Editing Cold Chisel (section)

==History==
===1973–1978: Beginnings ===
Cold Chisel originally formed as '''Orange''' in [[Adelaide]] in 1973 as a [[Heavy metal music|heavy metal]] band with Ted Broniecki on keyboards, Les Kaczmarek on bass guitar, [[Ian Moss]] on guitar and vocals, [[Steve Prestwich]] on drums and [[Don Walker (musician)|Don Walker]] on piano.<ref name="McFarlane"/><ref name="Holmgren"/><ref name="Shedden"/> Their early material included [[cover version]]s of [[Free (band)|Free]] and [[Deep Purple]] material.<ref name="McFarlane"/><ref name="Shedden"/> Broniecki left by September 1973 and seventeen-year-old singer [[Jimmy Barnes]] – called Jim Barnes during their initial career – joined in December.<ref name="McFarlane"/><ref name="Shedden"/>

The group changed its name several times, often for every live performance, before choosing “Cold Chisel” after an early Don Walker song of that title, and that name stuck.<ref name="Nimmervoll"/> Barnes' relationship with the others was volatile: he often came to blows with Prestwich and left the band several times.<ref name="Shedden"/><ref name="Nimmervoll"/> During these periods Moss would handle vocals until Barnes returned.<ref name="Nimmervoll"/> Walker emerged as the group's primary songwriter and spent 1974 in [[Armidale]], completing his studies in quantum mechanics.<ref name="McFarlane"/><ref name="Nimmervoll"/> Barnes' older brother, [[Swanee (singer)|John Swan]], was a member of Cold Chisel around this time, providing backing vocals and percussion.<ref name="McFarlane"/><ref name="Holmgren"/><ref name="Nimmervoll"/> After several violent incidents, including beating up a roadie, he was fired.<ref name="Nimmervoll"/><ref name="Creswell"/> In mid-1975 Barnes left to join [[Fraternity (band)|Fraternity]] as [[Bon Scott]]'s replacement on lead vocals, alongside Swan on drums and vocals.<ref name="Holmgren"/><ref name="Creswell"/><ref name="McFarlane F"/><ref>{{Cite web |last=Organisation |first=Grape |title=Jimmy Barnes |url=https://fraternitybandofficial.com.au/jimmy-barnes/ |access-date=2022-07-02 |website=Fraternity |language=en-AU}}</ref>

Kaczmarek left Cold Chisel during 1975 and was replaced by [[Phil Small]] on bass guitar.<ref name="McFarlane" /><ref name="Holmgren" /> In November of that year, without Barnes, they recorded their early demos.<ref name="Nimmervoll" />

In May 1976 Cold Chisel relocated to [[Melbourne]], but "frustrated by their lack of progress,"<ref name="Nimmervoll"/> they moved on to [[Sydney]] in early 1977.<ref name="aus81">{{cite magazine|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Cash-Box/80s/1981/CB-1981-07-18.pdf|title=New Faces to Watch |magazine=[[Cash Box magazine|Cash Box]]|via=World Radio History|page=8|date=18 July 1981|access-date=1 December 2021}}</ref> In May 1977, Barnes told his fellow members that he would leave again. From July he joined Feather for a few weeks, on co-lead vocals with Swan – they were a Sydney-based hard rock group, which had evolved from [[Blackfeather]].<ref name="Holmgren"/><ref name="McFarlane Fe"/> A farewell performance for Cold Chisel, with Barnes aboard, went so well that the singer changed his mind and returned.<ref name="Creswell"/> In the following month the Warner Music Group signed the group.<ref name="Creswell"/>

===1978–1979: ''Cold Chisel'' and ''Breakfast at Sweethearts''===
In the early months of 1978 Cold Chisel recorded their [[Cold Chisel (album)|self-titled debut album]] with their manager and producer, Peter Walker (ex-[[Bakery (band)|Bakery]]).<ref name="McFarlane"/><ref name="Holmgren"/><ref name="Nimmervoll"/> All tracks were written by Don Walker, except "Juliet", where Barnes composed its melody and Walker the lyrics.<ref name="APRA Juliet"/> ''Cold Chisel'' was released in April and included guest studio musicians: Dave Blight on [[harmonica]] (who became a regular on-stage guest) and [[saxophone|saxophonists]] [[Joe Camilleri]] and [[Wilbur Wilde]] (from [[Jo Jo Zep & The Falcons]]). Australian musicologist [[Ian McFarlane]] described how, "[it] failed to capture the band's renowned live firepower, despite the presence of such crowd favourites as 'Khe Sanh', 'Home and Broken Hearted' and 'One Long Day'."<ref name="McFarlane"/> It reached the top&nbsp;40 on the [[Kent Music Report]] and was certified gold.<ref name="aus81"/>

