AC/DC’s third studio album, according to Wikipedia is High Voltage 1976 International version. All of the tracks on this International version have already been considered for lyrical content because they appeared on the early Australia only releases.

So, we’re going to look next at the international version of the beautifully alliterative Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap album and ask ourselves do the lyrics fall into the categories of

sex

love

gambling

rocking (the importance of)

personal power/ego

or another topic?

The songs

Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap – crime, supporting lyrical evidence “I lead a life of crime”.

Love at First Feel – love, supporting lyrical evidence “I fell in love in the first degree”.

Big Balls – having parties, with a side order of sex, supporting having parties lyrical evidence “All the social papers say I’ve got the biggest balls of all”, supporting sex lyrical evidence “And everybody comes and comes again”.

Rocker – this has already appeared on the Australian version of T.N.T and we decided it was about rocking (the importance of).

Problem Child – crime, specifically juvenile delinquency, supporting lyrical evidence “With a flick of my knife, I can change your life”.

There’s Gonna Be Some Rockin’ – rocking (the importance of), supporting lyrical evidence “There’s gonna be some rockin’ at the show tonight”.

Ain’t No Fun (Waiting ‘Round to Be a Millionaire) – rocking (the importance of), supporting lyrical evidence “So if you’ve got the money, we’ve got the sound”.

Ride On – persistence? Touring? This one is hard to classify. I’m going to call it loneliness, supporting lyrical evidence “But I’m lonely, Lord I’m lonely”.

Squealer – sex, specifically with an inexperienced partner, supporting lyrical evidence “She said she’d never been, never been balled before”.

Conclusion – We get 22% crime in this album, 33% rocking (the importance of), 17% sex (a big decrease when compared with previous albums), 11% love, 11% loneliness and 6% having parties. This is quite a varied album. I’ve adored the song “Big Balls” since I first heard it, aged around thirteen. I’d love to get some ball room notoriety. Why do mice have small balls? Because they can’t dance very well.

The next album we’ll look at is the international version of Let There Be Rock. Are you enjoying this? I am. We’ve got eight categories of lyrical content now; sex, gambling, rocking (the importance of), love, personal power/ego, crime, loneliness and parties.