Everybody knows who AC/DC is. You can ask a grandmom walking down the street and she can tell you that it's the band with the guy who wears the funny shorts. AC/DC was formed in 1973 in Australia by guitarist Malcolm Young and his brother Angus. Together they became one of the most successful heavy metal bands ever.

AC/DC-T.N.T. (Atco) 1975

1."It's a Long Way to the Top (If You Want to Rock 'n' Roll)" (5:16)
2."Rock 'n' Roll Singer" (5:05)
3."The Jack" (5:52)
4."Live Wire" (5:51)
5."T.N.T." (3:36)
6."Rocker" (2:51)
7."Can I Sit Next to You Girl" (4:12)
8."High Voltage" (4:19)
9."School Days" (5:23)

Well, this was a lucky find. Walked into one of the big chain stores and found this cd, still sealed, in the bargain bin for $5.99. This Australian import is now out of print. This was AC/DC's second full length release, most of which was re-released in Europe and the U.S. a year later as 'High Voltage.' However, there is one track, exclusive to this cd, a cover of Chuck Berry's "School Days". "Rocker" also did not appear on the 'High Voltage' re-release but was later added onto 'Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap.'

AC/DC-High Voltage (Atco) 1976

1."It's a Long Way to the Top (if You Want to Rock 'n' Roll)" (5:10)
2."Rock 'n' Roll Singer" (5:00)
3."The Jack" (5:50)
4."Live Wire" (5:45)
5."T.N.T." (3:30)
6."Can I Sit Next to You Girl" (4:06)
7."Little Lover" (5:26)
8."She's Got Balls" (4:46)
9."High Voltage" (4:18)

This is just a great metal album. Anyone who takes this band's lyrics seriously needs to be examined by a doctor. This is just supposed to be fun and/or funny. The band's revolutionary musical attack, however, can never be overlooked - Angus Young's manic guitar solos overlaid a series of simple, basic boogie grooves and heavy metal backbeats that were all delivered with the most ferocious power and attitude. All this was given life by the vocals of the one and only Bon Scott. AC/DC just do what they do well, and this US debut proved that.

Annihilator covered "Live Wire" on their 'In Command' cd.

AC/DC-Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap (Atco) 1976

1."Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap" (3:46)
2."Love at First Feel" (3:05)
3."Big Balls" (2:39)
4."Rocker" (2:46)
5."Problem Child" (5:43)
6."There's Gonna Be Some Rockin'" (3:14)
7."Ain't No Fun Waiting Round to be a Millionaire" (6:57)
8."Ride On" (5:47)
9."Squealer" (5:12)

Ok, now we're really talking about going back to my childhood here. This one brings back all those memories that I will have to bore my grandkids with someday. (Not that I have any grandkids yet. My kids are only in grade school.) Anyhow, a classic album with loads of humor and AC/DC fun! Originally released in 1976 (have seen conflicting info on this. AMG says it was released in 1975), "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap" did not see release in the U.S. until 1981 after the success of "Back in Black."

The song "Dirty Deeds" has also been covered by Exodus, who also covered "Overdose" as well.

AC/DC-Let There Be Rock (Atlantic) 1977

1."Go Down" (5:20)
2."Dog Eat Dog" (3:30)
3."Let There Be Rock" (6:12)
4."Bad Boy Boogie" (4:29)
5."Problem Child" (5:50)
6."Overdose" (6:03)
7."Hell Ain't a Bad Place to Be" (4:20)
8."Whole Lotta Rosie" (5:27)

Is there a more classic Bon Scott era AC/DC disc than this one? I mean, how can anyone resist the heavy metal boogie of this disc? Absolutely one of the finest heavy metal platters to ever be released.

"Overdose" has been covered by Exodus.

AC/DC-Powerage (Atco) 1978

1."Rock 'N' Roll Damnation" (3:35)
2."Down Payment Blues" (6:00)
3."Gimme a Bullet" (3:21)
4."Riff Raff" (5:14)
5."Sin City" (4:40)
6."What's Next to the Moon" (3:28)
7."Gone Shootin'" (5:04)
8."Up To My Neck in You" (4:10)
9."Kicked in the Teeth" (3:52)

'Powerage" is one of my favorite AC/DC albums. The whole album is a blues and boogie based heavy metal ball of fun. What is odd about this disc is that it probably contains the least amount of hits, radio staples and concert favorites, which may be part of the reason it sits at the top of my list. Sometimes overplay is worse than no play at all. Still there are a few classics like "Sin City" and "Riff Raff." Also like the bluesy "Down Payment Blues" a lot.

