Jimmy Barnes – Working Class Man

“Working Class Man” is a song performed and made famous by Australian singer Jimmy Barnes. It was written by Journey keyboardist Jonathan Cain. “Working Class Man” is generally considered Barnes’ signature song as a solo artist.

The song first appeared on the 1985 album For the Working Class Man and was the first single released from the album. The single spent 14 weeks in the Australian charts, entering at #21 peaking at #5. It also spend 7 weeks in the New Zealand charts, peaking at #34.

It was later played over the credits of the 1986 Ron Howard film Gung Ho, where in some countries, including Australia, the film was released as Working Class Man. Barnes also performed “Working Class Man” at the closing ceremony of the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games.

Working Class Anthem
At the 2003 Melbourne Comedy Festival, comedian Adam Hills performed a popular version of Australia’s national anthem “Advance Australia Fair” to the tune of “Working Class Man” titled the “Working Class Anthem”. He later released it as a single the following year.

Hills performed the song for Barnes when he appeared as a guest on the television program Spicks and Specks.

Cover versions
In 1993 Australian John Schumann covered the song on his album True Believers. In 2004, Australian singer/songwriter Shannon Noll recorded a cover of “Working Class Man”. It was released as a B-side track for his second single “Drive”.
Edited Extracts from Wikipedia®