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Are you an avid AC/DC fan? Do you get Thunderstruck each time you hear the intro build? Or maybe it’s the classic Bon Scott that motivates you to the top.
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Last week we published a list of Blackall-based journalist Sally Cripps’ top 10 AC/DC songs prior to their Brisbane show on Saturday.
Thanks to a share on Facebook and Twitter from the rockers themselves (Kudos Acca Dacca), the story has gone global.
Now, we want to know your favourite song so we can compile a readers’ choice top 10.
I'm off to Akka Dakka in Brisbane on Saturday night - the third time I will have seen them. First was the Hells Bells tour at Festival Hall in 1981, second time was at ANZ Stadium in 2010 (the big floods that wiped out Roma and Charleville started then - I got stuck in Miles for two days on the way home), and now, five years later. I never got to see Bon Scott live.
Doing a top ten for this band is excruciatingly hard! I've left out songs like Hell's Bells (the homage to Bon and the introductory song at Festival Hall).
I still remember the bell coming down and Brian Johnson coming on stage and belting it with a pineapple because they were in Queensland), TNT and Whole Lotta Rosie but these ones below are the ones I've rocked out to the most! No doubt there will be many different preferences out there! Bring on the debate!
1 - Back in Black, from Back in Black album, 1980
It's one of the best-known riffs in the world and brings back all those memories of seeing them in 1981, when everyone was debating whether AC/DC would ever be any good without Bon Scott. This was just the best song from the best album - it cemented them as the band for me!
2 - Thunderstruck, from The Razors Edge album, 1990
This song is my ringtone, and I'm often tempted not to answer, so I can listen. And when I do, so many people, from ministerial media advisors to company managers, say they wish I hadn't answered, so they could listen to it too! The guitar intro is electrifying and the menacing growling undertone is a sensational counterpoint.
3 - High Voltage, from TNT, 1975
It's the first song they wrote for their second album and it's the trademark sound Australia embraced. Bon's in the lead and the boys are going for it! I love the 10-minute extended live version too. Try dancing to it - you won't need to go to crossfit that day!
4 - It's a Long Way to the Top (if you want to Rock and Roll), from TNT, 1975
Bon on lead vocals again, but this one brings back memories of Countdown on a Sunday night, and chuckling over mispronouncing the lyrics (It's a long way to the shop if you want a sausage roll!) Love it when a band introduces something personal like bagpipes, a nod to the Scottish heritage.
5 - You Shook Me All Night Long, from Back in Black, 1980
AC/DC's version of a love song! I've often read that the Youngs stopped Brian Johnson from writing more songs for the band, and if this is anything to go by, that's a shame. "Knocking me out with those American thighs" - oh boy!
6 - Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap, from Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap, 1976
Bush people seem to relate to this one - the complete lyrics don't do our work justice but the title does! I hear it used a lot in conjunction with bush promos, and at rodeos, so it's got good connotations for me. When it's played live, the band ups the tempo.
7 - Riff Raff, from Powerage, 1978
It's a really under-rated song from the Bon Scott era, and from an album Keith Richards says is his favourite of all AC/DC's work. I love Angus's guitar work. It's just pure rock and roll!
8 - Highway to Hell, from Highway to Hell, 1979
The last album featuring Bon Scott. I always knew AC/DC had a huge following in Europe but it was still a surprise when I attended the Tractor of the Year announcement at the International Machinery Expo in Bologna in 2014, to see the announcement accompanied by flashing disco lights and Highway to Hell pounding out in the designated room. I was describing it to some US journalists later in the press room, accompanied by my own version of the song, when I got shushed by some Italians - no sense of fun!
9 - Who Made Who, from Who Made Who, 1986
Can't really put my finger on why I like this song so much - it's a bit more boppy than most AC/DC songs. I guess it just makes me happy!
10 - For Those About to Rock, from For Those About to Rock, 1981
This is what Wikipedia says about the song: "The LP is perhaps best remembered for its title track, which has gone on to become the band's perennial show closer accompanied by the firing of stage prop cannons. The song and the name of the album was inspired by a book Angus Young read, entitled For Those About to Die, We Salute You, about Roman gladiators. The gladiators' final words to the emperor were "Ave Imperator, morituri te salutant" – or, "Hail Emperor, those who are about to die salute you".
If there was one person in my family who liked AC/DC as much as myself, it was my brother James. This was the song we played for him at his funeral. It's a song full of memory and meaning for me.
So that’s my top ten but what will yours be? Comment below and share your AC/DC memories with us.