AC/DC singer Brian Johnson revealed in his recently released memoir “The Lives Of Brian,” that the conspiracies that the band’s late frontman Bon Scott wrote some of the lyrics on the band’s Back In Black album before his death in 1980 are not true. Johnson first heard the rumor during an interview with Metal Edge and said: “It was a bit of a shock. It was probably about 1984, ’85. There was no social media at the time… And then there’s this guy in Australia, who was absolutely positive that Bon had written the lyrics. And he wouldn’t shut up and he wouldn’t go away and he was even to the point of phoning Derek, Bon’s brother… He was saying that Bon had written the words and that I had claimed them. Now, in the real world, that just doesn’t happen. First of all, the boys in the band would’ve given me them to sing, and they would’ve put his name on there — it’s simple as that, it’s a simple thing… ‘Why would he do that?’ Then, of course, he’s one of these conspiracy theorists — you know what I mean — they’re always there. I just said, let me put a full stop on this. I’ll just put a full stop on this and just say, ‘That’s enough.'”
Interviewer Michael Christopher then brought up rumors of Scott’s family receiving royalties on Back In Black, to which Johnson responded: No, no. Bon’s family receives royalties from the stuff he’s done — I’m sure. They’ll have an estate.., But I don’t think so…I know so, ’cause I get them [Back In Black royalties]. There’s the simple answer.”
In a Rolling Stone interview two months ago, Johnson revealed that he stopped AC/DC’s lyrics in the mid-Eighties, and that it was a management decision, not his. (Blabbermouth)