Barnes was born… Read Full Bio ↴Jimmy Barnes (b. 1956) is an Australian rock singer.
Barnes was born James Dixon Swan on the 28th April 1956 in Glasgow, Scotland, and moved to Australia with his family when he was six years old.
He first came to public attention as the lead singer with popular Australian pub-rock band Cold Chisel, which he joined in 1973 and with whom he recorded seven albums between 1978 and 1983. When the band split up in 1983 he launched a solo career almost immediately; his first album, Bodyswerve, entered the Australian charts at number one. It was the first of a remarkable run of top charting albums for Barnes, as each of his first six solo albums entered the charts at number one, a feat that no other Australian artist is likely to match.
In 1986 Barnes recorded two singles with INXS, duetting with that band's singer Michael Hutchence on a cover of The Easybeats' "Good Times", and "Laying Down the Law", which was co-written by Barnes with INXS members Andrew Farriss and Hutchence. "Good Times" was used as the theme song for the Australia Made series of concerts that toured the country in the summer of 1986-1987. Both songs later appeared on the soundtrack of the 1980s teen vampire film The Lost Boys.
Following Hutchence's death in 1997, Barnes appeared live on stage with INXS at shows throughout Australia between 1999 and 2001.
His album Double Happiness, released in July 2005, reaffirmed his popularity, entering the ARIAnet albums chart at number one, his seventh album to do so. Barnes was inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame on the 23rd October 2005 for his solo career efforts. Coupled with Cold Chisel's previous induction, Barnes is the only artist to be entered into the Hall of Fame twice.
Barnes is also the father of singer David Campbell, who recently starred in the Australian production of the musical Sunset Boulevard, and was a contestant on the Australian television programme Dancing with the Stars. The two perform the duet "Wichita Lineman" on Double Happiness.
Lay Down Your Guns
Jimmy Barnes Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And gave me something , I can't face the world without
You showed me just enough to fuel my fire
My desire, never wanna live without it
Both of us need something like we had before
We can't keep fighting like this anymore
This love affair is breaking my heart
All the pushing and the shoving
When we know that we ought to be loving
And the lying and the cheating
When we ought to be loving and squeezing
Come on come on
Lay down your guns and surrender
Remember days we thought would last forever
Nothing better but we let them slip away
Cause in the end we make the bed we lie in
Lets start trying
What's the point of talking about it
Never seems to make it better
If we can't get on together
Take a chance and try a brand new start
All the pushing and the shoving
When we know that we ought to be loving
And the lying and the cheating
When we ought to be loving and squeezing
Come on come on
Lay down your guns and surrender
The opening lines of the song show a sense of gratitude as the singer acknowledges the love and support they have received from their partner. The repetition of words like "something" and "never wanna live without it" emphasizes how important the partner is in their life. However, the song takes a somber turn as the singer admits that the relationship is no longer the same - both of them are now fighting constantly and are slowly moving towards self-destruction.
The lines "All the pushing and the shoving, When we know that we ought to be loving" suggest that the couple is aware that their behavior is toxic and they should be showing love to each other instead of engaging in fights. The use of words such as "lying" and "cheating" highlights the severity of the situation. However, the singer is optimistic that things can be fixed if they both lay down their guns (i.e. let go of their pride and hostility) and surrender to love.
The song can be interpreted as a call for reconciliation and second chances. The singer urges the couple to take a chance and try a brand new start instead of living in regret. The lyrics suggest that while love can be complicated and can lead to conflicts, it is still worth fighting for.
Line by Line Meaning
You picked me up when I was down with nothing
You helped me when I was feeling lost and hopeless
And gave me something, I can't face the world without
You gave me something that is so important to me, I cannot imagine my life without it
You showed me just enough to fuel my fire
You gave me the motivation I needed to pursue my passions
My desire, never wanna live without it
The passion and drive you gave me is something I never want to lose
Both of us need something like we had before
We both need that same spark and feeling we once had in our relationship
We can't keep fighting like this anymore
We can't continue arguing and hurting each other
This love affair is breaking my heart
The way our love is falling apart is saddening me
All the pushing and the shoving
All the arguing and fighting
When we know that we ought to be loving
When we both know that we should be showing love instead
And the lying and the cheating
The dishonesty and infidelity in our relationship
When we ought to be loving and squeezing
When we should be embracing and cherishing each other
Come on come on
Encouragement to change the current situation
Lay down your guns and surrender
Stop arguing and fighting and give in to love and peace
Remember days we thought would last forever
Recall the days in our relationship that we thought would never end
Nothing better but we let them slip away
There was nothing better than our love but we allowed it to fade away
Cause in the end we make the bed we lie in
Our actions have consequences and determine our future
Lets start trying
It's time to start making an effort to improve our relationship
What's the point of talking about it
It's pointless to discuss our problems without taking action to solve them
Never seems to make it better
Discussing our problems without action does not improve our situation
If we can't get on together
If we continue to argue and fight, we won't be able to have a successful relationship
Take a chance and try a brand new start
Let's take a risk and try to restart our relationship in a better way
Contributed by Caleb O. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Ryan and shark
He never ages!!and his music will always be 'epic!'😎
KainedakillerV2
This deserves way more views and recognition
j9andphoenix
Always LOVED this song. If I didn't live in an apartment I would ramp it up to 11!
J
Just do it. Yolo hehehe
Rebecca White
This song is on my list of songs that if you’re gonna play it you have to play it loud
Natalya and Winston
Love his music
Beryl Reynolds
Love his form and style awesome
Noise Pollution 🤘
quizzical 😲
Jimmy Barnes
Thank you for the beautiful comment. It’s your lucky day👍!!! You’re invited to join the 10 lucky fans picked up for a FaceTime with me. Add up the email address on the channel “description”.❤️❤️
Noise Pollution 🤘
@Jimmy Barnes hey Jimmy deano here big ups from Tauranga! And everyone else 🖖