In May 1978, "[[Khe Sanh (song)|Khe Sanh]]" was released as their debut single but it was declared too offensive for commercial radio due to the sexual implication of the lyrics, e.g. "Their legs were often open/But their minds were always closed."<ref name="Nimmervoll"/><ref name="McGrath"/> However, it was played regularly on Sydney youth radio station [[Triple J|Double J]], which was not subject to the restrictions as it was part of the [[Australian Broadcasting Corporation]] (ABC). Another ABC program, ''[[Countdown (Australian TV series)|Countdown]]''{{'}}s producers asked them to change the lyric but they refused.<ref name="Nimmervoll"/> Despite such setbacks, "Khe Sanh" reached No.&nbsp;41 on the Kent Music Report singles chart.<ref name="Kent"/> It became Cold Chisel's signature tune and was popular among their fans. They later remixed the track, with re-recorded vocals, for inclusion on the international version of their third album, ''[[East (Cold Chisel album)|East]]'' (June 1980).

The band's next release was a live five-track extended play, ''[[You're Thirteen, You're Beautiful, and You're Mine]]'', in November 1978.<ref name="McFarlane"/><ref name="Kent"/> McFarlane observed, "It captured the band in its favoured element, fired by raucous versions of Walker's 'Merry-Go-Round' and Chip Taylor's 'Wild Thing'."<ref name="McFarlane"/> It was recorded at the [[Regent Theatre, Sydney]] in 1977, when they had [[Midnight Oil]] as one of the support acts. Australian writer [[Ed Nimmervoll]] described a typical performance by Cold Chisel: "Everybody was talking about them anyway, drawn by the songs, and Jim Barnes' presence on stage, crouched, sweating, as he roared his vocals into the microphone at the top of his lungs."<ref name="Nimmervoll"/> The EP peaked at No.&nbsp;35 on the Kent Music Report Singles Chart.<ref name="McFarlane"/><ref name="Kent"/>

"Merry Go Round" was re-recorded for their second studio album, ''[[Breakfast at Sweethearts]]'' (February 1979). This was recorded between July 1978 and January 1979 with producer [[Richard Batchens]], who had previously worked with [[Richard Clapton]], [[Sherbet (band)|Sherbet]] and Blackfeather.<ref name="McFarlane"/><ref name="Holmgren"/><ref name="Nimmervoll"/> Batchens smoothed out the band's rough edges and attempted to give their songs a sophisticated sound.<ref name="Nimmervoll"/> With regards to this approach, the band were unsatisfied with the finished product.<ref name=rstone>{{cite magazine | title = Meeting of the Minds|issue=768| author=Dan Lander |magazine= [[Rolling Stone Australia]]|pages=52–57| date = November 2015| publisher = Paper Riot Pty Ltd}}</ref> It peaked at No.&nbsp;4 and was the top-selling album in Australia by a locally based artist for that year;<ref name="McFarlane"/><ref name="Kent"/> it was certified platinum.<ref name="aus81"/> The majority of its tracks were written by Walker, with Barnes and Walker on the lead single, "Goodbye (Astrid, Goodbye)" (September 1978), and Moss contributed to "Dresden". "Goodbye (Astrid, Goodbye)" became a live favourite, and was covered by [[U2]] during Australian tours in the 1980s.

