Jimmy Barnes reaches 13 ARIA No 1 albums with Flesh and Blood
Jimmy Barnes’s 20th album debut pushes his solo career tally to 13 No.1s, ahead of Madonna, U2, Bon Jovi and Eminem.
Few who met Jimmy Barnes in Cold Chisel’s heyday could have imagined that the incendiary and hard-partying rock ’n’ roller would still be here in 2021.
Ever since he became a public figure in the late 1970s, his appetite for self-destruction had given the impression that he was the sort of bloke who was here for a good time, not a long time. Yet on Friday afternoon, Barnes broke more new ground in one of the longest and most surprising careers in Australian music.
With the release of his 20th solo album, the enduring and hugely popular singer-songwriter has extended his lead as the artist with the most No.1 albums in ARIA chart history.
The winning debut of his new album Flesh and Blood has pushed Barnes’s tally as a solo artist to an astonishing 13 ARIA No.1s.
He is now well ahead of his nearest rivals in Madonna and U2, who have 11 each, and Bon Jovi and Eminem, who both have 10.
His nearest Australian competitor is John Farnham, who has reached No.1 on nine occasions.
On Flesh and Blood, a relatively subdued and family-focused set of songs, his voice has become such a delicate and beautiful instrument that the heavy-drinking pub rock crowds who saw this combustible young man perform more than 40 years ago will scarcely believe it’s the same person.
So how the hell did the 65-year-old grandfather learn to sing so sweetly?
“It helps that I’ve been healthy and focused for quite a few years now,” Barnes tells The Weekend Australian with a laugh.
“Over the past five years, since writing (his 2016 memoir) Working Class Boy, I’ve also been a lot more in contact with my emotions as a singer.
“That unlocked an emotional part of my voice that was locked away before, because of trauma and things I hadn’t dealt with.”
That mighty five-year streak has been the most transformative chapter in his life to date.
“It’s nearly 50 years since Cold Chisel started, and to think that I could still be making music, and still reaching people and making people feel, and learning and growing as an artist at the same time? That’s really great, and I’m really proud of that,” he says.
When combined with his five Cold Chisel chart-toppers, his career tally of No.1 ARIA albums now stands at 18.
It is a bittersweet feat, though, as Flesh and Blood achieved pole position in the absence of his dear friend Michael Gudinski, the Mushroom Group chairman who died suddenly in early March. Barnes performed the title track at Gudinski’s state memorial service in Melbourne on March 24.
“This is the first album of those 13 that I’ve worked on without Michael,” says Barnes. “The record coming in at No.1 meant a lot to Michael and I as a team, and this just makes me feel like the team’s still together.”
As for what keeps him motivated as a songwriter and performer in his 65th year, Barnes cites a diverse list of inspirations including Neil Young, teen pop star Billie Eilish and his friend Neil Finn.
“I hear acts like Billie Eilish, and her music is so far from the music I grew up listening to, but I can hear that emotional content; I can hear the angst, the pain, the struggle and the dreams in those songs that I heard in Little Richard,” he says.
Given the uncertainty of travel and social gathering restrictions due to recent coronavirus outbreaks, Barnes has rescheduled his national album tour from July to September. “It was such a pain in the arse; we were so looking forward to getting out and playing for people,” he says.
“But the most important thing is, as much as touring is what I live for, I don’t want to put my fans, my family or my band in any danger. I don’t want them getting sick.”
To that end, Barnes was proud to share on social media this week that he and his wife Jane have received their second AstraZeneca vaccinations.
“I’ve had people say, ‘Why would you? You don’t know what you’re putting into you.’ This has been studied for quite a long time now – and to be honest with you, I’ve put a lot worse things in my body, voluntarily,” he says with a laugh. “That’s not going to kill me.”
For the betterment of his fellow performing arts industry workers – who continue to suffer brutal financial blows with every outbreak, lockdown and border closure – Barnes saw no reason to delay the jab. “I wanted to do all I could so that my friends, family and people I meet in the street are safe – then we can get on with life,” he says.
Barnes’s rescheduled Flesh and Blood tour begins in Brisbane on September 2 and concludes in Perth on September 22, followed by a headline appearance at the rescheduled Bluesfest near Byron Bay on October 3.
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