Twisted Sister covered "Sin City" on their Twisted Forever Tribute.

If You Want Blood...You've Got It (Atlantic) 1978

1."Riff Raff" (5:58)
2."Hell Ain't a Bad Place to Be" (4:10)
3."Bad Boy Boogie" (7:26)
4."The Jack" (5:49)
5."Problem Child" (4:36)
6."Whole Lotta Rosie" (4:08)
7."Rock 'N' Roll Damnation" (3:40)
8."High Voltage" (5:04)
9."Let There Be Rock" (8:32)
10."Rocker" (3:12)

AC/DC live with Bon Scott on vox, do you really need a review? Recorded during the band's world tour in support "Powerage" , this disc contains raw and raunchy versions of many of AC/DC's best songs from the 70's. Charming cover too, don't ya think? I wonder how may people saw this cover and walked away offended. Some people have no sense of humor. I walked into a chain store and this disc was the first thing I saw in the "new arrivals" rack. Picked it up for $3.99.

AC/DC-Highway to Hell (Atlantic) 1979

1."Highway to Hell" (3:26)
2."Girls Got Rhythm" (3:23)
3."Walk All Over You" (5:08)
4."Touch Too Much" (4:24)
5."Beating Around the Bush" (3:55)
6."Shot Down in Flames" (3:21)
7."Get It Hot" (2:24)
8."If You Want Blood (You've Got It)" (4:32)
9."Love Hungry Man" (4:14)
10."Night Prowler" (6:13)

This is probably the album that is most sited by well-intentioned clergy to prove that rock 'n roll is Satanic. Did AC/DC worship Satan? I doubt it, what they worshipped was themselves and they knew that something like this would push them over the edge. Sometimes controversy is the best marketing tool, and for "Highway to Hell" it worked. All the screaming in the world didn't stop them, it only gave them free publicity and advertising. Unfortunately, vocalist Bon Scott may have very well been on that very highway he sang of as he died from the excesses of his own lifestyle not long after the albums release. The music on this disc is classic AC/DC. To be quite honest I don't really care for "Highway to Hell" the song and usually skip it. The rest of the album, however, is classic AC/DC heavy metal mixing simplistic headbanging drum beats with Angus and Malcolm Young's signature boogie and blues rhythms. Loads of classics on this one: "Girls Got Rhythm," "Touch Too Much," "Night Prowler" to name just a few. Picked this one up for $3.99.

AC/DC-Back in Black (Atco) 1980

1. "Hells Bells" (5:09)
2. "Shoot to Thrill" (5:14)
3. "What Do You Do for Money Honey" (3:33)
4. "Given the Dog a Bone" (3:30)
5. "Let Me Put My Love into You" (4:12)
6. "Back in Black" (4:13)
7. "You Shook Me All Night Long" (3:28)
8. "Have a Drink on Me" (3:57)
9. "Shake a Leg" (4:03)
10. "Rock and Roll Ain't Noise Pollution" (4:12)

"Back in Black" is without a doubt one of the most well known, and well respected AC/DC albums ever released. The album was just huge selling multiplatinum and staying on the charts for several years. Someone told me, although I don't know this for a fact, that "Back in Black" is the second best selling heavy metal album ever, selling upwards of 15 million copies. Unfortunately during pre-production for this album the band's vocalist Bon Scott died of an alcohol related death in early 1980. Bon Scott's death came at a worse possible time for AC/DC since the band's last album, "Highway to Hell" was the their first gold-certified album in the U.S. Despite the fact that an obvious chemistry was lost with Bon Scott's death, "Back in Black" is the ultimate example of a band turning a career-threatening negative into an outstanding career-altering positive. New vocalist Brian Johnson had a similar quality to his voice as Bon Scott, but he sings with more power. There is not a bad track on this disc, with the possible exception of "Hell's Bells," which is basically "Highway to Hell Part 2." The main reason for this song was to capitalize on the success of the band's last disc. Fortunately the band realized that it was not the controversy of the lyrics that was their selling point, but the raw power of their music. Almost every track on this discs was released as a single and still gets radio airplay today. The album was produced by "Mutt" Lange who also has produced for Foreigner, Def Leppard, The Cars, (among others) and more recently, his wife Shania Twain.

