You can trust Louder Our experienced team has worked for some of the biggest brands in music. From testing headphones to reviewing albums, our experts aim to create reviews you can trust. Find out more about how we review.
I'd Die to Be with You Tonight
Ride the Night Away
American Heartbeat
Working Class Man
Without Your Love
No Second Prize
Vision
Promise Me You'll Call
Boys Cry Out for War
Daylight
Thickskinned
Paradise
Jimmy Barnes first came to attention as the lead singer with popular Australian pub-rockers Cold Chisel, after a brief spell as the replacement for the AC/DC-bound Bon Scott in Fraternity. After seven albums, the band split up in 1983, and Barnes launched a solo career.
Debut album Bodyswerve immediately hit the top of the Aussie charts, and the stage was set for an assault on the international market. In came a host of stellar co-writers and musicians (Tommy Thayer, Waddy Wachtel, Dave Amato, Charlie Sexton, Randy Jackson, Mick Fleetwood, Jonathan Cain, Kim Carnes and more), as seven of the Bodyswerve tracks were remixed as the running order was rounded out with five new songs.
The result was For The Working Class Man, an album that's gone multi-platinum in Australia and was voted the 59th greatest Australian album of all time by the local version of Rolling Stone. It's heartland rock, downunder-style, with Barnes's sandpapered voice and triumphant choruses the perfect vehicle for his tales of "ordinary" Aussies.
Every week, Album of the Week Club listens to and discusses the album in question, votes on how good it is, and publishes our findings, with the aim of giving people reliable reviews and the wider rock community the chance to contribute.
Other albums released in December 1985
- Club Ninja - Blue Öyster Cult
- Stereotomy - The Alan Parsons Project
- 10 from 6 - Bad Company
- 3-Way Tie (For Last) - Minutemen
- Geek! - My Bloody Valentine (EP)
What they said...
"For The Working Class Man is a defining album in Jimmy Barnes’ career, showcasing his blend of rock, soul, and blues with raw energy and passion. Granted, the title track alone secured Barnes’ legacy, but the album as a whole is a powerful statement of resilience, determination, and working-class pride. Not only that, but it’s musically spectacular. The result is a record that is a classic release from the 80s, an essential listen, and one that has ultimately stood the test of time." (Subjective Sounds)
"It still does what outstanding rock records are supposed to do: connect. It doesn’t sound nostalgic so much as timeless. The urgencies might shift, the production sheen may age in places, but Barnes’ voice? His heart and soul? Those are untouched. It stands as a testament - not just to the bell-ringer hits or the soaring choruses - but to the promise in really understanding your audience, in being honest, in turning working class into something majestic." (JB Hi-Fi)
"Of all the solo and group albums released by Barnsey, perhaps none are as influential as For the Working Class Man, which was instrumental in painting the cultural picture of the blue-collared, hardworking Australian. Most notably, its title track served as an unapologetic anthem for the self-sacrificing 'working-class man' of the Eighties." (Rolling Stone Australia).
What you said...
Mike Canoe: When I was a kid reading music magazines, I always wondered why it was important for bands and artists to "break America." The answer, of course, is glaringly simple: There's just so damn many of us. With a mid-80s population roughly fifteen times that of Australia (assuming I did my math right), it made financial sense for Jimmy Barnes to court the American market.
Still, it's disheartening to hear Barnes sing dreck like American Heartbeat, awash in the worst kind of 80s keyboards. Fortunately, the rest of the album isn't that bad. The last seven songs are repurposed and remixed from his first solo album and contain stompers like Paradise and Boys Cry Out For War or lighter-waving anthems like Thick Skinned or Vision.
Of the new songs, Ride The Night Away or I'd Die To Be With You Tonight are mostly OK. The main problem is that in a post-Born In The USA America, there was a glut of artists trying to copy the Boss's secret sauce, and this material wasn't strong enough to stand out. But they love it in Australia, so what do I know?
In the book The 110 Best Australian Albums, For the Working Class Man comes in at #62, six slots behind East by his former band, Cold Chisel. Cold Chisel's follow-up to East, Circus Animals, is all the way up at #4 - and is largely a course correction to what the band thought was the overly commercial East, not coincidentally the only Cold Chisel album to chart in the US, albeit way down at #171.
Martin Cross: If I listened to this without knowing who it was, I would also think it was John Mellencamp. Vision and Boys Cry Out For War are probably my favourite tracks.
I would enjoy this on a night out in a 100-capacity venue rather than listen to it on CD ( if that makes any sense). 6/10
Brian Carr: For an artist largely unknown in the US (though our Club is wonderfully multinational), the inevitable review is going to compare said artist to better-known ones. I’d love to do something different, but couldn’t help but be reminded of the early John Cougar (Mellencamp) records Nothin’ Matter and What If It Did and American Fool when I listened to For the Working Class Man by Jimmy Barnes. Not that they sound similar vocally, but the lyrical content and even some of the rhythmic patterns were reminiscent. Luckily, I really like those records, so that works out just fine.
