Published on Mar 10, 2001
1977 marked the first time Atlantic Records released one of
AC/DC’s albums at the same time worldwide. But
Let There Be Rock still featured one main difference between
what the United States heard and what the “original” version of the
album included.
It’s difficult reviewing this disc, mainly because I honestly
feel I’d be writing the same thing for the American and the
Australian versions of
Let There Be Rock rate about the same on my scale. But
besides the cover art, there’s one thing that keeps these two discs
to be quite individual – and it revolves around one song, “Crabsody
In Blue”. (For the record, the Australian cover is a shot of a
guitar neck in black and white, and is much plainer than the cover
featured here.)
If you’re reading this in America, chances are you’ve never
heard of this song. This ode to the, aah, “pets” one could catch
from an unwise sexual encounter never has made it to these shores,
even on the
Bonfire box set. (Don’t get me started on how poorly I
thought
that was put together.) Instead, American audiences were
treated to a truncated version of “Problem Child,” which was pulled
from AC/DC’s previous Australian album
Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap. (We’ll be talking about that
one soon enough.)
In one sense, I can understand why “Problem Child” would be
included on
Let There Be Rock. It’s an absolutely incredible song, and
held out the promise of being a hit for Angus Young and crew. That,
unfortunately, never materialized, but it was enough to get more
people interested in who AC/DC were. “Crabsody In Blue” was a
little more controversial, and while the PMRC had yet to rear its
ugly head, some people might have thought that American audiences
weren’t goint to respond well to this song – thus assuring people
like me would end up buying two versions of this disc down the
road.
Let There Be Rock is the same album otherwise, and what an
album it is. The fact that half of this album includes songs that
became concert staples – “Let There Be Rock,” “Bad Boy Boogie” (at
least while Bon Scott was alive), “Hell Ain’t A Bad Place To Be”
and “Whole Lotta Rosie” – speaks volumes for the power this disc
has. Even one other song, “Dog Eat Dog,” was featured on the
Ballbreaker tour a few years back – man, what a nugget to
pull out for the diehard fan!
That leaves us with a whopping two songs to talk about – “Go
Down” and “Overdose”. “Overdose” could well be one of the most
overlooked AC/DC classics of all time, a track that gave each band
member some leeway to create their own groove. Play this song for
yourself, and see if you don’t keep going back to it again and
again. “Go Down,” while not quite as strong, is still an enjoyable
number that illustrates how important the synergy between Angus
Young and vocalist Scott was.
What I find interesting about
Let There Be Rock is that I end up preferring one original
version of a concert favorite while finding fault with a second
classic. “Let There Be Rock” seems to be a little too slow for me;
I prefer the higher-energy frenzy that the live version has become.
Meanwhile, there’s something to be said for the slower touches on
“Hell Ain’t A Bad Place To Be,” allowing it to become a little more
controlled.
So which version of
Let There Be Rock should you get? Well, this one might shock
you – but I’d recommend the American version. “Crabsody In Blue,”
for all the years I searched for it, turns out to be a bit
half-baked, and is not one of my favorite AC/DC tracks. And while I
prefer the unedited version of “Problem Child” (only the reprise is
cut), I still love hearing this song in all its forms. If you’re a
drooling AC/DC freak, you can search out the import version – but
good luck finding it. I have seen it only once since I bought my
copy about five years ago – and it had been seven years since I had
seen it previously.