===1979-1980: ''East''===
Cold Chisel had gained national chart success and increased popularity of their fans without significant commercial radio airplay. The members developed reputations for wild behaviour, particularly Barnes, who claimed to have had sex with over 1000 women and who consumed more than a bottle of [[vodka]] each night while performing.<ref name = "Creswell"/> In late 1979, severing their relationship with Batchens, Cold Chisel chose [[Mark Opitz]] to produce the next single, "[[Choirgirl (song)|Choirgirl]]" (November).<ref name="McFarlane"/><ref name="Kent"/> It is a Walker composition dealing with a young woman's experience with [[abortion]]. Despite the subject matter it reached No.&nbsp;14.<ref name="Kent"/>

"Choirgirl" paved the way for the group's third studio album, ''[[East (Cold Chisel album)|East]]'' (June 1980), with Opitz producing.<ref name="Holmgren"/> Recorded over two months in early 1980, ''East'', reached No.&nbsp;2 and is the second highest selling album by an Australian artist for that year.<ref name="McFarlane"/><ref name="Kent"/> ''[[The Australian Women's Weekly]]''{{'}}s Gregg Flynn noticed, "[they are] one of the few Australian bands in which each member is capable of writing hit songs."<ref name="Flynn"/> Despite the continued dominance of Walker, the other members contributed more tracks to their play list, and this was their first album to have songs written by each one.<ref name="McFarlane"/> McFarlane described it as, "a confident, fully realised work of tremendous scope."<ref name="McFarlane"/> Nimmervoll explained how, "This time everything fell into place, the sound, the songs, the playing... ''East'' was a triumph. [The group] were now the undisputed No.&nbsp;1 rock band in Australia."<ref name="Nimmervoll"/>

The album varied from straight-ahead rock tracks "Standing on the Outside" and "My Turn to Cry" to [[rockabilly]]-flavoured work-outs ("Rising Sun", written about Barnes' relationship with his then-girlfriend Jane Mahoney) and pop-laced love songs ("[[My Baby (Cold Chisel song)|My Baby]]" by Phil Small, featuring Joe Camilleri on saxophone) to a poignant piano ballad about prison life, "Four Walls". The cover art showed Barnes reclined in a bathtub wearing a [[kamikaze]] bandanna in a room littered with junk and was inspired by [[Jacques-Louis David]]'s 1793 painting ''[[The Death of Marat]]''.<ref name="Nimmervoll"/> The Ian Moss-penned "Never Before" was chosen as the first song to air on the ABC's youth radio station, [[Triple J]], when it switched to the [[FM broadcasting|FM]] band that year. Supporting the release of ''East'', Cold Chisel embarked on the Youth in Asia Tour from May 1980, which took its name from a lyric in "Star Hotel".

In late 1980, the [[Aboriginal Australian|Aboriginal]] rock reggae band [[No Fixed Address (band)|No Fixed Address]] supported the band on its Summer Offensive tour to the east coast, with the final concert on 20 December at the [[University of Adelaide]].<ref name=alpacalane>{{cite web | title=No Fixed Address Lane |series= City of Music Laneways | website=Alpaca Travel | url=https://maps.cityofadelaide.com.au/journey/f2104481-59df-11eb-96fe-067ec0c7e8f4/default/journeymapfeature:9fa2a08e-59e0-11eb-96fe-067ec0c7e8f4/info | access-date=22 April 2021|format= Includes map}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | title=Gig History 1980's | website=Cold Chisel | date=31 October 2019 | url=http://www.coldchisel.com/gig-history-1980s/ | access-date=22 April 2021}}</ref>

===1981-1982: ''Swingshift'' to ''Circus Animals''===
The Youth in Asia Tour performances were used for Cold Chisel's double live album, ''[[Swingshift]]'' (March 1981).<ref name="McFarlane"/> Nimmervoll declared, "[the group] rammed what they were all about with [this album]."<ref name="Nimmervoll"/> In March 1981 the band won seven categories: Best Australian Album, Most Outstanding Achievement, Best Recorded Song Writer, Best Australian Producer, Best Australian Record Cover Design, Most Popular Group and Most Popular Record, at the ''Countdown''/''[[TV Week]]'' [[Australian pop music awards#1980|pop music awards for 1980]].<ref name="Warner"/><ref name="Kimball Count"/><ref name="Count1980"/> They attended the ceremony at the [[Sydney Entertainment Centre]] and were due to perform: however, as a protest against a TV magazine's involvement, they refused to accept any trophy and finished the night with "My Turn to Cry".<ref name="Warner"/><ref name="Kimball Count"/><ref name="Count1980"/> After one verse and chorus, they smashed up the set and left the stage.<ref name="Creswell Fabinyi"/>

