From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Highway to Hell is the sixth studio album by Australian hard rock band AC/DC, released in July 1979. It is also AC/DC's
fifth international studio album. It was the last album featuring
Bon Scott, who died
early the following year from over-consumption of alcohol.
It was originally released by Albert Productions, who licensed the
album to Atlantic Records for release outside
of Australia, and was then re-released by Epic Records in 2003 as part of the AC/DC Remasters series. On May 25
2006, Highway to Hell was certified 7x platinum by the RIAA.[6] In
2003, the album was ranked number 199 on Rolling Stone
magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums
of all time.[7]
Overview
Highway to Hell is the last AC/DC album recorded with
lead
vocalist Bon Scott before his death on February 19, 1980. The
album featured such songs as "Highway to Hell", "If You Want Blood
(You've Got It)" and "Shot Down in Flames" which has now become a
regular song in their setlist during their live shows.
Highway to Hell became AC/DC's first album to break the U.S. top 100,
eventually reaching #17, and it propelled AC/DC into the top ranks
of hard rock acts. With Highway to Hell reaching #17 in the U.S.
market this would be the first solid success that AC/DC would
achieve in the U.S.
The final words spoken by Scott on the album are "Shazbot, na-nu
na-nu," phrases used on the then-popular American sitcom, Mork and Mindy,
by lead character Mork (a visiting extraterrestrial played by Robin Williams).
The phrase would end the song "Night Prowler" and also close the
album.
Highway to Hell was the first AC/DC album not produced
by Harry Vanda and
George Young.
Pre-production of the album began in January 1979 with demos cut at
Albert Studios in Sydney,
Australia, where they met the intended producer, Eddie Kramer. Kramer
was fired before a single track had been completed, and Robert John "Mutt" Lange was brought in to
replace him. The change proved to be fortuitous, and the album was
the band's biggest yet. Lange would go on to produce the band's
next two albums and biggest sellers, Back in Black and For Those About to
Rock We Salute You. The album was recorded during sessions
in February 1979 at Criteria Studios in Miami, Florida and March-April at Roundhouse Studios
in London, England.
In Australia, Highway to Hell was released with a
slightly different album cover, featuring flames and a drawing of a
bass guitar neck superimposed over the same group photo used on the
international cover. Also, the AC/DC logo is a darker shade of
maroon, but the accents are a bit lighter. Additionally, the East German release
had different and much plainer designs on the front and back,
apparently because the authorities were not happy with the sleeve
as released elsewhere.
Controversy
In June 1985, a highly publicized murder case began revolving
around Richard Ramírez, who was responsible for
several brutal killings in Los Angeles. Nicknamed the "Night Stalker,"
Ramírez was a fan of AC/DC, particularly the song "Night Prowler." Police also claimed that
Ramirez was wearing an AC/DC shirt and left an AC/DC hat at one of
the crime scenes. During the trial, Ramírez often muttered "Hail Satan" and showed
off the pentagram carved
into his palm. This brought extremely bad publicity on AC/DC, whose
concerts and albums faced protests by parents in the Los Angeles
area.[8] On VH1's Behind the Music on AC/DC, the
band maintained that the song had been given a murderous
connotation by Ramírez, but is actually about a boy sneaking into
his girlfriend's bedroom at night.
Track
listing
- "Highway to Hell" – 3:28
- "Girls Got
Rhythm" – 3:23
- "Walk All Over You" – 5:10
- "Touch Too
Much" – 4:27
- "Beating Around the Bush" – 3:56
- "Shot Down in Flames" – 3:22
- "Get It Hot" – 2:34
- "If You Want Blood (You've Got It)" – 4:37
- "Love Hungry Man" – 4:17
- "Night Prowler" – 6:27
All titles written by Angus Young, Malcolm Young and Bon Scott. Published by Edward B. Marks Music
Corporation, BMI.
Personnel
Production
Chart
positions
Album
| Year |
Chart |
Peak
position |
| 1979 |
Billboard
Pop Albums |
17 |
| 2009 |
Finnish Albums Chart[9] |
37 |
Singles
| Year |
Song |
Chart (Billboard) |
Peak
position |
| 1979 |
"Highway to Hell" |
Pop Singles |
2 |
| 1992 |
"Highway to Hell" (live) |
Mainstream Rock Tracks |
11 |
Certification
| Country |
Sales |
Certification |
| United States |
7,000,000 |
7x Platinum |
| Canada |
1,000,000 |
2x Platinum |
References
External
links
Wikis
Search
