Men At Work were an Australian reggae-influenced rock band of the early 1980s. They were best known for their 1982 hit "Down Under", a joyful, comic song about Australians travelling the world with confidence in the virtues of their country. The song was commercially successful in many countries - it was re-released as an unofficial theme song during Australia's successful 1983 America's Cup challenge and has become an unofficial national anthem for many under 40.

Their first album, Business as Usual, set a record for the most weeks at number one on the U.S. charts for a debut album. As well as "Down Under", the hits "Who Can It Be Now?" and "Be Good Johnny" were made into a successful and popular videos during MTV's early years. Both "Who Can It Be Now?" and "Down Under" hit number one in the United States. One of the most successful albums of the early 1980's, Business as Usual has been certified for 6 million sales in the United States and an estimated 15 million copies worldwide.

The band's second album, 1983's Cargo, was somewhat less successful, reaching number three on the U.S. charts and certfied with 3 million sales in the United States. Three hit singles emerged from that album, "It's a Mistake" (number six in the U.S.), "Overkill" (number 3 in the U.S.) and "Dr. Heckyll and Mr. Jive"(number 28 in the U.S.).

In the year following the release of Cargo, the band fired John Rees and Jerry Speiser. When their third album, Two Hearts, was released in 1985 to little success (only 500,000 copies sold in the United States), the remainder of the original band broke up. Two Hearts featured only one minor hit, "Everything I Need", which failed to crack the Top 40 on the U.S. charts, hitting number 47.

Band members

• Colin Hay, lead vocals and guitar
• Ron Strykert , guitar, vocals
• John Rees , bass
• Greg Ham , saxophone, flute, keyboards
• Jerry Speiser, drums

Discography

• Business as Usual (1982)
• Cargo (1983)
• Two Hearts (1985)
• Brazil (1998)

External links

• Unofficial Homepage

Men At Work is also a 1990 comedy film starring Charlie Sheen and Emilio Estevez, who play garbage collectors who love to surf.