Midnight Oil on 'Thicke of the Night'

Most people probably know Midnight Oil best for songs like "Beds Are Burning" and "Blue Sky Mining" which were hits here in the United States. My first exposure to the band was back in the mid-80s when their first album to get a US release – the brilliant, flawless "10,9,8,7,6,5,4,3,2,1" – was out and the band was trying to drum up support.

One of their promotional appearances was on Alan Thicke's late night talk show, 'Thicke of the Night.' The show was the same mindless pap you'd see on Carson, but Thicke had a knack for booking great musical guests. I distinctly remember The Tubes playing on the show one night and I'll never forget when Midnight Oil was on, along with the LA Rams Cheerleaders (that'll give you an idea how old a clip we're talking about).

Keep an eye on the clip about two-thirds of the way through when lead singer Peter Garrett begins lighting newspaper on fire and a stage hand has to run up to keep the stage from going up in flames...