| 22nd February 2006 09:01 AM |
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| Ten Thousand Motels |
AC/DC still current 30 years on
February 23, 2006
www.theage.com
By Chris Johnson
FEBRUARY 23, 1976, 30 years ago today. What was happening? Premier Rupert Hamer was introducing new random breath-testing laws. Bellbird, Take Kerr and Don Lane were on TV. And AC/DC took to the back of an old truck in Swanston Street to make Australian music history.
The occasion was the filming of the clip for It's A Long Way To The Top (If You Wanna Rock'n'Roll). It was a Monday morning in the midst of a heatwave. Work started at 6am and was finished by mid-afternoon, by which time a large crowd of onlookers had gathered.
Now, with the passing of the years, it has become a unique Melbourne time capsule, a piece of heritage, with fascinating views of the streets, buildings and passers-by. Quite apart from the song, and the spirited performance by the country's best-loved and most successful rock band, the clip is a look back to a time long gone.
For one thing, Swanston was a Street back then, not a Walk. Green, wooden, W-class trams rattled through it, jostling with HQ Holdens. It was a simpler time, proved by the fact that the film's makers, from the ABC's Countdown, basically just turned up and got down to it.
"We told the council and the police," said director Paul Drane. "But they didn't seem to mind. There were no streets shut, there was no problem. It's crazy, I know. These days it would take months to get through the red tape."
A key part of the film is the bird's-eye view over Swanston Street. Nothing was arranged, so on the day a cameraman simply walked into an office block near the Bourke Street corner, found the caretaker, and asked if he could use a high balcony. No worries. Up he went.
But this was rock'n'roll, this was AC/DC, so the best laid plans were sure to slip away. The band were supposed to turn up at 7am, frightfully early on a Monday morning for a mob renowned for hell-raising. But they didn't show, so crew member Peter Murphy was sent to a "fleapit" pub near Spencer Street to wake them up.
The film clip was among the first in Australia to be made on location, away from the confines of the TV studio. Now, with AC/DC's incredible longevity (130 million albums sold) it is one of the most played on television. They are also experiencing yet another renaissance thanks to deferential new bands such as Jet and Airbourne. In 2004, a city lane was renamed in their honour.
"Every time it's on Rage," says cameraman David Olney, "my daughter says 'you should have got royalties for that, Dad.' If I did, we'd be living it up in Las Vegas by now." But because it was made for Countdown, the ABC owns the film clip.
The idea to do it in Swanston Street on the back of a truck — a blue ABC-owned flat-bed, in fact — was hatched by the late AC/DC singer Bon Scott and Countdown host Molly Meldrum. It was supposed to refer to the Moomba parade and was shot on three cameras between Bourke Street and Flinders Street. The budget, according to Drane, was $380. Three pipers from the Rats of Tobruk pipe band were hired for the song's characteristic bagpipe solo.
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| 22nd February 2006 11:06 AM |
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| nankerphelge |
It's coming...
Hell ain't a bad place to be... |
| 22nd February 2006 11:11 AM |
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| Joey |
AC/DC is booked for THE QWEST CENTER this fall
........................................
[Edited by Joey] |
| 22nd February 2006 11:22 AM |
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| Break The Spell |
The Bon Scott era is timeless. |
| 22nd February 2006 11:24 AM |
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| nankerphelge |
Yeah they should be releasing their newest soon and then a tour.
Heavy decibels are playing on my guitar
We got vibrations coming up from the floor
We're just listening to the rock that's giving too much noise
Are you deaf, you wanna hear some more
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| 22nd February 2006 11:26 AM |
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| Break The Spell |
"Rock Me Baby" with the Stones at Sars Fest 03 was pretty nice stuff. |
| 22nd February 2006 11:31 AM |
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| jb |
Overated ..never like them that much and they humiliated band and SARS....
[Edited by jb] |
| 22nd February 2006 11:37 AM |
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| lotsajizz |
Angus is a great showman
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| 22nd February 2006 11:38 AM |
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| Ten Thousand Motels |
quote:
jb wrote:
Overated ..
 |
| 22nd February 2006 11:45 AM |
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| nankerphelge |
I used to think so too -- until I saw them live.
They have great energy and Angus is just insane.
At SARS, hate to say it, sounded much better than the Stones.
Everyone that likes rock and roll owes it to themselves to go check them out live -- especially since they have been playing so much of their Bon-era material and it
ROCKS!
Well I tied my baby to the railroad tracks
cannonball down the line
givin' that woman justa one more chance
to give it to me one more time
[Edited by nankerphelge] |
| 22nd February 2006 11:53 AM |
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| Break The Spell |
quote:
nankerphelge wrote:
I used to think so too -- until I saw them live.
They have great energy and Angus is just insane.
At SARS, hate to say it, sounded much better than the Stones.
Everyone that likes rock and roll owes it to themselves to go check them out live -- especially since they have been playing so much of their Bon-era material and it
ROCKS!
