AC/DC: The Encyclopaedia
by Malcolm Dome & Jerry Ewing

Easy DC

As the authors freely admit, there are several DC biographies available of varying quality, but the nature of those endeavours and the longevity of the band also mean that the linear, chronological back story of the band is rather hard-going. In these days of Wikis and bite-size, dip-in-and-out factoids, an encyclopaedia of this nature is rather a nice thing to have to hand.

The authors are both fans and have had a long association with AC/DC, which makes for some rather interesting subjective asides at times. The whole book is shot through with streetwise humour but its easy style can’t hide the oodles of research that goes into something like this. No deep analysis of lyrics is present, which is probably just as well – after all, how many times can you rephrase “This song’s about shagging”? (Quite a few, as it turns out, but that’s not the point.)

Where this book scores heaviest is in its extended profiles on members past and present, tracking the pre- and post-DC history of musicians including, for example, original vocalist Dave Evans. Fans will probably know a fair chunk of the content already but for the newcomer it’s a great intro to the Aussie rockers.

ISBN 9781842404362

Reviewed by Joe Shooman
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