AC/DC-For Those About to Rock We Salute You (Atlantic) 1981

1. "For Those About to Rock We Salute You" (5:44)
2. "Put the Finger on You" (3:26)
3. "Let's Get It Up" (3:54)
4. "Inject the Venom" (3:31)
5. "Snowballed" (3:23)
6. "Evil Walks" (4:24)
7. "C.O.D." (3:19)
8. "Breaking the Rules" (4:23)
9. "Night of the Long Knives" (3:26)
10. "Spellbound" (4:30)

Man, it must have been a nightmare having to follow up an album as hugely sucessful as "Back in Black." Many would have tried to just recreate the hit from the last album. AC/DC however, did not need to follow some pop formula however as they had created their own formula from day one and didn't really stray from it. "For Those About To Rock" did very well for the band, although if I remember correctly, it didn't do as well with critics. In retrospect I'll bet the reviewers were kicking themselves as this album was a massive hit as well, although it didn't have as many hit singles. The title track is one of the band's best songs ever and is a call to arms for all headbangers. "Put The Finger On You" and "Evil Walks" are also classic AC/DC material. There are a few duds on this disc and most consider this to be the band's last great disc before going into a slump up until 1990's "The Razor's Edge."

AC/DC-Flick of the Switch (Atlantic) 1983

1."Rising Power" (3:43)
2."This House Is On Fire" (3:23)
3."Flick of the Switch" (3:17)
4."Nervous Shakedown" (4:22)
5."Landslide" (3:56)
6."Guns for Hire" (3:25)
7."Deep in the Hole" (3:17)
8."Bedlam in Belgium" (3:48)
9."Badlands" (3:37)
10."Brain Shake" (4:00)

Often regarded as one of the band's biggest disappointments; I never could figure out why. The band was suffering with some problems, apparently drummer Phil Rudd's dependency problems were getting the best of him and the band, and he was fired, or quit, or whatever, midway through the recording. Enter new drummer Simon Wright, who later went on to record with Dio after Phil returned to the band. Still, I always thought the band was still at a peak here. The songs still grab hold and rip your face off. Both the slow and the fast songs just rage with that simplistic, yet aggressive, AC/DC conviction. Perhaps some of the songs were starting to sound a bit similar to the band's past glories, but so what! If I am not mistaken, that was the point. Angus and Co. were wanting to get back to the raw rock n roll roots, thus the reason they self produced, as opposed to using Mutt Lang, who had done so well for them with their past few albums.

AC/DC-Fly on the Wall (Atlantic) 1985

1."Fly on the Wall" (3:43)
2."Shake Your Foundations" (4:08)
3."First Blood" (3:40)
4."Danger" (4:22)
5."Sink the Pink" (4:14)
6."Playing with Girls" (3:44)
7."Stand Up" (3:53)
8."Hell or High Water" (4:31)
9."Back in Business" (4:22)
10."Send for the Man" (3:26)

I always like the title and the cover of this one. Probably not their best disc, but darn it, I couldn't pass it up for $6.99. Anyhow, their are a few prime cuts, "Sink the Pink" (was this written by Spinal Tap?) and especially "Shake You Foundations," both of which showed up on:

AC/DC-Who Made Who (Maximum Overdrive soundtrack) (Atlantic) 1986

1."Who Made Who" (3:26)
2."You Shook Me All Night Long" (3:28)
3."D.T."-instrumental (2:56)
4."Sink the Pink" (4:14)
5."Ride On" (5:47)
6."Hells Bells" (5:09)
7."Shake Your Foundations" (4:08)
8."Chase the Ace"--instrumental (3:01)
9."For Those About to Rock We Salute You" (5:44)

This was the music put to the Stephen King film "Maximum Overdrive." With the exception of the two instrumentals and the title track this is basically a "best of" compilation. "Who Made Who" was a hit for the band. Never saw the movie, so I don't know anything about it. I found this in a cut out bin for $4.99 still sealed so I figure, what the heck. Not a bad listen actually.

