Jimmy B
One of my favourite road signs in Australia is planted in a coal-mining service town called Biloela. Marking the corner of the Inland and Dawson Highways, the sign promises two of Queensland’s more make-believe destinations: Banana and Dululu.
So enrapt, I took a snap in 2003, when passing through Biloela on the Great Cassowary Safari, writing the offbeat bible of Penguin. Four years later, travelling the dry scrub with rock singer Jimmy Barnes, that road sign ironically reemerged.
Mainly coz Jimmy and his posse – this gonzo journo included – took a wrong turn at Rockhampton, trying to find a concert stage in Moura. This slapstick moment is one part of a brilliant weekend, spent alongside the Cold Chisel survivor a few weeks back.
To glean a few more moments, including the dread of lying on a surgeon’s table, your chest wide open and your heart in suspense, just click on the Jimmy B link to your right.
The story appeared yesterday, October 14, in Sunday Life magazine. From Chisel to his new album (Out in the Blue), from Dululu to Banana, the travelogue covers the rocky road of Jimmy Barnes, Icon.
For the record, the only quote I somehow failed to fit into the trip is a telling quote from Jane Mahoney, Jimmy’s wise and steadfast wife. When asked about the day her husband of 26 years went under the knife at St Vincents Hospital – a major operation to replace a shonky valve – Jane had a sober reply:
“Usually I plan in my diary. I write things down all the time. But I remember when [Jimmy] was going into surgery that I didn’t put anything down. Because I honestly didn’t know if he was going to walk off the table.”
Resoundingly, Mr Barnes survives. In fact if you’re quick you can catch an online slide-show of the Queensland escapades at www.smh.com.au. Or treat the Freelance article listed here as one madcap caption to one memorable trip.