“There’s nothing”: Angus Young on when he lost respect for The Rolling Stones
Although many fans brand them as a heavy metal act, from a modern perspective, AC/DC are pure classic rock. The band has it all, from Brian Johnson’s booming vocals to the head-banging hooks and shredding riffs of Angus Young. The band undoubtedly took cues from heavier rock bands of the late 1960s and early ‘70s, such as Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath, but like the former, their scope and influence prevail far beyond metal.
Beyond their more immediate influences, Malcolm and Angus Young founded AC/DC after falling in love with music from rock ‘n’ roll’s very first chapter in the 1950s. While one might expect Angus to tap his toes to The Rolling Stones’ Sticky Fingers, he revealed in a 2001 interview with Rolling Stone that he still considers Chuck Berry his ultimate guitar hero and the pinnacle of rock music.
The fact that Angus has copied Berry’s famous duck walk move at practically every AC/DC show over the past five decades seems to confirm his claim. “I plug into a lot of old rock and roll,” he said. “Chuck Berry, Buddy Holly, Little Richard and Jerry Lee Lewis. I love all that stuff. In fact, if I get a chance and I’m on my way to a gig, I’ll put one of their tapes on. Because they’re good vibe meters, and I still get off on them.”
Angus’s taste for a little positive energy in his rock music is certainly apparent in AC/DC’s catalogue. However, it comes as quite a surprise that he has never been a huge fan of The Rolling Stones. Speaking to Classic Rock several years ago, the guitarist claimed that he’d “yawn my head off” if he had to sit through a Rolling Stones concert.
Young explained his position, saying that The Stones have brought little to the table over the past five decades and made their bread copying African American styles. “The Rolling Stones get up and play soul music these days, and this is supposed to be rock ‘n’ roll. Leave that to the people who do it best, the [African Americans].”
Indeed, from their establishment in 1962, The Stones celebrated Black American music, covering rhythm and blues classics. With Brian Jones leading the band early on, The Rolling Stones was a devout blues group covering the likes of Willie Dixon, Muddy Waters and Robert Johnson. The group hardly tried to conceal this fact but, over time, began to weave their influences into original material.
A small contingent of Rolling Stones fans champion the group’s early blues-centric material with Jones at the helm. Angus seems to concur with this persuasion but could get on board with some of the band’s late 1960s material. “They must have progressed the wrong way,” he said. “I’ll tell you when it stopped getting’ good – when The Rolling Stones put out ‘Jumpin’ Jack Flash’ and ‘Street Fighting Man’. Past that, there’s nothing.”
One might find it easier to understand the AC/DC guitarist’s opinions if he had said he lost interest when The Stones embraced psychedelia in Between the Buttons and Their Satanic Majesties Request in 1966-67. However, ‘Jumpin’ Jack Flash’ and ‘Street Fighting Man’ arrived in 1968 as a resumption of their earlier rock sound in singles like ‘(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction’.
In 1969, The Rolling Stones entered what most fans regard as their golden era. With Brian Jones on his way out, the band began working with guitar virtuoso Mick Taylor and esteemed record producer Jimmy Miller. Let It Bleed, Sticky Fingers and Exile on Main St. were eclectic releases, but their enduring hits, like ‘Gimme Shelter’, ‘Can’t You Hear Me Knocking’ and ‘Rocks Off’ brought a degree of heaviness to the sound established in ‘Street Fighting Man’ and ‘Jumpin’ Jack Flash’. Surprisingly, Angus suggests this era was where it fell apart for the band. “If The Stones played what they do best, they’d be a hell of a lot better, and they’d probably find themselves at ease,” the AC/DC guitarist added with venom.
In concluding his comments, Angus seemed to suggest that he could never understand the big rock bands who feel they must keep revolutionising their approach. “I don’t know anybody who’s gone to see any of those serious bands who’ve enjoyed it,” he said. “They may say it was great, that the music was good, but somewhere during that set, they were bored and were too scared to admit it.”
