'On 10 September 2001, Midnight Oil were in a Sydney studio preparing for a handful of local shows before a seven-week tour of North America. The following morning we woke up to find that nineteen terrorists had attacked the United States, killing an unknown number of innocent people.'
Rob Hirst is perhaps best known as the drummer from Australia's legendary Midnight Oil, a band that's been together 25 years. Although he has co-written all the Oils' anthem-like songs, this is his first foray into prose writing.
'Willie's Bar & Grill' (being the band's hangout after gigs - their tour manager's hotel room) charts the US tour for Midnight Oil's most recent album 'Capricornia'; a tour that took place directly after September 11. Taken from notes Rob made in his diary every day, it details how ordinary Americans appear to be coping after the catastrophic events of that day.
In amongst this more serious side, there's a great dose of humour - stories about the characters the band meets, the places they go, some of the gigs (good and bad) they performed, what it's like to be home, and personal portraits of the members of one of the most respected rock bands in Australia's history.
Shortly before finishing this book, however, Peter Garrett, the charismatic lead singer of the band, decided to call it a day. In a revealing final chapter, Rob talks about this decision and what it means for a band that's been together for so long.