''Swingshift'' debuted at No&nbsp;1,<ref name="McFarlane"/><ref name="Kent"/> which demonstrated their status as the highest-selling local act.<ref name="McFarlane"/><ref name="Nimmervoll"/> With a slightly different track listing, ''East'' was issued in the United States and they undertook their first US tour in mid-1981.<ref name="McFarlane"/><ref name="Nimmervoll"/> Ahead of the tour they had issued "My Baby" for the North America market and it reached the top&nbsp;40 on ''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]''{{'}}s chart, [[Mainstream Rock (chart)|Mainstream Rock]].<ref name="Billb S"/> They were generally popular as a live act there, but the US branch of their label did little to promote the album.<ref name="Creswell"/> According to Barnes' biographer, [[Toby Creswell]], at one point they were ushered into an office to listen to the US master tape to find it had substantial hiss and other ambient noise,<ref name="Creswell"/> which made it almost unable to be released. Nevertheless, the album reached the lower region of the [[Billboard 200|''Billboard'' 200]] in July.<ref name="Billb A"/> The group were booed off stage after a lacklustre performance in [[Dayton, Ohio]] in May 1981 opening for [[Ted Nugent]]. Other support slots they took were for [[Cheap Trick]], [[Joe Walsh]], [[Heart (band)|Heart]] and [[the Marshall Tucker Band]].<ref name="McFarlane"/> European audiences were more accepting of the Australian band and they developed a fan base in Germany.

In August 1981 Cold Chisel began work on a fourth studio album, ''[[Circus Animals]]'' (March 1982), again with Opitz producing.<ref name="McFarlane"/><ref name="Holmgren"/> To launch the album, the band performed under a circus tent at [[Wentworth Park]] in Sydney and toured heavily once more, including a show in [[Darwin, Northern Territory|Darwin]] that attracted more than 10&nbsp;percent of the city's population.<ref name="Creswell Fabinyi"/> It peaked at No.&nbsp;1 in both Australia and on the [[Official New Zealand Music Chart]].<ref name="Kent"/><ref name="NZ Charts"/> In October 2010 it was listed at No.&nbsp;4 in the book ''[[100 Best Australian Albums]]'' by music journalists Creswell, [[Craig Mathieson]] and [[John O'Donnell (music journalist)|John O'Donnell]].<ref name="ODonnell"/>

Its lead single, "[[You Got Nothing I Want]]" (November 1981), is an aggressive Barnes-penned hard rock track, which attacked the US industry for its handling of the band on their recent tour.<ref name="Zupp Circus"/> The song caused problems for Barnes when he later attempted to break into the US market as a solo performer; senior music executives there continued to hold it against him. Like its predecessor, ''Circus Animals'' contained songs of contrasting styles, with harder-edged tracks like "Bow River" and "Hound Dog" beside more expansive ballads such as the next two singles, "[[Forever Now (Cold Chisel song)|Forever Now]]" (March 1982) and "[[When the War Is Over]]" (August), both written by Prestwich.<ref name="McFarlane"/><ref name="Nimmervoll"/><ref name="Zupp Circus"/> "Forever Now" is their highest-charting single in two [[Australasia]]n markets: No.&nbsp;4 on the Kent Music Report Singles Chart and No.&nbsp;2 on the Official New Zealand Music Chart.<ref name="Kent"/><ref name="NZ Charts"/>

"When the War Is Over" is the most-covered Cold Chisel track – [[Uriah Heep (band)|Uriah Heep]] included a version on their 1989 album, ''[[Raging Silence]]''; [[John Farnham]] recorded it while he and Prestwich were members of [[Little River Band]] in the mid-1980s and again for his 1988 solo album, ''[[Age of Reason (album)|Age of Reason]]''. The song was also a No.&nbsp;1 hit for former ''[[Australian Idol]]'' contestant [[Cosima De Vito]] in 2004 and was performed by [[Bobby Flynn]] during that show's 2006 season. "Forever Now" was covered, as a country [[waltz]], by Australian band [[the Reels]].

