Paul Matters

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Paul Matters (14 October 1952 – 14 October 2020) was a bassist for the Australian rock band AC/DC in 1975, joining the group after the recording of their debut album High Voltage. He was fired by lead singer Bon Scott several weeks after joining the group and replaced by Mark Evans.^[1]

Born in Toronto, New South Wales, Matters was the bassist of Newcastle band Armageddon^[2] until parting ways with the group in 1974 over what drummer Les Gully described to AC/DC biographer Jesse Fink as "musical differences".^{[citation needed]} Matters was hired by AC/DC and performed live on tour in Melbourne, Adelaide, and Sydney, but had not taken part in the recording of the group's debut album, which was recorded before his recruitment, and was then sacked from the group.^[3]

According to Gully, Matters "didn't fit the values of the Young [brothers] oligarchy. ... He didn't really fit, had strong opinions and sensitivity, and played just what he liked."^[4] Matters only gave one press interview following his sacking by AC/DC in 1975, to Fink for the book Bon: The Last Highway, in which he claimed that he was "a bit lazy" and "a bit cranky" but did not have enough money to eat: "I didn't have any food in my stomach. They [management] didn't give us any money to buy food or anything."^[3]

Matters quit music after his departure from AC/DC in 1975. He lived on a disability pension for the rest of his life.^{[citation needed]}

Matters died of heart disease in his hometown of Toronto on 14 October 2020, his 68th birthday.^[5][6]

• Fink, Jesse, Bon: The Last Highway: The Untold Story of Bon Scott and AC/DC's Back In Black, Penguin Random House Australia, 2017