Are all great metal bands British or American

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Q.� How great are they

A.� Great enough to be one of the top five album-selling acts in the American music charts�- some distinction for a band that has been touring and recording for 25 years.

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Q.� What's the best album to get an introduction to the band

A.� AC/DC's finest 'first incarnation' album is Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap, and it captures the essential ingredients that have made the band such an enduring success.

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AC/DC are a band for whom the adjective 'no frills' could have been invented. Their Dirty Deeds album was released in their native Australia in 1975, but it didn't make American release until 1982, which was two years after the exit of vocalist Bon Scott,�but by then the band were a legend in the UK.

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Q.� Who was Bon Scott

A.� Ronald (Bon) Scott was an immigrant of Scots parents who joined AC/DC after a stint in a bubblegum-rock band The Valentines, totally opposite from the hard rock legends AC/DC would become. After a few skirmishes with the law, and being turned down by the army for being 'socially maladjusted', Bon found fame and fortune with the biggest hard-rock export Australia has ever produced.

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Q.� So, about that Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap album

A.� The Dirty Deeds album is as good a shop window for the offerings of AC/DC as any other.�It combines some humour, the famous rasping whooping hollering vocals from Scott and the awesome guitar ability of the diminutive Angus Young.� Angus was only 15 when he joined the band, and his sister recommended he go on stage wearing his school uniform. Angus did so, and the costume became a trademark that has lasted to this day, although he is now in his 40s!

Q.� What are the best tracks

A.� Favourites as live showstoppers from the album are Problem Child and Rocker. The first has one of the all-time greatest guitar riffs ever; its four-note repeat kicks in with the power drumming of Phil Rudd behind it. Scott confirms the message of the song, muttering 'Cop this!' before confirming - at some volume -�that he is a man not to be messed with. The song clocks over five-and-a-half minutes �before stuttering to a halt, Angus Young having soloed himself to a standstill, slashing out just two notes for what seems like for ever, before silence takes over...�for about three seconds, before they hit that riff again, to remind you just how perfect it is, and then they fade.

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Rocker is a breakneck cartoon show at under three minutes, with Scott advertising his wardrobe, transport and personal decorations, all delivered in the trademark whisky-and-broken-glass vocal style that makes him one of the most distinctive vocalists of heavy rock.

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The surprise element of the album is a slow blues, Ride On, which again is almost six minutes in length, with Scott bemoaning his lot as a lonely traveller, doubtless striking a chord with disaffected young people throughout the world.

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Q.� Is Bon Scott not with the band any more

A.� Sadly not. Bon�Scott died of alcohol poisoning while the band was on tour in England in February 1980. Bon�died as he lived, drinking and partying as hard as he could, but he left behind a band that had worked too hard for too long to simply ship home and call it a day. AC/DC replaced Scott with Brian Johnson, who ironically shared similar bubblegum roots to his predecessor, having been the lead voice in British pop band Geordie. The band carried on, but has never forgotten the influence and power of their singer.

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Q.� So is this an album I can play at home for my family

A.� Probably not, unless they are over voting age, and pretty broad-minded! Check out the lyrics to Big Balls, and you'll see that AC/DC have a robustly Australian sense of humour, which may not suit all tastes. If in doubt, sit them down with Problem Child; if their feet are still tapping after Angus Young has thoroughly explored the top end of his guitar fretboard, then maybe you can play them the rest of the album, and confirm that Australian quality music doesn't just mean Kylie!

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by �Andy Hughes