Jimmy Barnes , the king of Oz Rock and popularly known as 'Barnsey', has been in huge demand on the Corporate circuit in recent years . The gravel-voiced blues belter has been feted by prominent Australians of all persuasions and has retained his popularity due to a down-to-earth 'just one of the boys' charm.
Barnes was born James Swan in Glasgow, Scotland during 1956. His family emigrated to Australia when he was four years old. The Swan family (including his brother John, aka Swanee) settles in the tough migrant working-class suburb of Elizabeth in Adelaide, South Australia. His mother remarried and Jim Swan adopted his stepfather's surname of Barnes. Barnes's rose to national prominence as frontman for Cold Chisel, one of Australia's best loved bands. Driven by a voracious will to succeed, he launched his solo career immediately after Cold Chisel broke up in late 1983.
As well as collaborations with INXS, John Farnham and The Badloves, Barnes has recorded successful duets with Tina Turner '(Simply) The Best'/'River Deep Mountain High' (which reached #14 in June 1992) and Nathan Cavaleri ('Gonna See My Baby Tonight', September 1993), Jimmy Barnes is an Australian phenomenon. He has sold over six million records.
