"[3] The performances on Swingshift were taken from concerts at Sydney's Capitol Theatre and Melbourne's Festival Hall from the "Youth in Asia" tour in the winter of 1980.

"[8] There are covers of "Knocking on Heaven's Door", Creedence Clear Water Revival's "Long as I Can See the Light", and Jesse Stone's "Don't Let Go" on the album.

[10] Cold Chisel re-released their catalogue in 2011, with Swingshift re-entering the Australian charts for one week at number 42.

Adrian Zupp at allmusic gave the album a score of four and a half out of five, noting, "The band was at the peak of its powers and launching from all silos, and it shows.

"[11] He went on to praise the performances of support players Billy Rodgers and David Blight, but questioned the inclusion of the cover of "Knocking on Heaven's Door".

New Zealand music magazine Rip It Up, however, praised the cover and added, "listen to Jesse Stone's "Don't Let Go" which has been butchered by everybody from Manhattan Transfer to Isaac Hayes.

Reviewer Greg Taylor said, "The result is four sides of high rock and roll, brilliantly played, well recorded, and definitely worth taking home - especially if you're finding Chisel gigs a bit crowded for comfort these days.

"[5] However, he does note, "The very fact that a live gig demands more up rockers than anything else precludes Swingshift from being a Very Best of Cold Chisel.

"[14] In the Sydney Morning Herald, the album was described as, "Hard music carrying politically aware lyrics, forced home with hammer-like backgrounds.