September 25, 2016 —
By: jhs5150
We’ve all heard and used that term before, sometimes to excess but what does it really mean? What defines an artist or a band as a “living legend”; merely longevity? I suppose in a lot of peoples’ minds longevity is a big factor but what about things like setting a standard, body of work, originality, consistency and even an intangible like “wow factor”? I’ve always said that anything that touches your soul is what motivates you, inspires you, energizes you and drives you to improve yourself; to do or be something you always wanted to but lacked the motivation to act upon. At the very least it makes you happy, so much so that you want to experience it again and again, doesn’t it? So, if you’re inspired by something don’t you feel an instant connection to it? So what causes people to be endeared to an artist/band on such a massive scale to the point where they become a permanent fixation to so many?
Consider this:
Date: September 20, 2016
Location: Philadelphia, PA
Event: AC/DC on the final date of their “Rock or Bust” tour.
I had had my ticket to this event since way back to the beginning of 2016 when they first went on sale. I loved the song “Rock or Bust” when it came out last year and I thought their performance on the Grammys was fantastic. They had toured the states last year to support the album but didn’t play very many dates here in the U.S. and I was a bit disappointed in that. So when they announced that they were going to do an outdoor arena tour this year I jumped at the chance to try and get tickets. This concert was a “bucket list” show for me – I had always wanted to see them. On the day of the presale I was lucky enough to get a single floor seat (probably because most people buy tickets in pairs but hey, that’s all the better for me.) I waited for the better part of six months to see them however, because two dates into the tour singer Brian Johnson had to recuse himself due to excessive hearing loss. After much speculation the band recruited Axl Rose to fill in in Brian’s absence. Finally, September 20th arrived and as I made my way into the venue and sat down and viewed the huge stage display I had to wonder if after 40 years of no-compromise, in-your-face hard rock with an “always on ten” attitude; consistently walking the walk and not just talking the talk, could they still deliver the goods?
As the concert-opening outer space themed video played (showing various band related visual cues) on the screen below the devil-horned archway, I knew that they were not just going to show up and mail in a performance: their intent was to put on a SHOW and that’s exactly what we got. With little fanfare and no introduction, just a working man’s “get it done” attitude, they ripped in to the opening tune – “Rock or Bust”. Axl Rose, looking and sounding like he fit right in to the band, led them with that song which only hinted at the barrage that was to come.
Next, they tore into one of my all-time AC/DC favorites – “Shoot to Thrill.” Most of the time when I want to hear ONE AC/DC song this is the one I put on and they killed it. Axl was feeling right at home, nailing all the nuances of Johnson’s singing. Johnson painted a ballsy, stinging, sonic picture with his vocal approach and so smartly and in the same way you wouldn’t mess with a masterpiece, Axl chose to sing it the way Brian would have. From there on they mixed well known numbers like “Back in Black”, “Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap” and “Thunderstruck” with deeper cuts such as “Hell Ain’t a Bad Place to Be”, “Got Some Rock and Roll Thunder” and “Rock and Roll Damnation.” They never let up, pounding out one song after another with very little of Axl chatting with the audience except to introduce the next song or Angus as “guest vocalist” on “Dirty Deeds…” Some of my favorites were “If You Want Blood”, “Shot Down in Flames” and “Have a Drink on Me.” Fan favorite “Hells’ Bells” brought out the famous AC/DC bell; swinging back and forth from the rafters throughout the song, much to everyone’s delight and a huge blow-up doll of lady-of-the-evening Rosie that sat atop the Marshall stacks during “Whole Lotta Rosie.”
All in all, they played 20 songs before “Let There Be Rock” in which Angus played his high-energy solo; engaging the crowd, energizing them and making sure they got what they came to see. I thought to myself as Angus played this night; “This guy is a one of the greats in his own way.” True, he’s a blues guitarist and he borrows from the Chuck Berry catalog (even down to Berry’s famous duck walk) but it’s the way he does it that makes him a standout. He is a bluesman extraordinaire; playing the perfect notes against the solid, rhythmic, almost organic groove laid down by his fellow musicians. He was relentless in his attack with his Gibson SGs that were almost bigger than he was. His guitars were his tools, nothing fancy – they were always black but not all the same, playing a combination of SG Standards and Customs. No matter what guitar he played, his sound was the same – warm, fat, bluesy and unmistakably Angus, just like on all of their recordings. He was exactly what you saw, no gimmicks, no tricks, no slight of hand, just a pure rock and roll madman.
(Ctrl-Click to enlarge photos)
At first it dumbfounded me and I wondered where he got the fire from to play with such intensity at the level he does, especially at age 61. He truly loves the music he creates and he feeds off of it, feeding it back through himself in a sense. It energizes him and he in turn does the same to the audience. He can work a crowd just by holding his hand up to his ear and leaning forward and instantly the crowd knows what he wants and they give it to him – he is in complete control, a showman with a guitar. I would venture to say he is the driving force, the engine that drives this band. The stage had an island in the middle that extended out from the main stage to the center of the arena that both he and Axl used to interact with the audience. During his solo, the rounded portion at the end (resembling a putting green but with a clear base and banks of lights all around it) rose up into the air and there was Angus; at first standing, then lying on it and going around in circles, all the while playing guitar and unbelievably not missing a note. He then ran behind the right side of the stage and emerged on top of the Marshall stacks via elevator and continued his onslaught. He moved to the center, hammering guitar licks out to the delirious fans and then exiting – stage left via an elevator on that side and re-emerging out front before finally finishing the song. He was like a man possessed out there and through 40 years of playing like this he hasn’t let up and then I realized; it wasn’t just the music, it was also his passion. The passion that he played with was infused into the audience and I needed no more proof of that than to look up into the stands, doing a “360” and being awed by the thousands of blinking “devil’s horns” worn by the bands’ adoring fans, who were delirious from the energy given off by Angus and who gave that energy right back to him with their screams of delight. They finished the song and from there they said goodnight and left the stage but we all knew what was coming. They returned and immediately ripped into “Highway to Hell” with as many flame throwing pyrotechnics they could get away with without a visit from the Fire Marshall, followed by “Riff Raff”, “Problem Child” and the cannon fire of the finale – “For Those About to Rock (We Salute You.)” They left the audience drained and yet cheering because the band had delivered the goods once again.
When I first was asked to do a review of this concert one of the requests I got said: “I love AC/DC” and I wondered what makes someone “love” an artist? I thought: “doesn’t love involve a certain degree of passion?” and then “Voila’” – it hit me. There was the connection between artist and fan – passion! It was a lovefest – a 40-year love affair between artist and audience. Yes, there are plenty of bands that have been around for 20, 30 years or more; still out there making the rounds and while some think you merely have to survive and outlast the trends that come along, only a few display all of those attributes with the passion and intensity that AC/DC do on a consistent basis. To be successful on a large scale you have to have the passion, feel it and be able to transmit that energy to the audience in order to connect with them. If you do, you’ve got a fan for life as exhibited by what I saw last night and so I think it’s safe to say…AC/DC are living legends.
The set list can be found here –
http://www.setlist.fm/setlist/acdc/2016/wells-fargo-center-philadelphia-pa-23fd8ccb.html
Thanks to Jim Powers for his YouTube videos. Photos by yours truly.