AC/DC – Let There Be Rock

About The Song

“Let There Be Rock” is a song by the Australian hard rock band AC/DC, released as the third single from their fourth studio album of the same name on September 30, 1977, through Atlantic Records in the UK, with “Problem Child” as the B-side. Written by Angus Young, Malcolm Young, and Bon Scott, it was produced by Harry Vanda and George Young. Recording took place from January to February 1977 at Albert Studios in Sydney, Australia, with engineer Mark Opitz. The album was released on March 21, 1977, in Australasia through Albert Productions and on July 25, 1977, internationally, marking the band’s last album with bassist Mark Evans.

The single did not chart on the Billboard Hot 100, as AC/DC’s US breakthrough came later with Highway to Hell. However, the album Let There Be Rock reached No. 154 on the Billboard 200, charting for 11 weeks in 1977. In the UK, the album peaked at No. 17 on the Official Albums Chart, staying for five weeks. Internationally, it hit No. 19 in Australia (Kent Music Report), No. 10 in the Netherlands (Album Top 100), No. 42 in New Zealand (RMNZ), No. 29 in Sweden (Sverigetopplistan), and, in 2024, No. 40 in Germany (Offizielle Top 100) and No. 17 in Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade). The album earned 5× Platinum in Australia (350,000 units), Gold in Canada (50,000 units), Gold in France (100,000 units), Platinum in Germany (500,000 units), Gold in Spain (50,000 units), Gold in the UK (100,000 units), and 2× Platinum in the US (2,000,000 units).

The song’s creation was fueled by AC/DC’s frustration after Atlantic Records rejected their previous album, Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap, for US release in 1976, deeming it sub-par. Manager Michael Browning recalled in a 2016 Loudersound interview, “It was very close to being all over.” The band channeled this anger into a guitar-heavy sound, as Angus Young told Guitar World in 2000, aiming to “make a lot of guitar riffs” post-tour. The title track, a six-minute anthem, was inspired by Chuck Berry’s “Roll Over Beethoven” and biblical references like Genesis, as noted by AllMusic’s Eduardo Rivadavia, who called it a “holy testimony” to rock’s power.

Production anecdotes highlight the song’s raw energy. During recording, Angus Young’s amplifier overheated and caught fire, yet he continued playing, as recounted by George Young in Clinton Walker’s 1994 book, Highway to Hell. Drummer Phil Rudd pushed through exhaustion, completing a second take immediately after the first, which was used in the final mix, per bassist Mark Evans’ account to Classic Rock in 2012. The Australian album version included “Crabsody in Blue” instead of “Problem Child,” which appeared on international releases. The single’s B-side, “Problem Child,” was a shortened version from Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap. The Australian album cover featured guitarist Chris Turner’s fingers, photographed by Colin Stead, as AC/DC was unavailable, according to Turner’s 2012 Classic Rock recollection. The international cover, shot by Keith Morris on March 19, 1977, at Kursaal Ballroom, Southend, UK, introduced the band’s iconic logo by Gerard Huerta.

Trivia includes the song’s use in films like School of Rock (2003) and its live performance on AC/DC’s 1977 Let There Be Rock concert film. Rolling Stone’s David Fricke in 2008 praised Angus’s “white heat” solos. The track remains a live staple, notably performed at Donington Park in 1991, captured on Live at Donington.

Video

Lyric

In the beginning
Back in nineteen fifty-five
Man didn’t know about a rock ‘n’ roll show
And all that jive
The white man had the schmaltz
The black man had the blues
No one knew what they was gonna do
But Tchaikovsky had the news
He said

Let there be sound, there was sound
Let there be light, there was light
Let there be drums, there was drums
Let there be guitar, there was guitar
Oh, let there be rock

And it came to pass
That rock ‘n’ roll was born
All across the land every rockin’ band
Was blowin’ up a storm
And the guitar man got famous
The businessman got rich
And in every bar there was a superstar
With a seven-year itch

There were fifteen million fingers
Learnin’ how to play
And you could hear the fingers pickin’
And this is what they had to say

Let there be light
Sound
Drums
Guitar
Oh, let there be rock

One night in a club called the Shakin’ Hand
There was a forty-two decibel rockin’ band
And the music was good and the music was loud
And the singer turned and he said to the crowd

Let there be rock