===1983: Break-up===
Success outside Australasia continued to elude Cold Chisel and friction occurred between the members. According to McFarlane, "[the] failed attempts to break into the American market represented a major blow... [their] earthy, high-energy rock was overlooked."<ref name="McFarlane"/> In early 1983 they toured Germany but the shows went so badly that in the middle of the tour Walker up-ended his keyboard and stormed off stage during one show. After returning to Australia, Prestwich was fired and replaced by [[Ray Arnott]], formerly of the 1970s [[progressive rock]]ers [[Spectrum (band)|Spectrum]] and [[country rock]]ers [[the Dingoes]].<ref name="McFarlane"/><ref name="Holmgren"/><ref name="wild colonial"/>

After this, Barnes requested a large advance from management. Now married with a young child, reckless spending had left him almost broke. His request was refused as there was a standing arrangement that any advance to one band member had to be paid to all the others. After a meeting on 17 August during which Barnes quit the band it was decided that the group would split up.<ref name="Creswell Fabinyi"/> A farewell concert series, The Last Stand, was planned and a final studio album, ''[[Twentieth Century (Cold Chisel album)|Twentieth Century]]'' (February 1984), was recorded.<ref name="McFarlane"/><ref name="Holmgren"/><ref name="Creswell Fabinyi"/> Prestwich returned for that tour, which began in October.<ref name="Creswell Fabinyi"/> Before the last four scheduled shows in Sydney, Barnes lost his voice and those dates were postponed to mid-December.<ref name="Creswell Fabinyi"/><ref name="Perry"/>
[[File:IMG 6448 - Flickr - jeaneeem.jpg|thumb|right|Barnes, 2011]]
The band's final performances were at the Sydney Entertainment Centre from 12 to 15 December 1983<ref name="Perry"/> – ten&nbsp;years since their first live appearance as Cold Chisel in Adelaide – and the group then disbanded.<ref name="McFarlane"/><ref name="Holmgren"/><ref name="Nimmervoll"/> The Sydney shows formed the basis of a concert film, ''[[The Last Stand (1984 film)|The Last Stand]]'' (July 1984), which became the biggest-selling cinema-released concert documentary by an Australian band to that time. Other recordings from the tour were used on a live album, ''[[The Barking Spiders Live: 1983]]'' (1984); the title is a reference to the pseudonym the group occasionally used when playing warm-up shows before tours. Some were also used as [[B-side]]s for a three-CD singles package, ''Three Big XXX Hits'', issued ahead of the release of their 1994 compilation album, ''[[Teenage Love (album)|Teenage Love]]''.

During breaks in the tour, ''Twentieth Century'' was recorded. It was a fragmentary process, spread across various studios and sessions as the individual members often refused to work together – both Arnott (on ten tracks) and Prestwich (on three tracks) are recorded as drummers. The album reached No.&nbsp;1 and provided the singles "[[Saturday Night (Cold Chisel song)|Saturday Night]]" (March 1984) and "[[Flame Trees]]" (August), both of which remain radio staples. "Flame Trees", co-written by Prestwich and Walker, took its title from the BBC series ''[[The Flame Trees of Thika]]'', although it was lyrically inspired by Walker's hometown of [[Grafton, New South Wales|Grafton]]. Barnes later recorded an acoustic version for his 1993 solo album, ''[[Flesh and Wood]]'', and it was also covered by [[Sarah Blasko]] in 2006.

===1984-1996: Aftermath and ARIA Hall of Fame===
Barnes launched his solo career in January 1984, which has provided nine Australian number-one studio albums and an array of hit singles, including "[[Too Much Ain't Enough Love]]", which peaked at No.&nbsp;1. He has recorded with [[INXS]], [[Tina Turner]], [[Joe Cocker]] and John Farnham to become one of the country's most popular male rock singers. Prestwich joined [[Little River Band]] in 1984 and appeared on the albums ''[[Playing to Win (Little River Band album)|Playing to Win]]'' and ''[[No Reins]]'', before departing in 1986 to join Farnham's touring band. Moss, Small and Walker took extended breaks from music.

