginable stuff every day.
You know, this is...this is what life's like.
I mean, if you're in a war zone,
you're experiencing grief and suffering and stuff
you're experiencing grief 10-fold, 100-fold, 1,000-fold
beyond what I experienced.
So I just try and honour her memory.
But I also didn't let myself get defined by it,
because I think I was lucky enough,
or perhaps just had an insight that I needed to keep moving again.
And...I thought about this before I came into chat with you,
And...I thought about this before because I thought...
I'm a bit surprised that I'm making a record now.
I'm a bit surprised that songs have been dropping out of the sky.
I'm a bit surprised that I've still got this real appetite to do it,
I'm a bit surprised that I've still and this real energy to do it.
And I don't know whether that's and this real energy to do it.
And I don't know whether that's just DNA, got a bit lucky with DNA,
or whether it's a mental thing of mental discipline.
or whether it's a mental thing Maybe it's a combination of all.
But I do know that part of it Maybe it's a combination of all.
But I do know that part of it is having this sense that
But I do know that part of it you're a sitting duck
if you just sit there complaining and doing nothing.
Whatever you're doing, wherever you are in this world,
Whatever you're doing, particularly in Oz, keep moving.
What do you think was the effect on you of losing both your parents
quite early in your life?
Uh, it probably made me a bit more independent...
..independently minded.
Um...I mean, I'm the eldest of...
I've got two other brothers,
and so you tend to be I've got two other brothers,
and so you tend to be a little bit responsible
and, you know, want to sort of take charge and do all of that.
There's no surprises with me that that's what I'm like as a person.
I think it also just taught me that, you know,
life's incredibly precious.
And it...I mean, I lived on the North Shore of Sydney,
you know, I mean...
Apart from, you know, a bunch you know, I mean...
Apart from, you know, a bunch of sort of high rollers in Monaco,
Apart from, you know, a bunch you know, it doesn't get any better.
And, uh, and then suddenly... they're gone.
So it's...it's a very quick lesson in how precious life is,
and that absolute cliche, but deep truth -
and that absolute cliche, make the most of every day.
What would you say to people right make the most of every day.
What would you say to people right now who are going through something
and they feel like it's too much, it's irrecoverable?
Uh, well, it will pass, or it can pass.
Uh, well, it will pass, That's the first thing I'd say.
The second thing is that
I think most of us are stronger The second thing is that
I think most of us are stronger than we actually think.
Uh, and that when our backs are right up against the wall,
you can dig in and find a strength or a resilience,
but you need to share with somebody.
You need to have someone that you can talk to,
and to find that person, family member, friend,
or even a professional person to help you
to discover the strength that we all have,
and if we don't have enough strength
to find people that can help us through that moment.
to find people that can help us Uh, this is from your book.
It's a montage of you and Doris Uh, this is from your book.
It's a montage of you and Doris and the kids.
It's a montage of you and Doris It's just lots of different shots.
Oh, I'll get emotional now. (LAUGHS)
Our wedding. And...
How many years ago is that now?
Uh, 38 years, maybe.
Wow. Which is incredible.
Wow. Uh, my sweetheart.
And our first on the beach,
where we used to spend quite a bit of time.
where we used to spend A beautiful woman.
Yeah. Look, we...
How lucky am I? I can't say much more.
Super, super lucky. Yeah. Super, super lucky.
And the kids are all grown up now. Yeah, no, exactly.
Little kids aren't there anymore. They're big kids.
Yeah. No, no. There they are as... as younger ones.
If anybody gets an opportunity to have family, um...
..it's the rarest, most special, but most common of all things.
And my challenge - and I try and say this to myself every day -
is not to take it for granted.
Here I am with my girls, and couldn't be happier, really.
(CHUCKLES) Dressed up a bit, but...
Do you get to see them a lot? Everyone...
Oh, we're close. Yeah, we are a close family.
And we value the relationships greatly.
And we see one another as much as we can
without the old man and the old woman getting in their way.
without the old man and (LAUGHS)
How important has your wife, (LAUGHS)
How important has your wife, Doris, been in enabling you
to live large and make bold decisions?
Uh, more important than anyone could know.
I mean, she's chosen to...
We've chosen for her to have a private life,
and she's had a private professional life.
But she is, without any question, the...the absolute rock.
But she is, without any question, And, uh...
Yeah, more than words can express, Leigh.
You write in your memoir, Big Blue Sky, that in the early '90s,
when you joined the board of Greenpeace,
when you joined the board you should have paused...
(READS) "As I'd intended to give more time to Doris and our marriage,
"but I failed to appreciate how necessary it is...
"..this was at the time.
"She was the light of my life,
"but I wasn't around enough "She was the light of my life,
"but I wasn't around enough to kindle the flame."
How did you - for lack of a better word -
How did you - wake up to yourself?
(BOTH LAUGH)
Well, it took me a while, so I was pretty slow
and a bit selfish on that.
