If you believe AC/DC
singer Brian Johnson, his
bandmates have a lot in
common with their fans:
They’re all bastards.
“No, no, I don’t really mean
that,” Johnson says, laughing
in his inimitable rasp. “I was
just having a cantankerous
moment. I’ve been working
me little (tail) off and oh, me
son, what I wouldn’t do for a
whiskey and ginger right now.”
It’s no wonder the just-turned
61-year-old frontman
is feeling punchy. Or being
driven to drink. He and
the rest of the veteran rock
quintet — schoolboy-togged
lead guitarist Angus Young,
rhythm guitarist Malcolm
Young, bassist Cliff Williams
and drummer Phil Rudd —
are working overtime to bang
the drum for their 15th studio
album, Black Ice, their first
new release in eight years.
Recorded this past spring in
Vancouver and produced by
Brendan O’Brien, the long-awaited
disc resurrects the
35-year-old group’s classic
guitar-driven sound in singles
such as Rock ’n’ Roll Train,
while tweaking it slightly with
bluesier and more soulful
cuts. And its release is just the
beginning: After years off the
road, Acca Dacca kicks off an
18-month tour next week.
Luckily, Johnson — who
joined the Australian band in
1980 after the alcohol-related
death of original vocalist Bon
Scott — is a man who clearly
loves his job, even when it
means spending several days
talking to reporters from
around the world. Avuncular,
down-to-earth and eternally
jovial (the odd cantankerous
moment aside), the British-born
former factory worker
is one of rock ’n’ roll’s good
guys. Between frequent bouts
of laughter, here’s what he
had to say about getting back
on board the AC/DC train.
DS: When we spoke years
ago, I asked what the band
had done to mark its 20th
anniversary — and you just
laughed. Now it’s 28 years. Are
they treating you any better?
BJ: No, they’re still
a bunch of bastards.
Terrible, terrible people.
DS: Why did the new
album take eight years?
BJ: Well, after the last one,
we did a tour, and then we
did a few gigs in Germany
with the Stones, and we
did the SARS benefit in
Toronto and so on, so we
were playing a lot. Plus, we
changed record companies,
which took some time and
some pushing and all kinds
of nasty stuff . So that took
our focus away. But really,
I think the reason was
that Mal and Angus really
wanted something special,
something fresh, and they
weren’t going to be rushed.
And I think they came up
with it, me son. I think they
did a cracking job. I was so
happy when I heard these
riff s. This was the most fun
album I’ve done in about 15
years. It was just a hoot to do.
DS: How so?
BJ: Well, about four or
five days into it, Brendan
O’Brien said, ‘You don’t like
studios, do you?’ And I do
hate them. I hate sticking
headphones on, and I hate
the microphone hanging
in front of you and being
surrounded on three sides
by hunks of wood. You’re not
performing to anybody. He
said, ‘Leave it with me.’ And
the next morning, he took
me down to this room right
behind the reception desk at
the studio! He had a mixing
desk there and two speakers
and a huge microphone.
And it had windows so
everybody could see and
hear everything. And he
put on the track that he’d
done the day before with the
guys and he said, ‘Off you
go then.’ Nae headphones,
nothing. And I just belted it
out in this room. And there’s
people walking past and
the receptionist’s phone is
ringing. And you know what?
It was brilliant. Because you
just had to do your thing
and it was no good being
shy or embarrassed. The
receptionist’s dog used to
bark when I hit high notes!
DS: On the new album,
there’s the song Rock ’n’
Roll Train. There’s She Likes
Rock ’n’ Roll. There’s Rock
’n’ Roll Dream. And there’s
Rockin’ All the Way. It’s
subtle, but I sense a theme.
What are you trying to say?
BJ: I just think we’re
trying to tell people that
normal service has been
resumed. We’re back, and
this is a rock ’n’ roll record.
It cannot be mistaken.
We’re ramming it down
their throat, me son! But
I must admit, we didn’t
notice. We went, ‘F------
hell, there’s four songs with
rock ’n’ roll in the title.’ But
that’s just what we do.
DS: But you also have
a few more melodic
songs on this disc.
BJ: Yeah. That’s Brendan
O’Brien again. He stopped
me one day and said, ‘Brian
Johnson, you are a soul
singer. You’ve been singing
rock ’n’ roll because you had
to. But you are a soul singer.
I want you to sing that way.
Don’t try and do what you
did on Back in Black. Just sing
it with feel.’ So I did. And I
love it. At first I was thinking,
‘Geez, the guys aren’t gonna
like this.’ And it proved
to be quite the opposite.
They thought it was cool. It
gives it a bit more swing.
DS: Are you looking
forward to getting back on
the road? Are you nervous?
BJ: I’m not nervous, but
I’m a little apprehensive. I’ll
be 61 in October (Johnson’s
birthday was Oct. 5).
