"Solid Rock" is a song written by Shane Howard and recorded by Australian rock band Goanna. The song deals with issues of land rights for Indigenous Australians and was released in September 1982[1] as the lead single from the band's debut studio album, Spirit of Place. "Solid Rock" peaked at number 3 on the Australian Kent Music Report.
| "Solid Rock" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Goanna | ||||
| from the album Spirit of Place | ||||
| Released | 6 September 1982[1] | |||
| Genre | Rock | |||
| Length | 4:28 | |||
| Label | WEA Records | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Shane Howard | |||
| Producer(s) | Trevor Lucas | |||
| Goanna singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
At the 1982 Countdown Music and Video Awards, "Solid Rock" won Best Debut Single.[2]
In January 2018, as part of Triple M's "Ozzest 100", the 'most Australian' songs of all time, "Solid Rock" was ranked number 13.[3]
In 2021, MTV Classic ranked the song 10th during their special Top 100 Big in the 80s countdown.
Background and release edit
According to Howard, the inspiration came on a ten-day camping trip at Uluru (also known as Ayers Rock) during 1980 where he had a "spiritual awakening" which brought "the fire in the belly" to the surface over injustices to Australia’s indigenous peoples. Howard said "I realised that this country that I grew up in, that I thought was my country, wasn't. I had to reassess my whole relationship with the land and the landscape, and understand that we had come from somewhere else, and we had dis-empowered a whole race of people when we arrived."[4]
WEA were reluctant to release it as a single and Howard initially had reservations about whether commercial radio would play it because of its politically sensitive theme but Howard insisted on its release to make a statement about the European invasion of Australia.[4][5] The song was released in September 1982.
Australian musicologist, Ian McFarlane, described it as "a damning indictment of the European invasion of Australia."[6]
Track listing edit
- 7" WEA Records (100223)
Side A: "Solid Rock" – 4:28
Side B: "Four Weeks Gone" – 5:42
Charts edit
Weekly charts edit
| Chart (1982/83) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australia (Kent Music Report)[7][8] | 3 |
| US Billboard Hot 100[9] | 71 |
Year-end charts edit
| Chart (1982) | Position |
|---|---|
| Australia (Kent Music Report)[7] | 57 |
| Chart (1983) | Position |
| Australia (Kent Music Report)[10] | 56 |
Cover versions edit
- In 1994, Shane Howard recorded the song on his album Live in Ireland, Australia and New Zealand.
- In 2009, Street Warriors featuring Shannon Noll released a version of "Solid Rock"[11]
- In 2011, heavy metal band Darker Half covered the song on their album Desensitized.
- In 2014 Heavy Metal band Dead Kelly covered Solid Rock on their YouTube Chanel
- In 2016, Scott Darlow featuring Shane Howard released a version of "Solid Rock"[12]
- In 2017, Jessica Mauboy covered the song on her album The Secret Daughter Season Two: Songs from the Original 7 Series.
- in 2017 Robbie Miller created a slow acoustic version.
- In 2020, The Waifs, John Butler, Jordi Davieson, Carla Geneve performed a cover of "Solid Rock"[13] during the Fire Aid concert, a benefit performance for the people affected by the 2020 bushfires.
- Also in 2020, Amanda Palmer covered the song on Forty-Five Degrees: Bushfire Flash Record, a benefit release supporting the Firestick Alliance.
- in 2023 WildHeart made a heavy metal cover of Solid Rock in a double song album with another song Sacred Ground somewhat of a spin off of Solid Rock
References edit
- ^ a b "Platterlog: Singles – Supplementary Page: 46 > 6 September 1982". Platterlog. Retrieved 22 January 2023 – via Imgur.com.
- ^ "Countdown Date: 19/4/1983". Countdown Archives. Retrieved 4 December 2008.
- ^ "Here Are The Songs That Made Triple M's 'Ozzest 100'". Musicfeeds. 27 January 2018. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
- ^ a b Choudry, Aziz (7 November 2002). "Sweet and Dangerous Music: Soundtrack for a Secret Country". Shane Howard. Archived from the original on 17 February 2011. Retrieved 19 August 2010.
- ^ Kruger, Debbie (July–August 2002). "They Wrote the Songs Pt2". APrap. Retrieved 19 August 2010.
- ^ McFarlane, Ian (1999). "Encyclopedia entry for 'Goanna'". Encyclopedia of Australian Rock and Pop. St Leonards, NSW: Allen & Unwin. ISBN 1-86508-072-1. Archived from the original on 24 June 2004.
- ^ a b "National Top 100 Singles for 1982". Kent Music Report. 3 January 1983. Retrieved 22 January 2023 – via Imgur.
- ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
- ^ "Goanna | Billboard". www.billboard.com. Archived from the original on 11 October 2018.
- ^ "Kent Music Report – National Top 100 Singles for 1983". Kent Music Report. Retrieved 22 January 2023 – via Imgur.com.
- ^ "Solid Rock feat. Shannon Noll". iTunes Australia. 4 September 2009. Retrieved 15 August 2018.
- ^ "Solid Rock feat Shane Howard". iTunes Australia. Retrieved 15 August 2018.
- ^ "Solid Rock Cover-The Waifs-Freemantle Arts Center Jan 30, 2020". Blanca. Retrieved 2 February 2020.
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