I like people of faith, and I believe the more people who have spirituality, the better the world will be. It’s about peace and tolerance. — Jimmy Barnes

The best times in Cold Chisel were when we were all in the back of the car together, us against the world. — Jimmy Barnes

I keep my Scottish connection. I know where I was born, and that’s an important part of my history, and I think all immigrants are the same. But if I could live anywhere in the world, it would be Australia. — Jimmy Barnes

I learned that the public and the press don’t need to know everything about you, or they might turn on you. — Jimmy Barnes

When I first started, all the reviews of Cold Chisel would say, ‘This singer won’t have a voice in six months.’ — Jimmy Barnes

I’m hyperactive. — Jimmy Barnes

I’ve been writing books because it’s been my way of dealing with the demons. The act of sitting down and writing the books down has started healing process that’s been long overdue. — Jimmy Barnes

As a teenager, I didn’t really think about anything. I was just stumbling around trying to find something. — Jimmy Barnes

I hate fear politics. — Jimmy Barnes

I was probably born an alcoholic. — Jimmy Barnes

I find that cooking is relaxing and makes me feel at home. — Jimmy Barnes

My dad was a quiet assassin. He was really charming and smiley and softly spoken, but he could knock you out in a second. — Jimmy Barnes

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. — Jimmy Barnes

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. — Jimmy Barnes

Everything affects you, and it doesn’t measure how tough you are by being a rock and sitting by yourself. People need to talk. It’s not a sign of weakness. — Jimmy Barnes

Jim Swan was my father, but Reg Barnes was my dad. — Jimmy Barnes

The Internet has been a godsend and a nightmare for the music industry. — Jimmy Barnes

I never take for granted how great Australia is and how well I have been treated here, so thank you for this chance at making a good life. — Jimmy Barnes

No matter what day we celebrate Australia Day, let’s celebrate it together and give thanks to the original inhabitants of this vast country. We are lucky to be sharing it with them. — Jimmy Barnes

Cold Chisel had their moments, but basically, they were all decent, quiet chaps. I was just a lunatic. Those guys didn’t know what had hit them when I joined the band. — Jimmy Barnes

It’s a real bloke thing, not talking to people because it’s not manly to get help. — Jimmy Barnes

No matter how much poverty you grow up with, you shouldn’t be subjected to violence and abuse. — Jimmy Barnes

My childhood in Adelaide was filled with sport. I played soccer from morning until night. — Jimmy Barnes

Where I lived in Glasgow looked like Dresden after the war. It was a bomb site. I don’t think I’d ever played football on grass until I moved to Australia. — Jimmy Barnes

People change naturally when they have children. — Jimmy Barnes

All the religions are basically good, but there’s something about organised religion that leads to corruptness and poison. — Jimmy Barnes

The best thing about this country is the difference in all of us. We all come from different backgrounds. It’s a really beautiful thing. — Jimmy Barnes

If anything, I label myself as sort of Buddhist. My wife Jane is Buddhist. — Jimmy Barnes

I think it’s criminal the way poverty is allowed to flourish. — Jimmy Barnes

I’m one of those people who can’t sit still. I like to be doing something. I cook; I’ve been painting. — Jimmy Barnes

I think I got stamina from my dad, although he didn’t have a lot of drive. — Jimmy Barnes

I always thought I could be brave and charge at things and smash ’em and walk away, but it takes courage to sit and look at things and say, ‘This is what I am. How do I fix it? How do I live with it?’ — Jimmy Barnes