The song that made Brian Johnson want to throw up
For any rock and roll star, compromise is always the worst word to deal with. As much as a label might like the sound of one of your songs being played over the radio, just as many want to mould their artists into the perfect pop marvel, creating one anthem after another so they can bring in the bottom dollar night after night. Although AC/DC always stuck to their guns when making their own classics, Brian Johnson remembered being mortified when listening to this 1980s classic for the first time.
Before the band had ventured outside of their native Australia, they had already developed a reputation as one of the harshest rock acts in the world. With Bon Scott out front, the group were everything that classic rock and roll was supposed to be, from the songs about drinking and living on the road to the Young Brothers making vicious tunes centred around the blues figures they learned from Chuck Berry.
By the time the band reached the 1980s, they were dealt a heavy blow when Scott was found dead in his car after a night of heavy drinking. While many felt that Scott was irreplaceable in the band, the group soldiered on with Johnson behind the microphone, creating a touching tribute to their fallen idol with the album Back in Black.
Despite having one of the greatest comeback stories of all time, Johnson remembered that many of their higher-ups were looking to have them be more fashionable for the times once MTV came rolling in. Having gone through another triumph with the album For Those About to Rock, Johnson remembered having a conversation with their management about changing their sound to align with the times.
Using the song ‘We Built This City’ by Starship as an example, Johnson recalled being horrified at what they were saying, recalling, “Yeah, back in the mid-80s, when there were horrible things like ‘We built this city on rock and roll.’ That still makes me puke to this day. But anyway, we had a visit from one of the big boys who said, ‘Maybe ya should think about changin’ the image’”.
Even though the rest of the 1970s mainstays were making different strides to keep up with the times, Johnson said that the band would never try to compromise their sound. Throughout the rest of the decade, the band would continue to play the same blend of bluesy rock and roll they were known for, all while having various cameos in pop culture, like in the Stephen King cult classic Maximum Overdrive.
That determination was also vindicated when the band released their 1990 juggernaut, The Razor’s Edge. Featuring the anthems ‘Moneytalks’ and ‘Thunderstruck’, the band were more in demand than ever, featuring multiple videos where they were shown, creating a fantastic performance for throngs of screaming fans.
The band have continued to follow their muse to this day, soldiering on without Malcolm Young while still keeping in tune with what made them great to begin with on albums like Rock or Bust and Black Ice. AC/DC may not be the most fashionable group in the world, but their brand of boozy rock and roll is most likely never going to age.
