Solid Rock (Goanna song)

"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
Released6 September 1982[1]
GenreRock
Length4:28
LabelWEA Records
Songwriter(s)Shane Howard
Producer(s)Trevor Lucas
Goanna singles chronology
"Solid Rock"
(1982)
"Razor's Edge"
(1983)

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

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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

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7" WEA Records (100223)

Side A: "Solid Rock" – 4:28
Side B: "Four Weeks Gone" – 5:42

Charts

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Weekly charts

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Weekly chart performance for "Solid Rock"
Chart (1982/83) Peak
position
Australia (Kent Music Report)[7][8] 3
US Billboard Hot 100[9] 71

Year-end charts

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Year-end chart performance for "Solid Rock"
Chart (1982) Position
Australia (Kent Music Report)[7] 57
Chart (1983) Position
Australia (Kent Music Report)[10] 56

Cover versions

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References

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  1. ^ a b "Platterlog: Singles – Supplementary Page: 46 > 6 September 1982". Platterlog. Retrieved 22 January 2023 – via Imgur.com.
  2. ^ "Countdown Date: 19/4/1983". Countdown Archives. Retrieved 4 December 2008.
  3. ^ "Here Are The Songs That Made Triple M's 'Ozzest 100'". Musicfeeds. 27 January 2018. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
  4. ^ 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.
  5. ^ Kruger, Debbie (July–August 2002). "They Wrote the Songs Pt2". APrap. Retrieved 19 August 2010.
  6. ^ 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.
  7. ^ a b "National Top 100 Singles for 1982". Kent Music Report. 3 January 1983. Retrieved 22 January 2023 – via Imgur.
  8. ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  9. ^ "Goanna | Billboard". www.billboard.com. Archived from the original on 11 October 2018.
  10. ^ "Kent Music Report – National Top 100 Singles for 1983". Kent Music Report. Retrieved 22 January 2023 – via Imgur.com.
  11. ^ "Solid Rock feat. Shannon Noll". iTunes Australia. 4 September 2009. Retrieved 15 August 2018.
  12. ^ "Solid Rock feat Shane Howard". iTunes Australia. Retrieved 15 August 2018.
  13. ^ "Solid Rock Cover-The Waifs-Freemantle Arts Center Jan 30, 2020". Blanca. Retrieved 2 February 2020.