After 60 proper legends of pop (OK, you may have thought that some were a bit iffy), it is now time for my Top 20 Leg Ends of pop. These are those groups or artists that have had hits and sold well, but by no means a favourite of mine.
I do know that some of you will really like these, as there is no accounting for taste.
Now, SB does not like the use of profanity in the articles (comments fine, not articles), therefore if I say, for example, “Clut” I mean that well known GP word which is a sign of endearment, and if I say the word “Fluff” it is a well know word beginning with F, four letters, last letter a K, 2nd letter a U and just in case there is doubt, the 3rd letter is a C. The use of the word “Sausage” means that four letter word for when evacuating the bowels.
H/T to Brett of this parish, who very kindly sent me his play list of dire, dreadful, suicidal and basically fluffing songs generally done by right Cluts which are all pretty Sausage.
So, on we go with No 14 on my list: – AC/DC
Let me just say though that I appreciate there are loads of people that like this stuff. I am just not one of them.
AC/DC are an Australian rock band formed in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia in 1973 by Scottish-born brothers Malcolm and Angus Young. Their music has been variously described as hard rock, blues rock, and heavy metal, but the band calls it simply “rock and roll“. ((Author’s note: I call it a load of old sausage)
AC/DC underwent several line-up changes before releasing their first album, 1975’s High Voltage. Membership subsequently stabilised around the Young brothers, singer Bon Scott, drummer Phil Rudd, and bassist Mark Evans. Evans was fired from the band in 1977 and replaced by Cliff Williams, who has appeared on every AC/DC album since 1978’s Powerage. In February 1980, about seven months after the release of their breakthrough album Highway to Hell, Scott died of acute alcohol poisoning after a night of heavy drinking. AC/DC considered disbanding, but at Scott’s family’s request, the remaining members opted to continue the band, bringing in long time Geordie vocalist Brian Johnson as Scott’s replacement. Later that year, the band released their first album with Johnson, Back in Black, which was dedicated to Scott’s memory. The album launched AC/DC to new heights of success and became one of the best selling albums of all time. (Author’s note: All Hail Brian Johnson, I like him).
The band’s eighth studio album, For Those About to Rock We Salute You (1981), was their first album to reach number one in the United States. Prior to the release of their next album, Flick of the Switch (1983), Rudd left the band and was replaced by Simon Wright, being in turn replaced by Chris Slade in 1989. The band experienced a commercial resurgence in the early nineties with the release of their twelfth studio album The Razors Edge (1990); it was their only album to feature Slade, who was replaced by the returning Rudd in 1994. Rudd has since recorded five more albums with the band, starting with, and including, Ballbreaker (1995). Their fifteenth studio album Black Ice was the second-highest-selling album of 2008, and their biggest chart hit since For Those About to Rock, eventually reaching No.1 worldwide.
The band’s line-up remained the same for twenty years, until 2014 with Malcolm Young’s retirement due to early-onset dementia (he died in 2017) and Rudd’s legal troubles. Malcolm was replaced by his nephew Stevie Young, who debuted on AC/DC’s 2014 album Rock or Bust, and on its accompanying tour, previous drummer Chris Slade filled in for Rudd. In 2016, Johnson was advised to stop touring due to worsening hearing loss. Guns N’ Roses frontman Axl Rose stepped in as the band’s vocalist for the remainder of that year’s dates. Long-term bass player and background vocalist Cliff Williams retired from AC/DC at the end of the Rock or Bust tour in 2016 and the group entered a four-year hiatus. A reunion of the Rock or Bust line-up was announced in September 2020 and the band’s seventeenth studio album Power Up was released two months later.
AC/DC have sold more than 200 million records worldwide, including 75 million albums in the United States, making them the ninth-highest-selling artist in the United States and the 16th-best-selling artist worldwide. Back in Black has sold an estimated 50 million units worldwide, making it the second-highest-selling album by any artist, and the highest-selling album by any band. The album has sold 25 million units in the US, where it is the fourth highest-selling album of all time.] AC/DC were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on 10 March 2003.
Author’s note: For me, I have just never seen the appeal of shouty men singing to a tune that is hardly discernible. Just a load of fluffing old sausage. But, all hail Brian Johnson, who I heard an interview with on the radio the other day (end of October 22) and I am pleased to say his hearing and general health is getting better and he may well start touring again.
I struggle to find songs by AC/DC that I like. Sometimes though a heavy metal group does come up with something slightly commercial and listenable to. Just wish this band had done some. I shall have a go though, and trust in you good people to post some that ay be good, I shall give them a go.
AC/DC – Rock n Roll Damnation (Live at the Circus Krone, Munich, Germany June 17, 2003). Listenable, not the wall of sound that ruins heavy metal sausage.
AC/DC – Rock and Roll Ain’t Noise Pollution (Entertainment Center, Sydney, November 1996) – It is what it is, and that is how they spell centre in the land of Oz.
AC/DC – Highway to Hell (Live at Donnington, Aug 91) – The only song when I hear it that I know is AC/DC.
It was at this point I lost the will to live, so my search for any decent tracks ended and I went for their best seller, which passed my be, I had never heard it.
AC/DC – Let There Be Rock (Live At River Plate, December 2009) I can appreciate the impressive guitar playing of the bloke who wears schoolboy trousers, apart from that I still think a load of old sausage.
Singalong, enjoy and be happy!
Links to previous Legend articles:
Featured image: “AC/DC” by New York + Philly Live! is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0 
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© Phil the ex test manager 2022
