But, recalled older brother and Let There Be Rock co-producer George Young, “There was no way we were going to stop a shit-hot performance for a technical reason like amps blowing up!” - R.B. Things were seemingly just as intense in the studio, where, reportedly, Angus’ amp exploded during the recording of the song. “Let There Be Rock” is also a show-stopping staple of the band’s live sets, with Angus Young’s solo spot often stretching upwards of 10 minutes as he thrashes his guitar and body around the stage. It’s a thrilling and, in true AC/DC fashion, often amusing six-minute roller-coaster ride that telegraphs the magic, mythology, and electricity of rock & roll as well as any song before or since.
The title track to AC/DC’s fourth studio album is pure statement of purpose: Bon Scott casts rock & roll as something passed down from the heavens (“Let there be light … sound … drums … geetah!“), and the rest of the band members tear into the hopped-up boogie-blues riffs and rhythms as if they are indeed doing God’s work. So in recognition of Back in Black‘s 40th anniversary, we look back at 25 of their greatest songs.
As a band, they’re unrelenting and freewheeling nobody has ever had to wonder if AC/DC were having a good time. The best AC/DC songs overdose on crude, raucous riffs and offensive turns of phrase, whether its Scott bragging about his “Big Balls” or Young speeding down the “ Highway to Hell” spewing out bluesy, high-voltage solos. “The truth is, we’ve made the same album over and over 15 times.” “We’ve been accused of making the same album over and over 12 times,” guitarist Angus Young once said. When they exploded out of Sydney in the mid-Seventies, AC/DC’s scrappy original frontman Bon Scott sang about the group’s personal holy trinity - sex, drinking, and rock & roll - and ever since gravelly voiced Brian Johnson took the reins after Scott’s death, they’ve kept right on worshipping at the same altar. The secret to their success has always been their authenticity. Songs like “Highway to Hell” and “You Shook Me All Night Long” are classic-rock radio staples, and their 1980 LP, Back in Black, would be the bestselling album of all time if Thriller didn’t exist. Bulldozing rock-hard riffs, more double entendres than you can shake a stick at, and one comically snug schoolboy uniform: These are just a few of the ingredients that have made AC/DC one of the most iconic rock & roll bands of the past 45 years.
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