DS: I was hesitant to
bring up the s-word.
BJ: No, no, I’m proud of
it, me son. I think it’s good
for everybody. We have
fans who are saying, ‘The
singer’s 61! I’m going to that
gig — I might see him die!’
DS: Are you worried
about your health?
BJ: I try to keep as fit as
I possibly can. It’s tough to
do two and a half hours. So
I’ve got a special fitness guy
coming in from Formula 1
who’s gonna work with me
two weeks. He’s a specialist
in stamina. He’s gonna work
us like a dog. He’s putting us
on a special diet and fluids.
DS: Last time I talked to
you, your fitness regime
consisted of rolling
your own cigarettes.
BJ: I’m just gonna
roll one now. I’ve got it
right in front of me.
DS: They made you
ring the giant bell. They
made you ride on the
giant wrecking ball. What
are they gonna make you
do onstage this tour?
BJ: This time I’m gonna
stand aside for something
that is quite stupendous
— one of the biggest and
most expensive production
things we’ve ever done. And
I can’t say what it is just yet.
DS: I’m gonna guess
it involves a train.
BJ: Well, the clue is
in the Train song. But
what it’s gonna do is
just unbelievable.
DS: But they’re not
making you ride the
train, are they?
BJ: No. Bollocks, I’m not
getting on that. Not when
you see what it does.
DS: Aren’t you sick of
carrying Angus around on
your shoulders? How far
have you run over the years
with his sweaty crotch on
the back of your neck?
BJ: Me son, it’s got to be
50 miles. But at least he’s
not getting any heavier.
DS: Everybody says
Malcolm is really the
boss. Is that true? Is
the band a democracy
or a dictatorship?
BJ: It’s a democracy up to
a certain point. And Malcolm
wouldn’t thank me for saying
he’s the man. But he is. Well,
him and Angus. It’s their
band. They started it. It’s their
puppy. And they’ve made
decisions through the years
that have kept the band the
way it is, kept it clean and
pure. And there’s not many
bands that have really not sold
out in any way, shape or form.
DS: For 30 years, Malcolm
has been standing stage
right of the drums, with Cliff
on the left. If they switched
sides, would it all fall apart?
BJ: Definitely. If Cliff
and Mal changed sides, it
would be the end of AC/
DC. They wouldn’t know
what to do. The band
would split. End of story.
DS: What songs are you
going to play on tour? There
must be a dozen you have to
do. But are there others you
particularly want to do?
BJ: Well, we have to do
Thunderstruck, Back in Black,
You Shook Me All Night
Long, TNT, Whole Lotta
Rosie, Let There be Rock.
And we’re gonna do five
songs off the new album. As
for older stuff, I’d like to do
What’s Next to the Moon. I
like Gone Shootin’ too. That
would be a good one.
DS: You should pull
out Problem Child.
BJ: You see, that’s the
trouble: There’s too many
of them. And you can’t play
them all. You play two and a
half hours and people come
up and they’re complaining:
‘You didn’t play Problem
Child!’ Well, too bad, because
I’m dying. And I’m going
to the hospital now for a
new lung, you jackhead!
Give us a break! There’s
always one. The bastards!
They’re all over the place!
LET THERE BE ROCKERS
If you want blood, you
got it, according to an old
AC/DC song. If you want
an AC/DC greatest-hits
disc, though, you’re out
of luck.
Despite having more
than enough hits, singles
and bona fide classics to
fill out a career-spanning
box set, never mind a
best-of CD, the Australian
rockers have steadfastly
refused to issue a full-on
retrospective.
“We think you’ve gotta
be finished before you do
that,” explains Johnson. “You’ve gotta
be packed in and o� the
road before you get one of
those.”
True or not, it’s an
ingenious business tactic
— fans who want all their
favourite AC/DC tracks
have to buy their entire
catalogue instead of one
paltry CD.
We propose a
compromise: Since the
band loves songs with
the word rock in the title
— there are four on the
new album alone — why
not compile those on a
CD?
“That would have to be
a double album,” laughs
Johnson.
Here’s our track list:
- For Those About to Rock
(We Salute You)
- Let There be Rock
- It’s a Long Way to the Top
(If You Wanna Rock ’n’ Roll)
- Rocker
- That’s the Way I Wanna
Rock ’n’ Roll
- Rock ’n’ Roll Train*
- Rock ’n’ Roll Singer
- Rock ’n’ Roll Dream*
- There’s Gonna be Some
Rockin’
- Rock ’n’ Roll Ain’t Noise
Pollution
- She Likes Rock ’n’ Roll*
- Can’t Stop Rock ’n’ Roll
- Rockin’ All the Way*
- Rock ’n’ Roll Damnation
- Rock Your Heart Out
- RIP (Rock in Peace)
Bonus Tracks:
- Hard as a Rock
- Whiskey on the Rocks
* off new disc, Black Ice
