BAD BOY BOOGIE

Jeff Apter

ALLEN & UNWIN

Jeff Apter has made a career from writing about the history of the Australian music industry. In his latest book, he tells the story of Bon Scott, the talented singer-songwriter from the original AC/DC line-up, who described his lyrics as “toilet poetry.” Scott’s Long Way to the Top, and Highway to Hell are rock classics, and reflect the life of the loveable personality who battled drug and alcohol addiction. Born in Scotland, Scott came to Australia with his family as a young child, was not a model student, and started singing in pub bands as a teenager. His road only got as far as England, where he drank himself to death in 1980, shortly before AC/DC went onto international success. Apter steers clear of the controversy regarding Scott’s level of input into the Back in Black album, released after his death. Nevertheless, the book is must-read for Scott’s cult following.

JEFF MAYNARD VERDICT: Dirty deeds