An ailing Jimmy Barnes has cancelled an upcoming show, after revealing he is in hospital fighting a serious illness.

The rocker took to Facebook late on Wednesday to apologise for fans, and reveal he is in hospital with bacterial pneumonia.

“I’m sorry to let you know that I’ve been receiving intravenous antibiotics over the last 36 hours to treat bacterial pneumonia,” he wrote.

The Cold Chisel frontman said his hospitalisation had meant he had to abandon plans to head to Noumea to play at Rock The Boat 2023.

Barnes was one of a handful of Australian music legends signed on for the Royal Caribbean cruise’s Rock The Boat. Others included Daryl Braithwaite, the Black Sorrows and Jon Stevens.

“My band will still perform on board, together with my daughter Mahalia and other special guests,” he wrote.

Barnes apologised to his fans “for the inconvenience and disappointment”.

“But the doctors have confined me to bed for two days. The timing couldn’t be worse,” he wrote.

Barnes said he was “expected to make a full recovery in time to perform live at By The C in Torquay”. The festival in southern Victoria on Saturday also features The Living End, Birds of Tokyo, Pete Murray, Kasey Chambers, plus Mahalia Barnes and The Soulmates.

Pneumonia is an infection of the lungs that can be caused by bacteria or a virus. Website Health Direct says it causes swelling in the lungs as air sacs fill up with fluid, making it harder to breathe.

“Bacterial pneumonia may be caused by the pneumococcal bacteria, called streptococcus pneumoniae. This is one of the worst types of pneumonia,” it says.

“Pneumonia can be a mild illness, or it can be much more serious.”

It can be life-threatening, particularly for babies under 12 months,
Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people and those older than 70 years.

Barnes’ illness comes after he had hip and back surgery late last year, after which he endured weeks of bed rest.

“I’ve had niggling back and hip issues for years, but things suddenly got a lot worse over the last few weeks and I’m now in constant and severe pain,” he said immediately before the operation.

“I have to get this fixed so I can jump around onstage for another 50 years.”

In 2007, Barnes had heart surgery to correct a congenital condition and he had emergency back surgery in 2014 after suffering complications from an earlier procedure.

Scottish-born Barnes joined Adelaide-based Cold Chisel in the early 1970s and the band went on to release a string of hit albums.

He embarked on a successful solo career in 1983.