Jimmy Barnes speaks as he drops deeply personal song about beating his demons to turn his life around

Australian music icon Jimmy Barnes has revealed his deeply personal next move after his horror health struggles.

There are times when Jimmy and Jane Barnes are in the middle of a tough conversation when the rocker has to assure his wife “I’m not that person anymore”.

As the 68-year-old rocker has detailed over his four memoirs, his recent decades have been a quest to be a better man for his wife and family, to undo the damage of addiction and depression triggered by his harrowing childhood of poverty and domestic violence.

Now, that redemption story plays out in New Day, the single to relaunch his solo career after a raft of health crises and the triumphant 50th anniversary tour.

Barnes will release his new record DEFIANT in June followed by a national theatre tour.

Jimmy Barnes has released a deeply personal new solo single. Picture: Sam Ruttyn.

“I’m happy with myself. But if I do something wrong now, I don’t let it ruin my life … I look at it and work out how to fix this and move ahead. Every day I do that,” he told news.com.au.

“There’ve been times when Jane and I speak I have to say ‘I’m not that person any more” and with that in mind, I have a different respect for myself.

“When I have to say it, and I mean it in the nicest possible way, it’s also ‘You’re not talking to the same guy anymore. I’m here now. I’m present and I’m listening, you know?”

When Barnes and director Paul van Kan were brainstorming ideas for the New Day video, they chose to use the metaphor of a man fixing up his car as his past of drinking to self-medicate and his marriage collapsing plays out in flashback scenes.

The rocker immediately thought of his mate and car restorer Troy Cassar-Daley to play the role, with his radio announcer wife Laurel Edwards agreeing to co-star.

Cassar-Daley will undoubtedly catch the attention of film and television casting agents with his compelling performance as a man fighting back from rock bottom.

“Working on the car is like working on yourself. I picked Troy because he’s always getting in trouble for spending so much money on the car, or guitars,” Barnes said, laughing.

“Troy’s one of my dearest friends, I just adore him and Laurel. And I know like any married couple, they’ve had their ups and downs too, but they adore each other and I love that.”

Barnes and Troy Cassar-Daley have been mates for more than two decades; here’s them playing together at the 2005 Golden Guitar Awards.

The album is full of love songs for Jane, his wife of 43 years, who again was by his bedside with home-cooked meals, and a record player, during his recovery from his latest round of hip surgery.

“There’s a lot of love songs; there’s a lot of love in my life. Writing about Jane … she’s such a complex, incredible girl and there’s times when I just sit and I think, how the hell did I get so lucky, you know, to meet to meet Jane?” he said.

“And that comes through in a lot of the songs.”

Jimmy and Jane Barnes at their home on the river bend. Picture: Alan Benson.

Beyond the River Bend, a song written from his study in the NSW southern highlands overlooking the Wingecarribee River, makes up the other side of his double single release to launch the record.

“Sometimes I look at that river and it reminds me of me and Jane. Sometimes it’s sort of dark and menacing and gushing and crashing into the banks and other times, it’s calm and peaceful. Sometimes it’s murky, sometimes it’s crystal clear, you know?” he said.

“But it’s always moving and that’s what love and relationships are like, they’re always changing.”

Barnes also enlisted some of his mates, including Cassar-Daley and The Cruel Sea, to tease the big album reveal by sporting DEFIANT T-shirts on social media posts.

His national tour opens on June 7 at the AEC Theatre, Adelaide and then heads to Riverside Theatre, Perth on June 8, Palais Theatre, Melbourne on June 14, Fortitude Music Hall, Brisbane on June 21, State Theatre, Sydney on June 27 and Canberra Theatre on June 28.

Tickets go on sale

The Frontier Member presale opens at 11am local time on February 26 with all other tickets on sale from 10am on February 28 via frontiertouring.com/jimmybarnes

Originally published as Jimmy Barnes speaks as he drops deeply personal song about beating his demons to turn his life around