Midnight Oil Drummer Rob Hirst Dead at 70

Midnight Oil drummer Rob Hirst has passed away after a three-year battle with pancreatic cancer.

The legendary Australian musician’s death was confirmed in a statement by the band on Tuesday, Jan. 20.

“After fighting heroically for almost three years, Rob is now free of pain – ‘a glimmer of tiny light in the wilderness,’” the post reads.

“He died peacefully, surrounded by loved ones. The family asks that anyone wanting to honour Rob donate to Pankind, Pancreatic Cancer Australia or Support Act.”

Hirst first revealed the news in April 2025 after being diagnosed in 2023, saying at the time: “I’ve had pretty much every treatment known to man – every scan, ultrasound, MRI. I’ve kind of had ‘the works.’”

Fellow Australian music icon Jimmy Barnes paid tribute to Hirst’s passing in a social media statement.

“He was the engine driving one of the greatest live bands of all time,” Barnes wrote.

“RIP, dear Rob. You are irreplaceable, one of a kind, and myself, my family, and all the rest of this great country will miss you so much.”

Hoodoo Gurus also paid tribute to Hirst, noting his close friendship with bassist Rick Grossman.

“You left this world a far better place than the way you found it,” the band said in a post. “Your creativity, passion and joy has left its mark on all of us, and the strength of your spirit will be an inspiration forever. A life well lived.”

Hirst formed the Oils in 1976 and, with Peter Garrett, then a young law student, taking frontman duties, the politically charged group would take on the world. By the time the Oils called it a day in 2022, the group had logged six ARIA No. 1 albums, including Resist, their first full-length studio album in two decades, and apparently their last as a unit.

Per The Guardian, bandmate Jim Mognie called Hirst the “engine room, onstage and off” for Midnight Oil. “Rob was brash, funny and super intelligent, contrary to the clichéd view of drummers,” Moginie wrote in his 2024 memoir, The Silver River.

The Oils also went to the top with Red Sails in the Sunset (November 1984), Diesel and Dust (August 1987), Blue Sky Mining (March 1990) and 20,000 Watt RSL – The Midnight Oil Collection (October 1997).

Hirst has played, sung and written songs in The Ghostwriters, Backsliders, Hirst & Greene, The Angry Tradesmen and The Break. The latter instrumental lineup featured two of his fellow members of Midnight Oil (Jim Moginie and Martin Rotsey) as well as bass player Brian Ritchie from the Violent Femmes.

One of the finest drummers produced by this country, Hirst also provided the dynamite intro for the early ‘80s ABC weekly youth program Beatbox. In 2020, Hirst and his daughter Jay O’Shea released a collaborative album.

This article originally appeared in Rolling Stone Australia.

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