Working Class Boy

Long before Cold Chisel, long before 'Barnesy', there was the true story of James Dixon Swan A household name, an Australian rock icon, the elder statesman of Ozrock - there isn't an accolade or cliche that doesn't apply to Jimmy Barnes. After arriving in Australia in the summer of 1962, things went from bad to worse for the Swan family - Dot, Jim and their six kids. - Sam Neill Visceral, brave, honest: it is like Angela's Ashes meets Trainspotting - only more brutal. But long before Cold Chisel and 'Barnesy', long before the tall tales of success and excess, there was the true story of James Dixon Swan - a working class boy whose family made the journey from Scotland to Australia in search of a better life. This is the story of how James Swan became Jimmy Barnes. A fierce, graphic, bawdy account of his working class childhood - truly harrowing , and yet often tender and funny. Working Class Boy is a powerful reflection on a traumatic and violent childhood, which fuelled the excess and recklessness that would define, but almost destroy, the rock'n'roll legend. This is the story of a family's collapse, but also of a young boy's dream to escape the misery of the suburbs with a once-in-a-lifetime chance to join a rock'n'roll band and get out of town for good. The scramble to manage i

As well as writing and recording new music and touring virtually non-stop, he is currently working on the second volume of his memoirs..   A prolific songwriter and performer, Jimmy has been a storyteller for more than 40 years, sharing his life and passions with Australians of all ages at over ten thousand gigs throughout his adopted homeland. In t

His career, both as a solo performer and as the lead vocalist of the legendary band Cold Chisel, has made him one of the most successful and distinctive artists in Australian music history. Across his career Jimmy has sold over 12 million albums and he has been inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame twice. In the process he has amassed more #1 albums in Australia than the Beatles: four with Cold Chisel and eleven as a solo artist, including the iconic For the Working Class Man. Jimmy lives in New South Wales, with Jane, his wife of 35 years, their children, grandchildren and two schnauzers.   A prolific songwriter and performer, Jimmy has been a storyteller for more than 40 years, sharing his life and passions with Australians of all ages at over ten thousand gigs thro

"A Harrowing Read." according to David. I had read ninety percent of Jimmy Barnes autobiography before he describes the beginning of his life as the lead singer of “Cold Chisel’, one of Australia’s most popular rock bands. Ninety percent of the book is taken up with the story of J. unpolished and repetitive Amazon Customer An interesting story, but the lack of polish in the writing could be really grating at times. The book needed some sympathetic but ruthless editing, to tighten up repetition and get rid of the cliches.. Heartbreaking I cannot imagine growing up like this. It's a miracle any of the family survived. I lived in Adelaide about the same time Jimmy did. Always knew Elizabeth was a rough place but had no idea just how bad. This book is a real eye opener. Makes me realize just ho