Highway to Hell : The Life and Times of AC/DC Legend Bon Scott

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Summary: A BON SCOTT MASTERPIECE!
Review: Before we get started, let's make one thing clear. I am an AC/DC nut. They are my favorite band and have been for 15 years. Sorry to the elders, but being 29 I got in ASAP in the mid to late 80's.

I love this book. I thought I knew it all, but I did not. Bon possibley being thrown out of the band? Contradictory to everything I've read or heard.

The book is gripping, especially the 2nd half. A must read for any AC/DC fan who thought he knew it all. Trust me...you don't.

Great read and great buy. Well written. Highly recommended.

I hope the author writes the "Brian Years". I need to know more...

Steve Malo Litchfield, CT USA

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Summary: Highway to Hell: The Life and Times of AC/DC Legend Bon Sco
Review: BOn Scott - a drunk, a poet, a wild soul. Also, the ultimate professional, creative, respectful, kind...The guy that made posible for the astonishing duo of guitarrists, Malcolm and Angus, finally have an identity and goes for stardom. The guy that died just some months before AC/DC released their masterpiece, BACK IN BLACK, when the band was already on the road to notoriety...the guy who could write cheap and simple lyrics with charm and humour...The owner of one of the weirdest voices of rock 'n roll ever...

So, Clinton Walker went for the biography of this man, even without any support from Angus and Malcolm. The result was a very good book, touching, not sensationalist but straight to the facts. I salute you, Mr. Walker! REst in PEace, Bon!

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Summary: FINALLY!
Review: Finally, some intelligent commentary on rock's most underappreciated front man!
AC/DC has made a career of appealing to the lowest of the lowbrow, a policy which has garnered them formidable financial success... but one which has also ensured more than their fair share of ridicule and scorn. Combine this with their generally tight-lipped approach to interviews and publicity in general, and you are left with very little insight beyond that which they offer in their music. And with song titles like "Cover You In Oil" and "Sink The Pink", I think it's fair to say these dudes generally aren't into discussing life's more delicate matters. Want to know the "real deal" behind the institution known as AC/DC? Fuhgettabouttit. These guys aren't talking.
So what's a fan to do? I grew up on these guys. I base my entire life and philosophy on their teachings. It was Bon who taught me to say yes when they say no. When they say stop, to say go. I always said up when they said down, and damn it, to this day, if they say straight, I still say round. I mean, this is some serious stuff here.
So I suppose it should come as no surprise that the "real" story of Bon's life should come not from the band themselves, but rather from everyone but. Culled from interviews with parents, friends, ex-wives and girlfriends, not to mention an ex-band-member (bassist Mark Evans), this book is the first material I've ever seen which attempts to portray the man in any kind of humane manner. Is this a good thing? Hell, I don't know. Sometimes I think the less said, the better.
Um, in summation... this is an important book about an important dude. If you appreciate AC/DC's music, read it. If you don't, you never counted anyway.
Out of steam.

Rating:
Summary: Great
Review: Highway to Hell tells the story of singer extraordinaire Bon Scott. Bon rocked hard, lived hard and played hard. This book takes you behind the scenes in recording stories and tales from the road.

Even with all of Bon's hard living, he is portrayed in a sentimental manner. You get to know him as a man in addition to the rock star. This is a must read for any AC/DC fan.

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Summary: I CAN'T UNDERSTAND THE YOUNG BROTHERS....
Review: I can't understand the Young Brothers ruthless personality. I love AC/DC.
So, when a writer like CLinton Walker tries "heroically" to pay a unabiased tribute to Bon Scott, one should expect that the Young clan would give support to his project.

No. That didn't happen. Malcolm, Angus, George, drummer Phil Rudd, Harry Vanda, ex-manager Peter Mensch, well, nobody connected to Alberts Productions accepted to give an interview for this book, which was almost a "last chance" to homage their fallen comrade. This is even made worse by the fact that Bon's parents, Chuck and Iza, gave their blessing to the project...
Just intriguing, I assume... The author could not even obtain permission to quote from Bon's lyrics, what would have certainly made the book still better!!!
As for the book, it's excellent, altough it quotes so much from Bon's girlfriends (as explained above, this was the only line of action left to the author).
As for people within the band, the most interesting sources are ex-bassist Mark Evans and ex-manager Michael Browning. Altough sometimes criticizing the band, they (and the author) did it in a very soft manner, with respect and gallantry.
Well, once we don't have (and probably never will) any kind of oficial biography about AC/DC, we've gt to put our hands upon anything released. And this is a fine effort!

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Summary: Worst Book Ever
Review: I was expecting so much more from this piece, a profound disappointment. I can see why the members of the AC/DC organization wanted no part of it. Its full of sophomoric, misleading, and inconsequential innuendo and hearsay. The writer has talked to lots of people who knew Bon Scott at one time or another or another, yet little of any substance is presented. Instead, the author spends more time trying to place the life of Bon Scott in a context that did not exist when he was living.
This book is more of a study in social phenomenon than an actual biography. Instead of concentrating on the man and his music, he focuses more on Bon Scott as a social icon. The book is filled with stale cliches and endless repetition of the same dull themes that would be more at home in a mass market paperback about Joan Collins.
If I read a book about Mars, I would expect the author to have a firm grasp of astronomy in particular and science in general. If I read a book about rock and roll, I would expect the writer to actually know something about guitars, chords, notes, progression, recording etc. This author's main credentials with regards to Bon and AC/DC appears to be that he is Australian, and that he has written about Australian music as a popular phenomenon.
Very thin, not much weight to bring to bear on a subject that deserves much better treatment. A lame limp-wristed effort.

