Jimmy Barnes triumphantly returns to stage with Cold Chisel after his shock health woes derailed his tour
Jimmy Barnes returned to the stage with his Cold Chisel bandmates in Sydney on Friday night after an emergency medical procedure derailed his tour.
The 68-year-old rock star was forced to cancel two months of performances in August after noticing pain in his side during a performance in New Zealand, leading to emergency ‘reparative’ hip surgery.
He previously underwent open-heart surgery to ward off a staph infection, which then returned and attacked his hip, leading to final shock surgery and a six-week recovery.
But on Friday night, Jimmy made a triumphant return to the stage after his health scare as he performed with his band Cold Chisel at The Entertainment Quarter.
He seemed in good spirits as he belted out Cold Chisel’s best-known hits with bandmates Phil Small, Charley Drayton and Don Walker.
The Khe Sanh hitmaker cut a smart figure in a black shirt and leather-look skinny trousers, which he teamed with chunky black boots.
The frontman appeared to be in good health as he walked across the stage and delivered an energetic performance for the crowd.
Ahead of the show, Jimmy revealed he had been waiting ‘a long time’ for Cold Chisel’s first Sydney gig on their 50th Anniversary Tour.
Jimmy Barnes returned to the stage with his Cold Chisel bandmates in Sydney on Friday night after an emergency medical procedure derailed his tour
The 68-year-old star was forced to cancel two months’ worth of gigs in August after noticing pain in his side during a performance in New Zealand, leading to urgent ‘reparative’ hip surgery.
‘First of the Big Top shows tonight. It’s always great to play in Sydney. A lot of my friends will be in the front… I’ve been waiting for this for a long time,” he said on Instagram.
‘Thank you Karen Lee Andrews and The Cruel Sea for warming up the crowd. I’m ready.’
The Cold Chisel 50th anniversary tour, dubbed ‘The Big Five-0’, has already sold more than 150,000 tickets across 16 shows, making it one of the most highly anticipated Aussie tours of the year.
His return to the stage comes just weeks after he had to postpone his performances for two months as he recovered from emergency ‘reparative’ hip surgery.
In a heartfelt post on Facebook at the time, Jimmy explained the unexpected need for surgery and apologized to fans for the delay.
‘I had a stitch in my hip when I left Dunedin, and by evening the pain was unbearable. The doctors are acting quickly, but I am expected to make a full recovery within six weeks,” he said.
Fans offered overwhelming support, with the rocker assuring them that his postponed shows, with dates in Wyong, Toowoomba, Thirroul and Sydney, would be rescheduled.
He canceled the concerts in August after undergoing emergency surgery as he spent more than six weeks recovering.
But on Friday night, Jimmy made his triumphant return to the stage after his health scare as he took to the stage at The Entertainment Quarter.
He seemed to be in good spirits as he belted out Cold Chisel’s biggest hits with bandmates Phil Small, Charley Drayton and Don Walker.
The Khe Sanh hitmaker cut a smart figure with a black shirt and skinny leather-look trousers, which he paired with chunky black boots
The frontman appeared to be in good health as he walked across the stage and delivered an energetic performance for the crowd (he’s pictured with Phil Small)
To aid his recovery from home, he had a peripherally inserted central catheter (PICC) placed in a vein in his arm to deliver medication to the larger blood vessels around his heart.
In late September, Jimmy took to Instagram to celebrate having the PICC line removed after a difficult six-week recovery.
“It meant I could leave hospital and continue most of my recovery at home,” he said. It has been limiting and liberating at the same time.
“This part of my recovery is now over and with the help of (doctors), nurses, physiotherapists, family, friends, you and my Jane, everything is on track.”
The unexpected hip pain stemmed from a persistent bacterial infection that previously affected his heart and required him to undergo open-heart surgery.
Before recalling the scary time, he admitted he told his wife Jane he didn’t think he would make it while he was in St Vincent’s Hospital in Sydney.
‘I just had a terribly sick feeling, because I’ve never felt so sick before. I thought I was gone,” he recently told 60Minutes.
He previously underwent open-heart surgery (pictured at hospital) to ward off a staph infection, which then returned and attacked his hip, leading to final shock surgery and a six-week recovery.
Just hours before going to hospital, an unwell Jimmy had taken to the stage at a memorial concert for his late friend and promoter, Michael Gudinski.
He talked about how he felt so sick he could barely remember the show and said he was sweating and running a fever backstage.
He was supposed to fly abroad for another concert, but instead went to hospital as his health deteriorated.
A team of specialists then discovered that his body was failing because an infection in his blood was causing endocarditis – a life-threatening inflammation of the heart.
By the time he was wheeled into the operating room for open-heart surgery, his doctors said he had only hours to live.
During a seven-hour operation, doctors successfully replaced his damaged valves and repaired his heart.