Starred review from December 16, 2013
Veteran rocker Kelly provides a fascinating history of Canadian hard rock. The author combines a methodical approach with obvious enthusiasm for his subject, first setting the stage by introducing the significant figures in this field, icons such as Anvil, Coney Hatch, Harem Scarem, Helix, Killer Dwarfs and more. What follows is an celebration of the world of hard rock, ranging from the demanding lifestyle forced on Canada's itinerant musicians by that nation's thinly settled geography to the challenges of trying to expand into the U.S. market, from Canadian rock journalism to the exploitive machinations of the music industry of the day, and from the heights of the golden age of the 1970s and 1980s to the dark age of the 1990s, when hard rock and metal were pushed aside by the grunge fad; the one element that gets short shrift are the women of Canadian rock, relegated to a single chapter. Drawing on his own experiences and that of the musicians he interviewed, the author has created a masterful account whose main flaw, aside from its focus on men, is brevity; the reader is left hoping this is merely introductory and works of greater depth will follow.