AC/DC-The Razor's Edge (Atco) 1990

1."Thunderstruck" (4:52)
2."Fire Your Guns" (2:53)
3."Moneytalks" (3:45)
4."The Razor's Edge" (4:22)
5."Mistress for Christmas" (3:58)
6."Rock Your Heart Out" (4:06)
7."Are You Ready" (4:10)
8."Got You by the Balls" (4:29)
9."Shot of Love" (3:57)
10."Let's Make It" (3:32)
11."Goodbye & Good Riddance to Bad Luck" (3:14)
12."If You Dare" (3:11)

Produced by the legendary Bruce Fairborn! I think the production alone gave new life to an old concept. Brian Johnson sounds as good as ever, his high, shrill, voice fitting perfectly the high end mix. "Razor's Edge" is probably the best AC/DC album since "Flick of the Switch." I picked this one up real cheap somewhere, like a yard sale or flea market or something. I can't remember right now.

AC/DC-Ballbreaker (EastWest Records America) 1995

1. "Hard As A Rock" (4:31)
2. "Cover You In Oil" (4:32)
3. "The Furor" (4:10)
4. "Boogie Man" (4:07)
5. "The Honey Roll" (5:34)
6. "Burnin' Alive" (5:05)
7. "Hail Caesar" (5:14)
8. "Love Bomb" (3:14)
9. "Caught With Your Pants Down" (4:14)
10. "Whisky On The Rocks" (4:35)
11. "Ballbreaker" (4:31)

These guys are like an old steam engine that just refuses to give up, but rather just keep pummeling along, tearing apart the eardrums of listeners, while many sit on the sidelines and curiously laugh. You'd think a band that all it's members were well into their 40s would have some slightly less silly lyrics, but once again, AC/DC comes through with titles like "Cover You in Oil" and "Love Bomb." Production has been taken over by the man that brought Slayer to power, Rick Rubin and he does a fine job with AC/DC as well. Surprisingly, when the lyrics aren't the focus, the music on this disc is consistently good, although I hear very few 'classic' cuts. So I guess that the conclusion is that while "Ballbreaker" has few, if any flaws, it's not really their most shining effort either. Most certainly die-hard fans of the band are pleased.

AC/DC-Stiff Upper Lip (Elektra) 2000

1. "Stiff Upper Lip" (3:35)
2. "Meltdown" (3:42)
3. "House of Jazz" (3:56)
4. "Hold Me Back" (3:59)
5. "Safe in New York City" (4:00)
6. "Can't Stand Still" (3:41)
7. "Can't Stop Rock & Roll" (4:02)
8. "Satellite Blues" (3:47)
9. "Damned" (3:52)
10. "Come and Get It" (4:03)
11. "All Screwed Up" (4:36)
12. "Give It Up" (3:53)
BONUS TRACKS
13. "Safe in New York City" (4:00)
14. "Cyberspace" (2:58)
15. "Back in Black" -live (4:08)

Man, it's hard to believe these guys are still kicking out such heavy jams after so many years. "Stiff Upper Lip" is the band's 15th studio album. This album like much of the band's past is made up of simply, bluesy, yet heavy riffs that are as addictive as most of the band's past discs. That being said, I cannot say that this album reaches the plateau of 'Back in Black' or most of the Bon Scott platters. Still, AC/DC knows what they do best and they don't stear from that, so I can honestly say that this album would satisfy long-time fans. I must admit, however, that I find the song "Safe in New York City" to be a bit annoying, although my 10 year old son loves it and plays it over and over. There are some excellent standout cuts on this disc, including "Meltdown," "House of Jazz" and the infectious title track. This particular version contains three bonus tracks, with only one ("Cyberspace") being essential. The live version of "Back in Black" is cool, but out of place. I am not exactly sure what the point of putting the most annoying song ("Safe in New York City") on the album on this disc twice.

On cassette:
AC/DC-Live (2 cassette set) 1992

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