# Jimmy McShane
**Jimmy McShane** (James Harry McShane, 23 May 1957 – 29 March 1995) was a dancer and singer from Derry, Northern Ireland, best known as the frontman of the [Italo disco](https://www.edgepedia.org/italo-disco) project [Baltimora](https://www.edgepedia.org/baltimora), whose 1985 single "Tarzan Boy" became an international hit[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm12523743/) • [2](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/baltimora-mn0000065000). Whether he actually sang on Baltimora's records has remained a matter of dispute since the 1980s[2](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/baltimora-mn0000065000).
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Full name | James Harry McShane, born 1957 in Derry (Londonderry), Northern Ireland[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm12523743/) • [3](https://musicbrainz.org/artist/97d90a73-c3fa-467a-8b56-9120af5e4dfb) |
| Known for | Frontman and public face of the Italian project Baltimora[2](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/baltimora-mn0000065000) |
| Signature hit | "Tarzan Boy" (1985): UK peak No. 3, 13 weeks on the UK chart[4](https://www.officialcharts.com/songs/baltimora-tarzan-boy/); No. 13 on the Billboard Hot 100 on 1 March 1986[5](https://elpee.jp/artist/Baltimora/) |
| European run | Eight consecutive weeks at No. 1 on the European Hot 100, the longest run for a continental European production at the time[6](https://www.worldradiohistory.com/UK/Music-and-Media/80s/1986/M%26M-1986-01-06.pdf) |
| Song credits | "Tarzan Boy" composed and produced by Maurizio Bassi, lyrics by Naimy Hackett[7](https://musicbrainz.org/release/148d6e27-fb4b-4af4-81e3-fb5796436f18) |
| Died | 29 March 1995 in Derry, aged 37, of an AIDS-related illness[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm12523743/) • [8](https://www.derryjournal.com/news/brother-of-derry-pop-star-speaks-of-aids-stigma-and-devastation-173719) |
## Early life
McShane grew up in Derry, where his father Harry worked as a docker and his mother Rita worked in a canteen[8](https://www.derryjournal.com/news/brother-of-derry-pop-star-speaks-of-aids-stigma-and-devastation-173719). He showed talent in Irish dancing as a child and stood out with daring fashion choices, from bright hair colors to baggy trousers[8](https://www.derryjournal.com/news/brother-of-derry-pop-star-speaks-of-aids-stigma-and-devastation-173719). His brother Damien recalled in a 2018 interview that his years at St. Peter's secondary school were difficult and that he was bullied for being different[8](https://www.derryjournal.com/news/brother-of-derry-pop-star-speaks-of-aids-stigma-and-devastation-173719).
He first trained as a nurse with the Red Cross, then moved to London for stage school, studying music, dance, and acting[8](https://www.derryjournal.com/news/brother-of-derry-pop-star-speaks-of-aids-stigma-and-devastation-173719) • [9](https://americanradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Cash-Box/80s/1985/CB-1985-12-21.pdf). There he joined the touring band of the disco singer Dee D. Jackson; *Music Week* described him in 1985 as the backing singer on her 1977 hit "Automatic Lover"[10](https://worldradiohistory.com/UK/Music-Week/1994/1985/Music-Week-1985-08-17.pdf). The European touring brought him to Italy, where he settled in Milan and became part of the city's underground dance scene[2](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/baltimora-mn0000065000).
## Baltimora and "Tarzan Boy"
In 1984 the Italian producer and keyboardist Maurizio Bassi formed Baltimora with McShane, a Northern Irish singer and dancer who had recently relocated to Italy[2](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/baltimora-mn0000065000). McShane was the frontman and face of the project, while Bassi and a small group of Italian musicians wrote and performed most of the music[2](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/baltimora-mn0000065000). MusicBrainz credits "Tarzan Boy" to Bassi as composer and producer with lyrics by the American lyricist Naimy Hackett[7](https://musicbrainz.org/release/148d6e27-fb4b-4af4-81e3-fb5796436f18).
The debut single, released in 1985, became a major European hit in the summer of that year and later broke through in North America, an unusual result for an Italo disco act[2](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/baltimora-mn0000065000). In the United Kingdom it entered the chart on 3 August 1985 and peaked at No. 3 on 7 September, spending 13 weeks on the chart[4](https://www.officialcharts.com/songs/baltimora-tarzan-boy/). In the United States it spent six months on the Billboard Hot 100 and peaked at No. 13 on 1 March 1986; the album *Living in the Background* reached No. 49 on the Billboard 200[5](https://elpee.jp/artist/Baltimora/). At the height of the band's fame McShane appeared on [Dick Clark](https://www.edgepedia.org/dick-clark)'s *American Bandstand*, performing in the leopard-print Tarzan costume that drew both attention and mockery back home[8](https://www.derryjournal.com/news/brother-of-derry-pop-star-speaks-of-aids-stigma-and-devastation-173719).
