I'm just reminiscing here - so read no further if you are looking for any form of intellectual editorial or a review of some sort. With the release of their first release in 8 years, Black Ice, I'm just paying tribute to one of the greatest rock bands of all time that somehow is one of the hugest commercial successes in music, but somehow, never been an editorial success by critics. Its never been cool to say that AC/DC is your favorite band. AC/DC is my favorite all-time band. There. Said it. Now you say - I'm a music loser and have no real music taste. Whatever. Its weird.
AC/DC has the #2 biggest selling album of *all* time - only behind Michael Jackson's Thriller - yet, in 30 years, they've never made the cover of Rolling Stone! What????? The cast of "The Hills" has made it, Sugar Ray has made it. Fergie has made it on the cover of Rolling Stone. Lindsey Lohan - the list goes on. AC/DC - never. Never. Over 30 years of blasting through the speakers of cars at Keggers and even wedding parties shaking it all night long and nothing. Even Rolling Stone admits that they are not sure how this happened - but it is a reflection of the appreciation of this band across the board - one of the biggest statements of irony in music. Sell-out stadiums for 30 years - chart topping, ageless, and timeless singles such as "Shook Me All Night Long", "Back in Black", and "For Those About to Rock, We Salute You" - and now with the release of "Black Ice" - out of the gate, they have the 2nd highest selling album of the year. The Rolling Stones album a couple years ago didn't do anything like this. AC/DC are the 4th biggest selling band in the U.S. in history - selling more albums than Madonna,Michael Jackson, and Mariah Carey - yet no cover of Rolling Stone, and only a handful of articles and often they were critical.
Now - just to reminicse on how much this band has been a part of this 40-something's life. When I came from a sheltered, small town, where we mostly heard pop radio such as Peaches N' Cream, Chicago, and The Pointer Sisters. The first song I ever heard was on a visit to my cousins house in Pasco Washington - coming from the farm country of Selah, WA, Pasco WA had street cred - in my 12 year old Selah frame of reference - the only multi-racial exposure I had. My cousin used to play me all the cool music - Curtis Blow - "The Breaks" and then they played "in the beginning....back in 1955...Let There Be Rock!...." - between the Genesis reference and the next album Highway to Hell, this Selah boy thought I was going to be thought to be worshiping the devil! But I couldn't get enough. I bought Highway To Hell as a 6th grader and spent days in my bedroom cranking it on my little stereo - my hard rock love was born and officially born.
Then, as an 8th grader, I watched Jason Platt in my class do a lip sync concert to Back in Black and Shook Me (I on the other hand covered Willie Nelson's Good Hearted Woman, and a duet cover of Olivia Newton John and Keith Richard's "Suddenly" - I couldn't have been more uncool. That Back in Black set blew me away - as it did America - becoming the #2 biggest album ever! On the high school football team, we had a pre-game ritual of playing "If You Want Blood, You Got It" on the boombox in the locker room, promptly after the coaches prayer before storming onto the field. Later comes how many weddings where the floors come alive with grandmas and kids rocking out to "Shook Me All Night Long".
Name me another band that has covered time, generations, and is still top selling new albums 30 years later? There are only a few - U2. Rolling Stones. Not much else.
AC/DC - You are the greatest and I look forwad to the live show in Seattle next month...
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