Jimmy Barnes

“I sat in on some songwriting classes, and it was really bloody hard, a lot of music theory. I'd be sitting there, and they'd be talking all this music theory, and the teacher would say, 'Let's ask our guest Jimmy what he thinks,' and I'd be sitting there thinking, 'Please don't ask me, please don't ask me.'”

“I know that life is full of lessons to be learned, and my children will have to learn their own, but I hope I have broken the cycle of shame and fear that plagued my childhood.”

“The music industry is quite brutal and quite harsh and can be spirit shattering, but it's an honour to be a musician because your job is to make sure people enjoy themselves; to make people forget about their troubles.”

“I'm happy to be recording and singing live. I have a great family, and a great bunch of people always come and see me sing. What more does a man need?”

“I think I got stamina from my dad, although he didn't have a lot of drive.”

“In the 1970s, we got a Labor government that put more emphasis on trade with Asia; the Vietnam war ended, and refugees were coming in. We were more part of Asia than America and the rest of the world. There was the proximity, for a start - all these countries and cultures just north of us. It just made sense that that's what we were part of.”

“No matter how much poverty you grow up with, you shouldn't be subjected to violence and abuse.”

“I was actually wilder before I joined Cold Chisel. I was really wild.”

“Jane and I - somehow we fell into each other's arms, and I adored her! I loved her from the minute I saw her. I don't think I knew what love was.”

“I can't stand a house to be dirty or even messy, even. I am a bit OCD. Wash the dishes when you finish eating.”

“One of my major regrets was that period in my life where I wasn't present in my kids' life. I was in another world.”

“I got to 25, and I thought, 'I'm never going to make 30.' But now I look at it like... if you can remain true to what you do, I don't see why you can't keep doing it.”

“Jim Swan was my father, but Reg Barnes was my dad.”

“I know I've made a lot of mistakes, but I've done some good things along the way.”

“I wanted my children to never feel like they were unsafe. I wanted them to have everything they needed.”

“When I first started, all the reviews of Cold Chisel would say, 'This singer won't have a voice in six months.'”

“I was lucky I was blessed with the constitution of a horse.”

“When I came to Australia, it was like heaven.”

“I'm really happy with the way I am, and I've got a fantastic family and a great life, and I don't need anything else.”

“My childhood in Adelaide was filled with sport. I played soccer from morning until night.”