**The vocal question.** In the years after Baltimora disbanded, some sources claimed that Bassi, not McShane, was the lead singer on "Tarzan Boy" and most other Baltimora tracks, with McShane lip-synching in live performances and videos[2](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/baltimora-mn0000065000). No definitive resolution appears in the available record.
A second album, *Survivor in Love* (1987), and its single "Key Key Karimba" failed to match the success of "Tarzan Boy", and Baltimora disbanded in 1987 after losing label support[2](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/baltimora-mn0000065000) • [5](https://elpee.jp/artist/Baltimora/).
## Later years and death
After the band's end, McShane returned to Derry.
AllMusic and the *Derry Journal* both place his AIDS diagnosis in 1994, after he had lived in Italy with his partner for several years[2](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/baltimora-mn0000065000) • [8](https://www.derryjournal.com/news/brother-of-derry-pop-star-speaks-of-aids-stigma-and-devastation-173719). His family nursed him at home through the final months of his illness; during this period he contracted pneumonia nine times, and his brother described local stigma around AIDS and a homophobic assault he suffered at a house party in the Carnhill area[8](https://www.derryjournal.com/news/brother-of-derry-pop-star-speaks-of-aids-stigma-and-devastation-173719). He died on 29 March 1995 at his family's home in Derry, aged 37[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm12523743/) • [8](https://www.derryjournal.com/news/brother-of-derry-pop-star-speaks-of-aids-stigma-and-devastation-173719).
## Legacy
"Tarzan Boy" returned to the Billboard Hot 100 in spring 1993, reaching No. 51, after its inclusion in the film *Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III*, and was later used in the comedy *[Beverly Hills Ninja](https://www.edgepedia.org/beverly-hills-ninja)* and in advertising[11](https://generation.dance/en/artists/baltimora/). The *Derry Journal* reported in 2018 that the song had passed 100 million plays on YouTube, helped by a pay-day loan television campaign[8](https://www.derryjournal.com/news/brother-of-derry-pop-star-speaks-of-aids-stigma-and-devastation-173719). In Derry, McShane is remembered as an early showcase graduate of the Feis Doire Colmcille cultural festival, alongside performers such as Phil Coulter, Feargal Sharkey, and [Nadine Coyle](https://www.edgepedia.org/nadine-coyle)[12](https://www.derryjournal.com/news/people/feis-doire-colmcille-a-century-of-culture-from-a-city-of-music-song-and-dance-3555017).
## References
1. [Jimmy McShane, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm12523743/)
2. [Baltimora biography by Timothy Monger, AllMusic](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/baltimora-mn0000065000)
3. [James McShane artist profile, MusicBrainz](https://musicbrainz.org/artist/97d90a73-c3fa-467a-8b56-9120af5e4dfb)
4. [Tarzan Boy chart history, Official Charts Company](https://www.officialcharts.com/songs/baltimora-tarzan-boy/)
5. [Baltimora Billboard chart history, elpee.jp Billboard Database](https://elpee.jp/artist/Baltimora/)
6. [Music & Media, 6 January 1986, worldradiohistory.com](https://www.worldradiohistory.com/UK/Music-and-Media/80s/1986/M%26M-1986-01-06.pdf)
7. [Tarzan Boy release credits, MusicBrainz](https://musicbrainz.org/release/148d6e27-fb4b-4af4-81e3-fb5796436f18)
8. [Brother of Derry pop star speaks of AIDS stigma and devastation, Derry Journal (30 November 2018)](https://www.derryjournal.com/news/brother-of-derry-pop-star-speaks-of-aids-stigma-and-devastation-173719)
9. [Points West, Cash Box, 21 December 1985, worldradiohistory.com](https://americanradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Cash-Box/80s/1985/CB-1985-12-21.pdf)
10. [Music Week, 17 August 1985, worldradiohistory.com](https://worldradiohistory.com/UK/Music-Week/1994/1985/Music-Week-1985-08-17.pdf)
11. [Baltimora - Biography, discography | Generation Dance](https://generation.dance/en/artists/baltimora/)
12. [Feis Doire Colmcille: a century of culture, Derry Journal](https://www.derryjournal.com/news/people/feis-doire-colmcille-a-century-of-culture-from-a-city-of-music-song-and-dance-3555017)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Music › Musicians and ensembles › Individual musical biographies › Pop and R&B singer-songwriters › Dance and disco singers, 1970s to 1990s*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 19, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 19, 2026; Oct 12, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license