Sure, the production is definitely 80s, but that often means guitars, and that’s definitely happening here with an impressive assortment of guest musicians, including Tommy Thayer and Charlie Sexton, guys who have been a part of some beloved music to me. Since I’m streaming the album, I would have missed the fact that it was a Geffen release in the States, which is another plus since the bearded one, John Kalodner, and I seem to have very similar musical tastes. I don’t know how often I’ll come back to For the Working Class Man, but I’m adding it to my Apple Music library.
Gary Claydon: So, the singer or the song? Jimmy Barnes has a heck of a voice and can deliver just about any style you like - rock, blues, a little bit of soul, you know the score. What he usually seems to come up with, though, is fairly standard radio rock. For The Working Class Man isn't bad, just somewhat uninspired and uninspiring. More than anything, it made me want to listen to a few other Scottish vocalists this week - Davy Pattison, Gerry Rafferty, Alex Harvey and, in particular, in relation to Barnes, Frankie Miller.
Adam Ranger: I've not really listened to Jimmy Barnes before, although I have heard of him. He is an Australian treasure.
This album starts OK, a bit like a beefed-up Missing You by John Waite. The next couple of songs are good enough, but it's well-played, well-produced, happy, well-sung driving music, and then it all gets a bit too 'samey'.
The US market would probably go for this much more than the UK. It's good AOR, but it never really lets rip in my opinion, and just stays as radio-friendly noise. Nothing that really made me go "yeah!". And although I enjoyed the first part of the album, I was quite frankly bored by the time it ended.
If radio-friendly AOR is your thing, you will love it. If not, you will be indifferent to the 80s production and feel of this album. Great singer, he just hasn't set my world on fire.
John Davidson: I only really know of Jimmy Barnes from the Lost Boys soundtrack (which isn't bad but is very much of its time). This album is much more reminiscent of John Cougar Mellencamp, with a smidgen of Bryan Adams, John Farnham, John Parr and the like.
It's extremely listenable radio fare, but there's nothing that makes me want to go out and buy a copy of the album. 5 seems harsh, 7 generous, so I'll settle for a modest score of 6.
Chris Elliott: The title track appeared on a loop in my head the moment I saw this week's choice. I spent a lot of time working in Australia, and he's a natural treasure to a certain generation. Working Class Man is one of those tracks you can't escape.
It's too indebted to US FM rock to really find its own feet, and the production is so polite it takes any edge off. The whole album has the feel of never quite kicking off: It starts, it builds, then it runs out of steam and never grabs your attention. I do have a soft spot for the title track, but you always want it to just let go and actually let rip.
John Edgar: I've only heard the US version of this album called A Week Away from Paradise. It was definitely a mid-80s favourite for me. The whole album is very listenable, even today. The last song on side two, Daylight, would be my favourite on the album.
Greg Schwepe: About halfway through listening to For The Working Class Man by Jimmy Barnes, it all clicked, and I realised who Jimmy Barnes is; he’s the Australian version of American Bob Seger and Canadian Bryan Adams. But with the decipherable rasp and growl of AC/DC’s Brian Johnson. Yeah…that’s it! Review done!
Well, not quite that fast. I’ve still got a few thoughts rolling around in my head. This album is listenable, likeable, and for “every man.” The kind of rock that resonates with the masses, is fun to sing along to, and sticks with you for a while. Now, to play devil’s advocate, there might be some out there that won’t care for this due to those very same reasons. But if you like some good rock'n'roll, this one’s for you.
My favourite tracks here might be Boys Cry Out For War and Vision.
And, believe it or not, here in the US, way on the other side of the world from Australia, this was not my first encounter with the raspy Barnes. The local FM station actually played Good Times from the Lost Boys soundtrack (technically “INXS with Jimmy Barnes”), which prompted me to actually go purchase the vinyl on the strength of that one track alone.
And hey, as I mentioned in another review of an Australian band/artist; are there really any Australians you don’t like? Those happy-go-lucky blokes! Their infectious attitude has a way of making it into their music. And that seems to be the special ingredient here on this album. 8 out of 10 on this one from down under.
Philip Qvist: I know that Jimmy Barnes is seen as a national treasure down in Australia, and I have also heard some of his songs, either as a solo artist or fronting Cold Chisel. I also saw the credits on the album, with names like Jonathan Cain, Tommy Thayer, Kim Carnes, Mick Fleetwood, Randy Jackson, Waddy Wachtel and Billy Burnett, so I was expecting something epic; but instead I found myself listening to an album that sounded no different to what many other mid-80s middle-of-the-road artists were producing at the time.
It's pleasant, it's easy listening, it's not bad or offensive, but it is instantly forgettable. There really wasn't much on the record to grab my attention, to the point that one track basically led to the next one until we got to the end.
I see Jimmy Barnes wrote the bulk of the songs on For The Working Class Man, but it was also telling that the better songs such as I'd Died To Be With You Tonight, Ride The Night Away and Working Class Man were all written by other artists.
It's OK, it's not bad, but it sounded too bland for my ears, and I hope I haven't offended any of his fans. A 6 from me.
Final score: 6.48 (35 votes cast, total score 227)
Join the Album Of The Week Club on Facebook to join in. The history of rock, one album at a time.
You must confirm your public display name before commenting
Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.