Small maintained a low profile as a member in a variety of minor groups Pound, the Earls of Duke and the Outsiders.<ref name="McFarlane"/><ref name="Holmgren"/><ref name="Nimmervoll"/> Walker formed Catfish in 1988, ostensibly a solo band with a variable membership, which included Moss, [[Charlie Owen (musician)|Charlie Owen]] and Dave Blight at times.<ref name="McFarlane"/><ref name="Holmgren"/><ref name="Nimmervoll"/> Catfish's recordings during this phase attracted little commercial success. During 1988 and 1989 Walker wrote several tracks for Moss including the singles "[[Tucker's Daughter]]" (November 1988) and "[[Telephone Booth (song)|Telephone Booth]]" (June 1989), which appeared on Moss' debut solo album, ''[[Matchbook (Ian Moss album)|Matchbook]]'' (August 1989).<ref name="McFarlane"/><ref name="Holmgren"/><ref name="McFarlane IM"/> Both the album and "Tucker's Daughter" peaked at No.&nbsp;1.<ref name="McFarlane IM"/><ref name="AUS Charts IM"/> Moss won five trophies at the [[ARIA Music Awards of 1990]].<ref name="McFarlane IM"/><ref name="ARIA1990"/> His other solo albums met with less chart or award success.<ref name="McFarlane IM"/>

Throughout the 1980s and most of the 1990s, Cold Chisel were courted to re-form but refused, at one point reportedly turning down a $5&nbsp;million offer to play a sole show in each of the major Australian state capitals. Moss and Walker often collaborated on projects; neither worked with Barnes until Walker wrote "Stone Cold" for the singer's sixth studio album, ''[[Heat (Jimmy Barnes album)|Heat]]'' (October 1993). The pair recorded an acoustic version for ''Flesh and Wood'' (December). Thanks primarily to continued radio airplay and Barnes' solo success, Cold Chisel's legacy remained solidly intact.<ref name="McFarlane"/><ref name="Holmgren"/><ref name="McFarlane JB"/> By the early 1990s the group had surpassed 3 million album sales, most sold since 1983.<ref name="McFarlane"/> The 1991 compilation album, ''[[Chisel (album)|Chisel]]'', was re-issued and re-packaged several times, once with the long-deleted 1978 EP as a bonus disc and a second time in 2001 as a double album. The ''Last Stand'' soundtrack album was finally released in 1992. In 1994 a complete album of previously unreleased demo and rare live recordings, ''[[Teenage Love (album)|Teenage Love]]'', was released, which provided three singles.

===1997–2010: Reunited===
Cold Chisel reunited in October 1997, with the line-up of Barnes, Moss, Prestwich, Small and Walker.<ref name="McFarlane"/><ref name="Holmgren"/> They recorded their sixth studio album, ''[[The Last Wave of Summer]]'' (October 1998), from February to July with the band members co-producing.<ref name="McFarlane"/><ref name="Holmgren"/><ref name="Nimmervoll"/> They supported it with a national tour. The album debuted at No. 1 on the [[ARIA Charts|ARIA Albums Chart]].<ref name="AUS Charts"/> In 2003 they re-grouped for the Ringside Tour and in 2005 again to perform at a benefit for the victims of the [[Boxing Day tsunami]] at the [[Sidney Myer Music Bowl|Myer Music Bowl]] in Melbourne. Founding bass guitarist, Les Kaczmarek, died of liver failure on 5 December 2008, aged 53.<ref name="Cashmere"/> Walker described him as "a wonderful and beguiling man in every respect."<ref name="Walker"/>

On 10 September 2009 Cold Chisel announced they would re-form for a one-off performance at the [[Sydney 500]] [[Supercars Championship|V8 Supercars]] event on 5 December.<ref name="McCabe Reform"/> The band performed at [[Stadium Australia]] to the largest crowd of its career, with more than 45,000 fans in attendance.<ref name="ANZ Stade"/> They played a single live show in 2010: at the [[Deniliquin]] [[ute muster]] in October. In December Moss confirmed that Cold Chisel were working on new material for an album.

===2011–2019: Death of Steve Prestwich & ''The Perfect Crime''===
[[File:IMG 6416 - Flickr - jeaneeem.jpg|thumb|right|Ian Moss, 2011. Don Walker in the background.]]
In January 2011 Steve Prestwich was diagnosed with a [[brain tumour]]; he underwent surgery on 14 January but never regained consciousness and died two days later, aged 56.<ref name="Levy"/> All six of Cold Chisel's studio albums were re-released in digital and CD formats in mid-2011. Three digital-only albums were released – ''[[Never Before (Cold Chisel album)|Never Before]]'', ''[[Besides (Cold Chisel album)|Besides]]'' and ''[[Covered (Cold Chisel album)|Covered]]'' – as well as a new compilation album, ''[[The Best of Cold Chisel|The Best of Cold Chisel: All for You]]'', which peaked at No.&nbsp;2 on the ARIA Charts.<ref name="AUS Charts"/> The thirty-date Light the Nitro Tour was announced in July along with the news that former [[Divinyls]] and Catfish drummer [[Charley Drayton]] had replaced Prestwich. Most shows on the tour sold out within days and new dates were later announced for early 2012.

