Jawbone Press has published two titles that are worthy of discussion: LENNON AND McCARTNEY--TOGETHER ALONE by John Blaney; and METAL--THE DEFINITIVE GUIDE by Garry Sharpe-Young (with a foreword by Rob Halford of Judas Priest).

Blaney, author of previous books on Lennon and McCartney, has assembled a critical discography of their solo work. It begins in 1966 when McCartney took his first composing job outside the Beatles, writing incidental music for a little-known film called The Family Way. It proceeds chronologically from there, going gig by gig, record by record, up to the present. The book is packed with juicy quotes by and about Lennon and McCartney, and with the kind of detailed archival information that will gladden the heart of every Beatles fan and collector.

METAL took two decades to write. The 495-page tome combines biography, critical analysis and detailed references in its ambitious attempt to profile just about every heavy-metal band in the world. The well-designed and -illustrated book kicks off with a chapter on Black Sabbath and finishes with a look at Voivod, the legendary experimental band from Quebec, Canada. Whether famous or obscure, the bands are treated with respect by the author and his many consultants (including Bernard Doe, the publisher of Metal Forces magazine).