Uh...and I think that...
..I partly woke up to myself because
I was flying back from wherever ..I partly woke up to myself because
I was flying back from wherever and just thinking,
I was flying back from wherever "I've been away for too long."
Partly because of the conversations that Doris and I were able to have,
and she'd been remarkably forgiving and staunch.
But even for someone as strong as her,
there was a point where she had to say to me, "Hey," you know?
there was a point where she had to "Look at what's happening here."
And I think I needed to realise that
to value the relationship And I think I needed to realise that
to value the relationship and the marriage,
and to...and to keep the marriage strong and going well,
I needed to try and make some changes.
As you said at the start too, you know, your first album,
As you said at the start too, you took it around to show your gran,
you can be Peter Garrett,
you can be the lead singer of you can be Peter Garrett,
you can be the lead singer of the biggest rock band in the world,
but if you don't have anyone to share that with and talk to about it,
but if you don't have anyone to then what is it?
No, absolutely.
And, you know, I look at a lot of my contemporaries,
and the history of modern rock is littered with people who,
you know, get to the dizzying heights,
you know, and within a second, you know,
they're down in the gutter,
and they're dissolute, they're down in the gutter,
and they're dissolute, or they're dead,
and they're dissolute, uh, and often lonely.
So, yeah, no, I think...
I mean, I think that So, yeah, no, I think...
I mean, I think that Midnight Oil itself
didn't have this all-consuming desire to be, you know, the...
didn't have this all-consuming ..at the top,
to scale the charts, to get bigger and bigger,
to scale the charts, to earn more and more money.
Um....and we all to earn more and more money.
Um....and we all in different times said,
"No, we can't live anywhere else to do this.
"We need to be able to come back home,
"we need to be able to reconnect with our families,
"we need to be able to "with our loved ones."
It gives us that sense of who we are.
We would have been adrift on the sea
if we had ended up in LA or New York for too long.
I don't know what would have happened,
but I suspect it wouldn't have been pretty.
There was one photo left, sorry, that I forgot to show you.
There was one photo left, sorry, Alright.
Who's this dude and what's he doing?
This is taken in Byron Bay before it got, uh,
overtaken by real estate developers and influencers.
(BOTH LAUGH) This was a much better Byron period.
(BOTH LAUGH) Waiting for a wave, no doubt.
Yeah, definitely. This was the golden surfing era.
That is the golden surfing era. Yeah, no question.
So do you still surf? No, I don't.
Well, I've just developed a really weird, um,
allergy thing to cold water, unfortunately, which is just...
It's like a medical thing which keeps me out of cold water.
So if it's warm, I'll go in, but otherwise I can't.
So if it's warm, I'll go in, Was that a big loss?
Yeah, it was.
Yeah, it was a big loss.
Uh, it's a weird thing that came about,
actually just when I went into politics,
and it was meant to go away after five or six years.
Actually, it's funny because when I thought...
When I walked out of the Parliament, I thought,
"I'll bet," you know, "my weird condition that stops me surfing
"will go away."
But it stayed, so... Oh.
With this new album, True North,
the themes are consistent with the themes
that have preoccupied you your whole adult life -
the environment, Indigenous rights, and so on.
There's lots of different things people can care about.
Why do you think, for you, those two things
are the things that have really weighed on you?
are the things that have really On the environment,
someone said, "Look, we've got a first-world economy
"and a third-world approach to thinking about nature,"
"and a third-world approach which I happen to agree with.
And if we talk about Indigenous rights,
the modern Australian state in many ways is a great success story,
except that we've got one big thing which we need to get right,
which is how the country came into being,
and the fact that there actually were
Australian Indigenous people here first, and it was taken from them.
And I've always felt that if we...we got that right,
if we settled that first dispossession,
that first original sin, if you like,
then the prospects of the country are great.
So...because you're not carrying around this stuff
that's inside of you, making you feel a bit uncomfortable,
you don't really want to look or think about it.
you don't really want So you're 70 now.
You've just done this new album.
What are your plans from here?
How would you like the rest of your life to look?
Uh, so I don't look that much ahead.
I really do try and take it day to day.
I really do try and take it I firmly believe in it's the moment.
You know, it's carpe diem, isn't it? Seize the day, you know?
And I'm a great adherent to that idea.
And I just really value...
..the extraordinary circumstance of still being here at this time,
talking to you with these songs and with this energy.
I'll keep doing what I'm doing until, um, at some point
I get lowered into the ground or scattered into the sea,
and then you'll probably hear this faint echo from a distance,
"I've got more to say."
# You say times are tough
# We've got the best # You say times are tough
# We've got the best of both worlds here
# We've got the best # Things are rough
# We've got the best of both worlds here
# Times are tough
# We've got the best of both worlds... #
Captions by Red Bee Media
Copyright Australian Broadcasting Corporation