''[[No Plans]]'', their seventh studio album, was released in April 2012, with [[Kevin Shirley]] producing,<ref name="Condon"/> which peaked at No.&nbsp;2.<ref name="AUS Charts"/> ''[[The Australian]]''{{'}}s Stephen Fitzpatrick rated it as four-and-a-half out of five and found its lead track, "All for You", "speaks of redemption; of a man's ability to make something of himself through love."<ref name="Fitzpatrick"/> The track "I Got Things to Do" was written and sung by Prestwich, which Fitzpatrick described as "the bittersweet finale", a song that had "a vocal track the other band members did not know existed until after [Prestwich's] death."<ref name="Fitzpatrick"/> Midway through 2012 they embarked on a short UK tour and played with [[Soundgarden]] and [[Mars Volta]] at [[Calling Festival|Hard Rock Calling]] at London's Hyde Park.<ref name="Harte"/><ref name="Aus TimeMar12"/>

The group's eighth studio album, ''[[The Perfect Crime (Cold Chisel album)|The Perfect Crime]]'', appeared in October 2015, again with Shirley producing, which peaked at No.&nbsp;2.<ref name="AUS Charts"/><ref name="Bell"/> Martin Boulton of ''[[The Sydney Morning Herald]]'' rated it at four out of five stars and explained that the album does what Cold Chisel always does: "work incredibly hard, not take any shortcuts and play the hell out of the songs." The album, Boulton writes, "delves further back to their rock'n'roll roots with chief songwriter [Walker] carving up the keys, guitarist [Moss] both gritty and sublime and the [Small/Drayton] engine room firing on every cylinder. Barnes' voice sounds worn, wonderful and better than ever."<ref name="Boulton"/>

The band's latest album, ''[[Blood Moon (Cold Chisel album)|Blood Moon]]'', was released in December 2019. The album debuted at No. 1 on the [[ARIA Charts|ARIA Album Chart]], the band's fifth to reach the top.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.noise11.com/news/cold-chisel-blood-moon-is-no-1-38-years-after-swingshift-in-1981-20191214|title=Cold Chisel Blood Moon Is No 1 38 Years After Swingshift In 1981 |website=noise11|date=14 December 2019|access-date=14 December 2019|author-last1=Cashmere|author-first1=Paul}}</ref> Half of the songs had lyrics written by Barnes and music by Walker,<ref name=stack>{{cite web| work= Stack | title=Blood brothers: An interview with Cold Chisel | date=5 December 2019 | url=https://stack.com.au/music/music-interview/blood-brothers-an-interview-with-cold-chisel/}}</ref> a new combination for Cold Chisel, with Barnes noting his increased confidence after writing two autobiographies.<ref name=amp>{{cite web| work= Amnplify | title=Cold Chisel| date=6 December 2019| url=https://amnplify.com.au/cold-chisel-blood-moon-out-now-blood-moon-tour-2020-shows-in-mt-cotton-geelong-yarra-valley-and-orange-sold-out/}}</ref>

===2024: 50th Anniversary Tour===
On 29 May 2024, Cold Chisel announced 'The 50th Anniversary Tour',<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.coldchisel.com/cold-chisel-announce-50th-anniversary-tour-the-big-five-0/|title=COLD CHISEL announce 50th Anniversary Tour|website=coldchisel.com.au|date=29 May 2024|access-date=29 May 2024}}</ref> beginning in [[Armidale]] on 5 October 2024 and ending in the band's hometown of Adelaide on 17 November 2024. However, Jimmy Barnes' wife Jane subsequently posted on [[Twitter|X.com]] that further tour dates including New Zealand would be announced later.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://x.com/jane13barnes/status/1795567187018870901|title=Jane Barnes|website=x.com|date=29 May 2024|access-date=29 May 2024}}</ref>