Let There Be Rock

Let There Be Rock, the fourth AC/DC album -- and first to see simultaneous international release -- is as lean and mean as the original lineup ever got. Shaved down to the bone -- there are only eight tracks, giving this a lethal efficiency even with a couple of meandering jams -- this is a high-voltage, brutal record, filled with "Bad Boy Boogie." It has a bit of a bluesier edge than other AC/DC records, but this is truly the sound of the band reaching its peak. There's the near majesty of "Let There Be Rock," there's Bon Scott acknowledging with a wink that "Hell Ain't a Bad Place to Be," and then there's the monumental "Whole Lotta Rosie." Which gets down to a key thing about AC/DC. If Led Zeppelin were celebrating a "Whole Lotta Love," AC/DC got down to the grimy details in their leering tribute to the joys of sex with a plus-sized woman. And that's AC/DC's allure in a nutshell -- it's sweaty, dirty, nasty rock, music that is played to the last call and beyond, and they've rarely done that kind of rock better than they did here. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine