Who Made Who: good question, great album

Web factoid: Without a doubt the most famous [Gibson] SG user, Angus Young, made the SG's beefy low end and biting highs a vital ingredient of his legendary rock riffing. Hmm...as my loyal readers accept, I know almost nothing about how music happens. It’s only through long, innately and immensely enjoyable hours of listening and reflection that I’ve figured out a few things about how the incomparable AC/DC sound comes into being and who does what. That factoid came from an online guitar magazine, so they must know what they’re talking about, right? I mean, universally agreed, Angus is an incredible guitar player and he could play any guitar well (witness his performance with the Rolling Stones on Rock Me Baby), and it is gratifying to see that this source views Angus as the most famous SG player, not Pete Townshend. Sign of the times, I guess.

In any case, this brings up the Pick of the Day from… Who Made Who. Like a shot, the readership asks: is this a trick question? Because you obviously think my favorite on this album is You Shook Me All Night Long. For the uninitiated, Who Made Who is an almost compilation album for AC/DC. The guys have always resisted the concept of a greatest hits work; it’s against their artistic credo to imply that their greatest hits have already occurred. So why did this collection of new (3) and past masterworks (6) come about, then? It was for a movie, Maximum Overdrive, at the request of writer/director Stephen King; if you’ve seen the movie, ‘nuff said. The movie stunk, although the music was great.

Anyway, back to YSMANL. Due to events we won’t go into here, a few years ago I developed a list of songs to be played at my eventual memorial service. First song selected: You Shook Me All Night Long. Over time, the list has evolved. The songs are all great, an eclectic mix, just like me, from Ella to Jimmy Cliff and Johnny Cash/Hank Williams, depending on which version of I Saw the Light SZG picks. The constant in the list is the centrality of YSMANL. What a killer tune! You can dance to it, rock out like a wild person, celebrating the vitality of the greatest rock band on earth, and by extension, celebrate the fullness of a life well-lived.

BUT, no, this isn’t my favorite on Who Made Who, after all. So, yes, it was a trick question because my favorite of the new material on this album is Who Made Who. It exemplifies what the SG factoid puts out there: the beefy low end and biting highs of the guitar as Angus rips into every one of the riffs with that implacable, will-not-be-denied attitude. You are totally swept away by the force of it, allied as it is to the rest of the band’s input. Yes, it’s loud, pumping and unrepentantly insistent—if you’ve got it cranked up to the right level—that’s the way God intended straight-on rock n roll to be played or heard. In this, AC/DC and God agree. At the same time, there’s humor and a playfulness to what they’re doing that is impossible to resist. WMW is a standout in terms of the lyrics, too—AC/DC goes existential, examining that age old question: where do we come from? Who made us? Too cool and so outstanding because the song created is a dance-y, almost pop song with the rhythm section back there just working it, so no mistake, it’s AC/DC. Brian’s whiskey voice carries the whole thing to another level when he asks: “Ain’t nobody told you?” Profound in sensibility, yet light in delivery, and so pleasing to the ears.

This CD is great, in general, since it has YSMANL, the iconic hits, Hell’s Bells and For Those About to Rock, the dubious, but way memorable lyrics of Sink the Pink. Just love this song! Find myself singing it sometimes: “Gimme water, gimme wine/Gonna show you a good time” over and over again. And, can’t go without hyping Ride On. Bon Scott never got credit for being a master lyricist, not only for tough, loud rock songs, but for the occasional dark, gritty, man-alone-against-the-world ballads like this one. He’s so real: all boozy, in a days-old shirt, smoking another cigarette in a dark, smelly, no name bar, whiskey bottle not so full anymore. Angus and the SG bring it, the blues licks underscoring Bon’s lament. Whoa, down and dirty! If you don’t know this side of AC/DC, check it out.