Let There Be Rock (song)

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"Let There Be Rock"

Single by AC/DC
from the album 'Let There Be Rock'
B-side(s)	"Problem Child"
Released	1977
Format	CD
Recorded	1977, 1976
Genre	Hard Rock
Length	6:05
Label	ATCO
Producer(s)	Harry Vanda, George Young
AC/DC singles chronology
"Dog Eat Dog / Carry Me Home" (1977)	"Let There Be Rock" (1977)	"Whole Lotta Rosie / Dog Eat Dog" (1978)

"Let There Be Rock"

Song by AC/DC
from the album Let There Be Rock
Released	March 1977
Recorded	January-February 1977
Genre	Hard Rock
Length	6:06
Label	ATCO
Writer(s)	Angus Young, Bon Scott, Malcolm Young
Producer(s)	Harry Vanda, George Young
Let There Be Rock track listing
Dog Eat Dog (2)	"Let There Be Rock" (3)	Bad Boy Boogie (4)

"Let There Be Rock"

Song by AC/DC
from the album Let There Be Rock
Released	June 23, 1977
Length	6:06
Let There Be Rock track listing
Dog Eat Dog (2)	"Let There Be Rock" (3)	Bad Boy Boogie (4)

"Let There Be Rock" is a song by Australian hard rock band AC/DC. It is the third and title track of their Australian album Let There Be Rock, released in March 1977, and was written by Angus Young, Malcolm Young, and Bon Scott. It is also the third and title track on the international version of Let There Be Rock, released in June 1977.

It was also released as a single, with a B-side of "Problem Child", in 1977.

1 Composition
2 Influences
3 Live recordings
4 Music video
5 Personnel
6 Production
7 References
8 External links

[edit] Composition

The song provides an encapsulated, fictionalized version of the history of rock 'n' roll. Building on a line from the Chuck Berry song "Roll Over Beethoven" (in which the speaker says, "...tell Tchaikovsky the news"), "Let There Be Rock" reveals that Tchaikovsky did in fact receive the message and subsequently shared it with the masses, resulting in the rise of rock 'n' roll.

Following rock's birth, rock bands appeared everywhere, musicians found fame (while businesses made money off their efforts), and millions of people learned how to play electric guitar. The third and final verse speaks of a "92-decibel" rock band playing good, loud music in an establishment called "The Shaking Hand."

[edit] Influences

"Let There Be Rock"'s title and chorus take inspiration from The Bible's Book of Genesis, echoing God's demand of "Let there be light," et al, with repeated calls for:

Light
Sound
Drums
Guitar
Rock

The song is also influenced by Chuck Berry's "Roll Over Beethoven."

"Roll Over Beethoven": ...go tell Tchaikovsky the news.
"Let There Be Rock": ...but Tchaikovsky had the news.

[edit] Live recordings

Being one of AC/DC's most popular songs, "Let There Be Rock" has been included on three of the band's five official live albums: If You Want Blood You've Got It (sung by Bon Scott, 1978), Live: 2 CD Collector's Edition (sung by Scott's replacement Brian Johnson, 1992), Let There Be Rock: The Movie (Scott, 1979), released in 1997 as part of the Bonfire box set, and Stiff Upper Lip Tour Edition (Johnson, 2001) with the last recorded from Plaza De Toros in Madrid from 1996.

[edit] Music video

The music video for "Let There Be Rock" was filmed in July 1977 (see 1977 in music). It was recorded in a church, and featured Bon Scott, Angus Young, Malcolm Young, Phil Rudd, and Cliff Williams, who replaced Mark Evans as the band's bassist shortly after the Let There Be Rock album was released. This marked one of Williams' first public appearances with AC/DC. Scott was dressed as a priest and the rest of the band as altar boys, with Angus Young wearing a halo prop on his head.^[1] According to an interview with the Young brothers, Bon Scott injured himself in the final jump from the podium.