Well I tied my baby to the railroad tracks
cannonball down the line
givin' that woman justa one more chance
to give it to me one more time
[Edited by nankerphelge]
Cool, I'd like to hear Jailbreak. |
| 22nd February 2006 11:58 AM |
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| nankerphelge |
There was a friend of mine on murder
and the judge's gavel fell
jury found him gulity
gave him 16 years in hell
he said
I ain't spendin' my life here
I ain't livin' alone
Ain't breakin no rocks on the chain gang
I'm breakin' out and headin' home
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| 22nd February 2006 12:00 PM |
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| Break The Spell |
[/quote]
He made it out....with a bullet in his back... |
| 22nd February 2006 12:03 PM |
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| nankerphelge |
I'm ready for a show right now!! |
| 22nd February 2006 01:36 PM |
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| Dan |
quote:
jb wrote:
Overated ..never like them that much and they humiliated band and SARS....
[Edited by jb]
For a band that gets humiliated so much, I find it incredible they even show their faces in public much less tour the world. |
| 22nd February 2006 01:50 PM |
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| jb |
quote:
Dan wrote:
For a band that gets humiliated so much, I find it incredible they even show their faces in public much less tour the world.
It is {w}e who are humiliated..their $$$ is guaranteed. |
| 22nd February 2006 01:53 PM |
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| Dan |
quote:
jb wrote:
It is {w}e who are humiliated..their $$$ is guaranteed.
Actually it is only you who are humiliated. I am sure most of us don't have our self esteem dependant on what was once a rock band. |
| 22nd February 2006 02:03 PM |
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| jb |
quote:
Dan wrote:
Actually it is only you who are humiliated. I am sure most of us don't have our self esteem dependant on what was once a rock band.
Well. I do.....I live for those taylor years....but I am happy that 06 is the year of the Stones as opposed to o5 and U2's overwhelming popularity(at least we won gross by charging more and should continue to do the same). |
| 22nd February 2006 02:10 PM |
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| Joey |
quote:
jb wrote:
Well. I do.....I live for those taylor years....but I am happy that 06 is the year of the Stones as opposed to o5 and U2's overwhelming popularity(at least we won gross by charging more and should continue to do the same).
....................Cha CHE !!!!!!! |
| 22nd February 2006 02:25 PM |
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| voodoopug |
quote:
Dan wrote:
Actually it is only you who are humiliated. I am sure most of us don't have our self esteem dependant on what was once a rock band.
Please note, the following people were humiliated:
voodoopug
jb
joey
Young Jake Cohl (he knows he could have done better!)
and hundreds of others |
| 22nd February 2006 04:02 PM |
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| BILL PERKS |
quote:
jb wrote:
Overated ..never like them that much and they humiliated band and SARS....
[Edited by jb]
WHATEVER..THE BROS YOUNG ARE MY FAV GUITARISTS..THEY MAKE RICHARDS-WOOD LOOK LIKE NANCE BOYS |
| 22nd February 2006 04:05 PM |
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| voodoopug |
quote:
BILL PERKS wrote:
WHATEVER..THE BROS YOUNG ARE MY FAV GUITARISTS..THEY MAKE RICHARDS-WOOD LOOK LIKE NANCE BOYS
The Bros Young look up to the Stones with admiration! |
| 22nd February 2006 04:08 PM |
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| Break The Spell |
quote:
BILL PERKS wrote:
WHATEVER..THE BROS YOUNG ARE MY FAV GUITARISTS..THEY MAKE RICHARDS-WOOD LOOK LIKE NANCE BOYS
I've read interviews with both bands, and they all seem to like eachothers music quite a bit, I know Keith likes AC / DC and their straight-foward sound, and the young Bros. always considered Keith a hero. |
| 22nd February 2006 04:09 PM |
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| BILL PERKS |
quote:
voodoopug wrote:
The Bros Young look up to the Stones with admiration!
THAT'S CUZ THEY SO SHORT-POISON DWARVES INDEED |
| 22nd February 2006 04:39 PM |
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| Joey |
quote:
BILL PERKS wrote:
THAT'S CUZ THEY SO SHORT-POISON DWARVES INDEED
** { SIGH } **
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| 22nd February 2006 04:46 PM |
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| voodoopug |
quote:
BILL PERKS wrote:
THAT'S CUZ THEY SO SHORT-POISON DWARVES INDEED
we must not see folks differently for their size (otherwise we would prefer large dogs to pugs!) |
| 22nd February 2006 05:16 PM |
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| Saint Sway |
no one brings the rock better than AC/DC. No one. |
| 22nd February 2006 06:27 PM |
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| Soldatti |
AC/DC is the hardest rock band out there. |
| 22nd February 2006 06:28 PM |
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| nanatod |
quote:
Soldatti wrote:
AC/DC is the hardest rock band out there.
Are they harder than Motorhead? |
| 22nd February 2006 06:39 PM |
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| texile |
i almost started an acdc appreciation thread last week -
i was listening to the highway to hell cd and thinking how fucking untouchable this band is and i needed to share.
great thread!
that cute little red-head shaun white did his winning halfpipe run to back in black. |
