An Australian rock legend has spoken of the legacy of a fallen comrade who has been posthumously awarded Australia Day honours.
Midnight Oil drummer Rob Hirst - who wrote or co-wrote many of the band's biggest hits - knew he was to receive the gong before his death earlier this week after battling pancreatic cancer for almost three years.
Hirst has been made a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) for significant service to the performing arts through music.
In a written statement, Jimmy Barnes told AAP Hirst was "the heartbeat that brought the whole sound (of the band) together".
"My early thoughts of Midnight Oil are made up of a mix of confrontation and harmony," he said.
"Peter (Garrett), the frontman, stormed around the stage, so menacing that when he moved to the music, I was almost looking for a way to protect myself against the onslaught.
"Their whole stage presence was so untamed that I felt uncomfortable watching them from front of house, but there was also incredible harmony and melody."
Once he got past the initial shock and awe, Barnes noticed the driving force at the back, saying Hirst was like no one he had seen before or since.
"At the back of the stage there was a drum kit that, when it wasn't being drowned in beer, was being battered into submission by a man who appeared to be more of a long-distance runner than a musician.
"He was directing the whole band. He didn't just play drums, he played the songs.
"Each fill was as important to the song as the chorus. Each kick drum was a place on which the band could hang a new passage.
"The Australian music community will sadly miss this amazing man."
Another Australian music veteran, GANGgajang's Mark Callaghan - whose band was best known for the hit Sounds of Then - said Hirst was fully deserving of the honour.
"His ability to hit the nail on the head with a song, in terms of getting to the heart of the matter, was extraordinary," he said.
"Songs like Beds Are Burning will live forever because they advanced not just Australian songwriting, but a much broader context of Australian cultural and political life."
Hirst himself might have preferred the honour to be bestowed on another day: Midnight Oil recorded a song called Change the Date on their 2020 album The Makarrata Project.
Hirst's family said "our beloved father and husband receiving this honour feels particularly poignant this week".
"Rob was a ferocious talent and we're so proud of the impact of his songwriting, music and advocacy," they said in a statement.
"The outpouring of love this past few days has kept us afloat in this turbulent moment - we know so many are grieving alongside us.
"Rob loved this great south land, and dreamed of a day when we could heal through Makarrata and get on with the urgent work of caring for Country together.
"The time has come."
