Can you think of many more artists that have been quite as ‘Defiant’ as the ever-youthful Jimmy Barnes? No? Neither can we. From his well-documented upbringing, colourful life from his Cold Chisel days, tangos with the taxman to heart & hip surgeries that threatened to end his ability to perform live, Barnes has always powered on to let his music do the talking and he does just that once more with his wonderful new album, ‘Defiant’ released through Mushroom Music. And to celebrate his 21st studio release, he hits the road with a national tour, and I for one look forward to hearing what tracks from this ten-song collection make the set.
We’ve already been blessed with hearing five of the singles so far including the brilliant opener ‘That’s What You Do For Love’, which is a really tip of the hat to classic tracks like ‘Driving Wheels’, capturing that anthemic sound Barnes brought to his early solo work. Add that to the fact guest appearances from Journey’s Jonathan Cain (who penned Working Class Man) and Black Country Communion’s Joe Bonamassa & Jason Bonham bless this album starter and you can hear for yourselves the impact it strikes. Throughout the album we find punchy rockers that light up your ears, ‘New Day’ reminds Jimmy what and where he has been and how he deals with staying clear from those times, and title track ‘Defiant’ make you grant to scream from the rafters, with Barnes delivering angry but purposeful vocals, while ‘Beyond the River Bend’ allows Jimmy to open up about the importance of those around him and the support they have given him over the years (yes Jane, we saw the tasty snacks Jimmy received in hospital after hip surgery!) and with distant bagpipes throughout reminding us of Jimmy’s roots.
I always love a few listens to find my stand out track, the one that sits forward personally and on this collection it has to be ‘Never Stop Loving You’ – with is simplistic opening with distant guitar and thumping bass line warming the path for Barnes to lead us in with his crisp clean vocals. “Even when its tough, you always shine your light, I’ll never stop loving you.” But its the second verse when things really start to build, snare drum and harmonies, with Jimmy now picking up the pace vocally, and letting us begin to hear the emotion this song must pull for him personally. Before you know it the chilled beginning has enveloped you into this foot tapping banger of a track! And the guitar work from Audley Freed is simply sublime. Sheer brilliance.
There are elements of country and blues & roots on here to, which gives it a nice diverse feel and which makes total sense with the fact that many of the songs were recorded out in Nashville; ‘Damned If I Do, Damned If I Don’t’ opens with those country tones before slipping into a real Rollin Stones feel. ‘The Long Road’ plays us into that same vibe but with more of a chain gang blues n roots feel, before dropping a shoulder and feigning right to hit us with a driving rocky chorus.
The nearest we get to a ballad would have to be album closer ‘Sea of Love’ but even then we still find it has a real swing to it, and one that just makes you want to sway and click your fingers. It is a real nod to those wonderful songs of yesteryear (and even has a classic key change midway!) that takes you back to Barnes’ 1991 album ‘Soul Deep’.
Produced by Kevin ‘Caveman’ Shirley and featuring a host of wonderful musicians, ‘Defiant’ once again highlights the fact that Jimmy Barnes still has plenty to write & sing about and judging by the recent Cold Chisel 50th anniversary shows, those bionic hips have plenty more stage miles to tread yet and I for one will be front and centre to enjoy it!
8.5/10
Defiant Tracklisting:
1. That’s What You Do For Love
2. New Day
3. Beyond The River Bend
4. Never Stop Loving You
5. Defiant
6. The Long Road
7. Damned If I Do, Damned If I Don’t
8. Dig Deep
9. Nothing Comes For Nothing
10. Sea Of Love
