![]() ![]() They rightfully deserve the moral high ground.) *(seems like Garret is linking the plight of the aboriginal peoples to the struggles the worlds working classes face with imperialism, colonisation etc.- They have also had to adapt quickly -to things like globalization etc. Workers of the world, run to the top of the mountain (back to methodical western routine and industry, but gives more of an impression of raping the land of its resources with words like burning) *(reference to Peter Brock, who is a white mans idol- on posters and up on bedroom walls) ‘We were here first, in my heart I know we are the real owners of the land’ (Kings are land owners.)īlacksmith fires up the bellows, cane cutters burning the load *(think of westerners vanity, desire for fame and money and idolisation of celebrity) ‘we don’t need your materialistic bullshit’ *(White man’s names)- aboriginal person saying ‘I don’t give a shit who you are’ Well you can say you're Peter, say you're Paul The moral high ground is occupied by the aboriginal land owners, the moral vacuum by the white men who stole their land.) It is casting a shadow over the consciences of the wrongdoers in the moral valley below. Mountain in the shadow of light, rain in the valley below Peter Brock was also known as Paul, and is also referred to whilst linking the themes. Panorama) and the valley below (Macquarie River Valley.) A Bathurst race is notorious for having different weather conditions on different parts of the track at the same time, as a result of the unusual topography. The Pre-Chorus appears to be about the mountain (Mt. ![]() *(Run to the top of the mountain- Find your deserved pride during this ‘bad storm’- time of moral injustice.) *(the aboriginals intuition about the land which was developed and refined over many centuries, has to be adapted in a very short amount of time to cope with new problems.) *(white man thinking about his own problems and ignoring the fact they are occupying the aboriginals land.)īad storm coming, better run to the top of the mountain *(The aboriginal people witness the white man not only staying, but establishing roots to the land, developing industry and taking complete control without any regard for the natives.) *(the aboriginal man is submissive to the new white faces, and waits patiently for them to go) *(this is the key link to understanding the secondary story.) Yellow belly black snake, sleeping on a red rock *(evokes images of an aboriginal bushman walking through the Australian grassland, quietly, peacefully and in harmony with the land) Walking through the high dry grass, pushing my way through slow The first verse is a description of the environment around Mt Panorama during Bathurst, and the people rushing through crowds to find a viewpoint for the event In this story, the King and the mountain relates to the Aboriginal people, rightful owners of the land, and the moral high ground respectively. A second but deeper level relates to a common theme in Midnight Oil’s lyrics, the plight of the marginalised Australian Aborigines. Peter Brock, repeat winner of the race, is the King of the Mountain. ![]() One is the story of Peter Brock, an Australian ‘working class hero’, and a description of a Bathurst race at Mt Panorama. I think this song was designed to work on two very different levels. ![]()
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