Skip to main content

Working Class Boy by Jimmy Barnes: book review




Working Class Boy (2016) begins in Glasgow, Scotland, the birthplace of songwriter and lead singer of the Australian band, Cold Chisel.

James Dixon Swan (Jimmy Barnes) was born on 28 April 1956, the fourth of six children, in a poor, dark, and tough part of town: ‘I doubt that it ever felt safe.’ The family migrated to South Australia in 1962 to the land of opportunity, moving to the newly-established city of Elizabeth in late 1963: ‘I knew I would be fine here.’

He takes the surname Barnes when his mother leaves his alcoholic father and lives with Reginald Victor Barnes.

He writes of his school and teenage years, by remembering the songs, bands, films, and television programs of the times. One of the schools he attended was Elizabeth High School for a few months, ‘the roughest school in the area – and that was saying something … We would fight and drink and run amok all over Elizabeth …’ It was exactly the school I went to, and in the 1970’s the voice of Jimmy Barnes became part of my life.

When his brother, John Swan, joined a band, Jimmy wanted to do the same. At nearly 17, in 1973, sneaking into music concerts was the turning point – ‘I learned something from every band I saw … This was to become my apprenticeship.’ Rebelliousness, crime, alcohol, drugs – music became his escape from boredom – and the suburban life of Elizabeth.

The memoir ends in 1973 – before his life as a rock star – before he finds his place in the world. As he looks back at the sad bad past, honest about his faults and feelings – he also has an optimistic outlook. He is not bitter, he is better.

It was a nostalgic read for me – going back to the days in Elizabeth when parents hoped for a better life for themselves and their families. But life still wasn’t as easy as they expected. Written colloquially, as if he’s sitting in a bar, with a beer, Jimmy Barnes recalls his inspirations and the challenges in life that made him who he was, for better or worse.






MARTINA NICOLLS is an international aid and development consultant, and the author of:- Similar But Different in the Animal Kingdom (2017), The Shortness of Life: A Mongolian Lament (2015), Liberia’s Deadest Ends (2012), Bardot’s Comet (2011), Kashmir on a Knife-Edge (2010) and The Sudan Curse (2009).


Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Pir-E-Kamil - The Perfect Mentor by Umera Ahmed: book review

The Perfect Mentor pbuh  (2011) is set in Lahore and Islamabad in Pakistan. The novel commences with Imama Mubeen in medical university. She wants to be an eye specialist. Her parents have arranged for her to marry her first cousin Asjad. Salar Sikander, her neighbour, is 18 years old with an IQ of 150+ and a photographic memory. He has long hair tied in a ponytail. He imbibes alcohol, treats women disrespectfully and is generally a “weird chap” and a rude, belligerent teenager. In the past three years he has tried to commit suicide three times. He tries again. Imama and her brother, Waseem, answer the servant’s call to help Salar. They stop the bleeding from his wrist and save his life. Imama and Asjad have been engaged for three years, because she wants to finish her studies first. Imama is really delaying her marriage to Asjad because she loves Jalal Ansar. She proposes to him and he says yes. But he knows his parents won’t agree, nor will Imama’s parents. That

Flaws in the Glass, a self-portrait by Patrick White: book review

The manuscript, Flaws in the Glass (1981), is Patrick Victor Martindale White’s autobiography. White, born in 1912 in England, migrated to Sydney, Australia, when he was six months old. For three years, at the age of 20, he studied French and German literature at King’s College at the University of Cambridge in England. Throughout his life, he published 12 novels. In 1957 he won the inaugural Miles Franklin Literary Award for Voss, published in 1956. In 1961, Riders in the Chariot became a best-seller, winning the Miles Franklin Literary Award. In 1973, he was the first Australian author to be awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature for The Eye of the Storm, despite many critics describing his works as ‘un-Australian’ and himself as ‘Australia’s most unreadable novelist.’ In 1979, The Twyborn Affair was short-listed for the Booker Prize, but he withdrew it from the competition to give younger writers the opportunity to win the award. His autobiography, Flaws in the Glass

Sister cities discussed: Canberra and Islamabad

Two months ago, in March 2015, Australia and Pakistan agreed to explore ways to deepen ties. The relationship between Australia and Pakistan has been strong for decades, and the two countries continue to keep dialogues open. The annual bilateral discussions were held in Australia in March to continue engagements on a wide range of matters of mutual interest. The Pakistan delegation discussed points of interest will include sports, agriculture, economic growth, trade, border protection, business, and education. The possible twinning of the cities of Canberra, the capital of Australia, and Islamabad, the capital of Pakistan, were also on the agenda (i.e. called twin towns or sister cities). Sister City relationships are twinning arrangements that build friendships as well as government, business, culture, and community linkages. Canberra currently has international Sister City relationships with Beijing in China and Nara in Japan. One example of existing