"Power and the Passion" was the second single by Midnight Oil from their 1982 album 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 (following "US Forces"). The song is one of the band's most famous, and it was performed on every Midnight Oil tour since the issue of 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 as well as at the WaveAid concert. It was issued as the album's second single in 1983.

The video for this song was filmed in 1982 amongst the "Woolloomooloo Mural Project" in Sydney, NSW, Australia.

The song includes a drum solo by Rob Hirst; it is the only studio recording by Midnight Oil to feature a drum solo.

In May 2001 the Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA), as part of its 75th Anniversary celebrations, named "Power and the Passion" as one of the Top 30 Australian songs of all time. It was the second Midnight Oil song in the list with "Beds Are Burning" declared third behind the Easybeats' "Friday on My Mind" and Daddy Cool's "Eagle Rock".

It was performed by the band at the 2009 Sound Relief concert in Melbourne.

On 5 June 2012, the song was released as downloadable content for the video game Rock Band 3.

The lyrics mention former Australian prime minister Gough Whitlam and his dismissal in 1975, as well as the Pine Gap spy base, which remain controversial issues in Australia to this day. The song also makes reference to the McDonald's Big Mac and paraphrases Emiliano Zapata with the line "It's better to die on your feet than to live on your knees."

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