Working Class Boy

Long before Cold Chisel and Barnesy, long before the success and excess, there was the true story of James Dixon Swan—a working class boy whose family made the journey from Scotland to Australia in search of a better life.

Working Class Boy is a powerful reflection on a traumatic and violent childhood, which fuelled the excess and recklessness that would define, but almost destroy, the rock’n’roll legend. This is the story of how James Swan became Jimmy Barnes. It is a memoir burning with the frustration and frenetic energy of teenage sex, drugs, violence, and ambition for more than what you have.

WARNING: STRONG VIOLENCE, THEMES AND COARSE LANGUAGE