Music
Playlist
Tracks we need to hear at Red Hot Summer
Red Hot Summer will bring together Jimmy Barnes, The Living End, The Angels, and Diesel this February and these are the songs we can't wait to hear
This February the Aussies are taking over. The Red Hot Summer tour will bring together some of their biggest names in rock for a day that’s sure to raise the temperature.
Jimmy Barnes – Working Class Man
The first single released from his 1985 album, For The Working Class Man, there isn’t a more iconic solo Jimmy Barnes tune than this one. It’s the sort of song that makes you want to hi-five whoever is around you and then sing together at the top of your lungs with your arms slung over each other’s shoulder. The single spent seven weeks in our charts, peaking at #34, while in Australia it held strong for 14 weeks – entering at #21 and peaking at #5. The track is even so integral to Barnes’ legacy that it also became the title of his second autobiography.
The Living End – Prisoner Of Society
There aren’t many guitar riffs that can get a crowd as rowdy as the opening notes of The Living End’s Prisoner of Society. It became a song for the youth of 1997 Australia, and has continued firing up generations of music lovers more than 20 years on. Marking the rock’n’roll-punk trio’s breakout hit, the combination of upright bass solos and working-class rage proved to resonate with fans. The biting refrain of: “Cause I’m a brat/And I know everything/And I talk back/Cause I’m not listening/To anything you say,” is perfect for shouting at the top of your lungs.
The Angels – Am I Ever Gonna See Your Face Again
We know what you’re thinking – how did a slow, acoustic ballad about grief, death, and loss somehow become immortalised thanks to an expletive-laden chant added into the chorus? The answer is very clearly Australian rock music fans. Released in 1976, it was The Angels failed attempt at a debut single, but it wasn’t until the band re-recorded it as a live version with the by then infamous NWGFFO chant included that it went on to become one of the most loved songs in Australian rock history.
Diesel – Tip of My Tongue
Taken from his 1992 debut album Hepfidelity, Diesel’s Tip Of My Tongue has stood the test of time. Peaking at #3 and #4 on the New Zealand and Australian charts respectively, it is still his most-loved. If you appreciate incredible blues guitar, then Diesel is the sort of performer you need to see live.
Red Hot Summer will take over Hutt Recreation Ground, Lower Hutt on Tuesday February 5. Tickets are available via Ticketmaster.co.nz.