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Summary: Awsome book!!!!!!!!!!!!
Review: The book is great!!! You find out the story behind Bon Scott. I was very touched by this book. Bon lived more life than most people will EVER see in their whole entire lifetime. And he died so young. Right before AC/DC got SUPERHUGE. But as it was stated in the book, the band moved on, and it's the way Bon would have wanted it. Nothing could have been done to change that. Clinton Walker does a very good job of making Bon out to be the legend he surely was.

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Summary: VERY GOOD READING
Review: This book is simple a must if you're a real AC/DC fan. Altough it is focused mainly on Bon Scott ( for the simple reason of the man's unbeliavable great charisma ), of course it deals a lot about AC/DC's career until the "HIGHWAY TO HELL" album. YOu have to got a little patience in the first hundred pages or so, when the book deals with all the secundary bands Bon worked before joining the Young Brothers. But this phase is fundamental in understanding the man's backgorund and way of life. Of course there is no official quote from AC/DC actual members ( AC/DC would never permit it!!!), but a lot of interviews from ex-bassist Mark Evans. What becomes clear after reading the book (what was already clear for clear-minded fans) is how the band lost creativity after Bon died, mainly in the lyrical department. The book reveals that some years ago the band even contemplated sacking Brian Johnson (the guy just can't sing or scream anymore - it's awful !!). The band today is almost an "Institution", like the Stones (that's why they released only two albuns in the entire period since 1991)and losing their second singer could be a definitive blow to the band. All in all, this book is a must have.

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Summary: Mr Walker sure has done his homework!
Review: This book was great. I dont often read anything, but this one only took a short amount of time because I couldnt stop reading it. It dives back into the life of Bon Scott, but not the Bon Scott that is whats sort of "mythical" or "legend", nor does it start from when Bon joined AC/DC!

This book was orginaly supposed to be a movie, but Alberts wouldnt allow a movie about Bon to be made. Clinton Walker has not given you a collection of rumurs or storys that are just words of fans who heard rumours, he has actualy gone and found freinds & fammilly of Bon, and gone straight to the horses mouth for the info, from the people who knew Bon best!

It starts from the begining of Bons life; And gradulay tells you about Bon's life during the 50's & 60's, and the previous bands he was with, and why they colapsed. It is very suprising to find out who Bons closest freinds actualy where!!! Not to mention that many of Australias best rock bands members all kind of worked together at one stage, or knew each other, it is very intresting to read about who Bon knew!

Then of coarse, the life into Bon's introduction to AC/DC. And it lays to rest the rumour that Bon was a driver/roadie type of person for the band, it explains why people would think that, and the real story of how Bon joined AC/DC; and you will discover it was on purpose, not accidently as many have come to beleive!

There is alot of great information that let you into the life of not just a rock & roll legend that we are all fammiluer with fronting the worlds greatest rock band, but also who Ronald Scott was on the inside. He was not the wild man everyone saw him as, he had a public image that he would put on, but behind the frontmans public mask, there beat the painfull heart of a man who's dream was to be the biggest. And he got there after a hard struggle. But unfortunatly, when he got there, he didnt have anyone to share that glory with. Youll find out that Bon, despite what his public interveiws and charactor said, he was really searching for love and someone to take care of him. My thoughts on when Bon died, it wasnt just choking on his own vomit as you would have heard. He was also dieing of a broken heart. The poor man acheived fame, but didnt find love before his time had come.

Many other intresting things I found from this book. How Bonny got into AC/DC, who Bon really was, Who bons freinds where, how Bon was not as solid in the band as you might think, he was considered disposable of and replacable by the Youngs untill around about 1977!! It also speaks about the struggles and hurdles of AC/DC, they where almost dropped by Atlantic untill pretty much the Highway To Hell album! There struggles on the road in the early days, there disrespect in Australia, and there hard fight as they discovered that it really is a long way to the top, if you wanna rock n roll!

The only reason I drop it one star is that I feel that Walker has a grudge about the Young Brothers. He seems ticked about them not wanting to be interveiwed for the book, and maybe having somthing to do with the movie not beeing made? But he speaks about there shyness like it was some kind of disgrace, and he just dosent seem to have much nice to say about Angus or Malcolm, and I get a strong vibe that he feels that the Youngs pushed him into his grave, and drove him to drink himself to death. But I dont think so, Bon i'm sure died of a broken heart after splitting up with his girl. Then it dosent seem to talk about AC/DC's success after Bons death, it mentions the 80's and early 90's, but dosent mention the sucsess they had with LIVE performances as they always did from the begining. He seems to have gone out of his way to try to make it look like AC/DC died when Bon did, and blames the Youngs for it.

But apart from some bad blood issues; I think the book is great, letting us see the Bon that we never knew, and his days with Fretinity and the Valentines, even back with the Spktors, his hay days in Perth and what Bon would get up to, the great storys of freinds memorys of Bon, and the sad tradjedy that Bon was seen as the wild legendary frontman of a great powerfull rock band, but on the inside, just your average Joe looking for freinds and love, and who sadly didnt get to settle down as he wanted to

Rest In Peace Ronald Bon Scott - We Salue You