Susan Masino - AC/DC FAQ: All That’s Left to Know About the World’s True Rock ’n’ Roll Band

Copyright 2015 by Susan Masino

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form, without written permission, except by a newspaper or magazine reviewer who wishes to quote brief passages in connection with a review.

Published in 2015 by Backbeat Books
An Imprint of Hal Leonard Corporation
7777 West Bluemound Road
Milwaukee, WI 53213

Trade Book Division Editorial Offices
33 Plymouth St., Montclair, NJ 07042

Except where otherwise noted, all images in this book are from the authors personal collection.

The FAQ series was conceived by Robert Rodriguez and developed with Stuart Shea.

Every reasonable effort has been made to contact copyright holders and secure permissions. Omissions can be remedied in future editions.

Printed in the United States of America

Book design by Snow Creative Services

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Masino, Susan, 1955
AC/DC FAQ : all thats left to know about the worlds true rock n roll band / Susan Masino.
pages cm
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-1-4803-9450-6
1. Progressive rock musicMiscellanea. I. Title.
ML3534.R676 2014
781.66dc23
2014027918

www.backbeatbooks.com

For Malcolm

Contents

I prefer my rock bands to be the dangerous type. The music that thrills methat keeps my attention and makes me feel the most aliveis the kind that teeters on insanity. The bands that play their guts out every timeand you can feel that in the grooves of the vinyl or the digits of the download. Those are the bands that inspire me to play, and that is why I fucking love AC/DC.

No band rocks harder than AC/DC. Malcolm and Angus are the evil bastard sons of Chuck Berry. Their music may seem simple and pedestrian to some, but I prefer a hypnotically relentless pummeling groove that never lets up.

If you have this book in your hand, you may remember the first time you heard that sound. Mine was the fall of 1978. I visited my older brothers college campus. He took me to a dorm room that had blankets tacked above the windows so it was dark 24/7. The only light on was a coned single bulb over the turntable, as well as a cabinet speaker stoner lightthe kind that pulsated colors in time to the music. I took a slug from my second underage beer. They dropped the needle on Whole Lotta Rosie, and my induction commenced. And you could say shes got it alllllll . BAM! The sound, the power, the tone, the tempo, THE CONVICTION TO THE BEAT! There was no escaping this one. As the music continued, I heard bizarre lyrics like her weight was 19 stone, and songs with imagery of sex, and violence, and murder. WTFis this shit legal? Add in their twisted, sick humor, and this band was my new obsession. I was hooked.

I had to see them live. Their tour stopped at Royal Oak Theater, in a suburb of Detroit, opening for Thin Lizzy. Once the downbeat hitas you knowAngus never fucking stopped moving the entire show. Then the siren voice of Bon Scott cut through the mix and commanded me to listen to every word. Malcolm occasionally would step up for some football chorus vocals, then retreat to his comfort zone of a stack of Marshalls. Malcolm is one of rocks greatest rhythm guitarists. Right up there with Keef and Townshend. Malcolm, along with Phil and Cliff, drove that fucking train as hard as I ever saw anybody drive. This band was playing like they had no show tomorrow. They left it on stageand they still play that way today. That changed my life.

Why does every AC/DC song feel so good? Phil Rudd. You can set your watch to him. Strippers even endorse it. That rhythmic, driving music is played in more dance clubs than any other music in the world. Its the ultimate testimony. Mike Campbell from the Heartbreakers said their music is made for arenas. It was a revelation to me. Some music was meant to be listened to in headphones, or in a small club. AC/DCs musicthe arrangement, the space, the rumble, the volumewas made to be played in arenas. Like its one large cavernous speaker cabinet, where the sound and the rhythm are in perfect harmony. It works!

I had the honor to watch AC/DC record a song in the studio. Those guys laid down each track with every fucking cell in their body. They played like it was a live show. Moving and banging, determined to make that song soak into the machine and come out into your ears like they mean it. They are not a multiple take, lets fix it in the mix kind of band. That impressed me. I always strive to approach recording the same way. Every great recording has that element. You should feel the sweat, the pain, and the joy.

Enjoy this book of stories and crazy antics. Add to your appreciation of a band of brothers who have dedicated their lives to rocking out as hard as any band on our planet. Theyre probably Hells house band... but God bless AC/DC.

Chad Smith
Los Angeles, 2014

I would like to thank all the members of AC/DC, including Bon Scott, for being the greatest rock n roll band in the world. Their friendship and support over the years mean more to me than I can express. As a journalist, and now a biographer, it has been an honor to write about them and share my love for the band with the rest of their fans around the world. A special thanks also to Ross Young, Milla, and Tuesday Rudd.

Thanks to my editor, Bernadette Malavarca, and everyone at Hal Leonard/Backbeat Books, including John Cerullo, Wes Seeley, Brad Smith, and James Barnett, for all of their help, support, and belief in me. Bernadette went above and beyond the call of duty to make this book happen, and I will always be forever grateful. A very special thank you to Chad Smith, the drummer of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, for a foreword that perfectly captures the essence of AC/DC. It is a joy to read and a true honor.

Thanks to my daughter Teal, my son Jamey, and my son-in-law Eric, who I love more than I can say. And to all my family and friends who have supported me through another AC/DC adventure. Especially my sisters Kathy and Lori; my cousin Sandy; and my soul sisters, Jennifer McNulty, Terry Bucheger, Tamara Springer Gleason, Dawnette Springer Cook, Dawn Lalley, and Ronnie Norpel.

Thanks to all my friends and fellow AC/DC fans Carl Allen; David Allen; BandX, including Igor koro, Darko tefulj, Dragan Telalovi, Darko Vukoti, and (Billy) Milan ivadinovi and their family and friends Lika Voli Darka, Goga Plemic, Kristina Radovic, and Biljana Vukoti; Brian and Sarah Bethke; Paulo Biggers; Bruce Blaschko; Peter Cliff; Andrew Cogan; Don Coleman; Jacquie Cooper; Renee Cooper; Tracey Cooper; Tony Currenti; Tom Danheiser; Laura Day; Kenny Dee; Darren Goulden; Veronica Handeland; Micah Hanks; Angela Yvonne Hill; Gary Karnes; Marja Ladybike; Maggie Laidlaw; Paul Ledbury; Tommy Maddox; Jaelyn Messer; George Noory; Kelsey Obrigewitsch; Smiler O Rocker; Pamela Patrou; Irene Whitehead Peterson; Mary Renshaw; Mario Rimati; Adrian Seidel; Sal Serio; Pablo Andres Sanchez; Alan Shailes; Lanea Stagg; Joel and Jenn Sturgis; Brendon Sturgeon; Fred Temps; Abdul Vas; Paolo Vermellino; Owen Wacey; Mark Waterbury; Jeff Willan; and Paul Wozniak.

A special thank you to all the fans on Facebook and on the Internet who devote their time and energy to keeping us all informed on their favorite band, and to the photographers Tom Giles, Jim Johnson (especially all the album covers!), Teal Kozel, Henri Lassander, Philip Morris, Brian Rasic, Doug Thorncroft, and Keith Wessel, who provided some fantastic images.