Here's Looking At You, Jimmy
September 3, 2010At 54, Barnes is a grandfather, and he’s been sober for eight years. It would be tempting to say he’s mellowed. But his new album’s a rock record, called Rage and Ruin. By Jeff Jenkins
James Dixon Barnes is known as the wild man of Oz rock, the vodka-swilling frontman who once boasted – jokingly, we must add – that he’d bedded 1000 women.
But when MAG visits, he’s watching a DVD;1948’s Oscar-winning classic Key Largo invoking our memory of Bertie Higgins’ one-off 1982 hit of the same name. As we hum “we had it all/just like Bogie and Bacall …”, ‘Barnesy’ reveals a love for old black and white movies. “Humphrey Bogart is a favourite of mine,” he says, “I love Key Largo, The African Queen and Casablanca.” The title sounds like a throwback to 1999’s Love and Fear – “the only two emotions”, Barnesy explains. “That’s a really underrated record. It was a period in my life when I was completely living on the edge and slightly crazy, and I could have gone either way.”
The new album sees Barnesy remembering those wild days. “They were pretty tough times in my life,” he admits. “At times, it was life-threatening, and when you’re in the thick of a problem, it can be overwhelming. But there’s always a way out: that’s a lesson I wanted to get across with this record – problems can be solved.” One song, Stupid Heart, is about making bad decisions. What’s Barnesy’s biggest career regret? “Well, I wish I’d gotten in touch with my emotions, written more emotionally, earlier in my career. But you can’t do that until you’re ready. I wouldn’t be the person I am today if not for all the fucking up. I don’t learn unless I make mistakes.”
Is there a lot of luck involved in survival? “Yeah, there is. When I was younger, I played a lot of soccer. Often I happened to be in the right place at the right time. I’d be standing next to the goal post, the ball would hit my head – goal! I was not a skilled player, I just happened to be there. And I’m not a skilled human being, but I have managed to be in the right place at the right time.” The centrepiece of the new album is a folk song that documents Barnesy ‘being there’ when Cold Chisel started. Largs Pier Hotel is about the Adelaide venue that popped up in My Turn To Cry when Chisel trashed the set at The Countdown Awards: “I never saw you at the Largs Pier Hotel,” Barnesy spat, “I never saw you in Fitzroy Street, and now you’re tryin’ to use my face to sell TV Week.”
The Adelaide pub is still there, but the old band room is now a motel. “It’s a trendy bar now,” Barnesy notes, “but no matter how posh it becomes, for us it will always be about the wild women, the fighting, drinking, and great times.”
When MAG departs, Barnesy returns to his DVD. Key Largo actually inspired the title of Rage And Ruin’s first single, Before The Devil Knows You’re Dead. “Edward G. Robinson (Johnny Rocco) says something like, ‘I hope your soul goes to heaven before the devil knows you’re dead’,” Barnesy explains. “That line really spoke to me. It’s all about learning to live with yourself, with your own faults and flaws.”
Rage And Ruin is available via Liberation.
Visit: jimmybarnes.com
