Back in Black

AC/DC

Product Details

• Audio CD (February 18, 2003)
• Original Release Date: August 1980
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Sony
• ASIN: B000089RV6
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  Vinyl
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (662 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #345 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

  Popular in these categories: (What's this?)

  #4 in	Music > Hard Rock & Metal > Hard Rock
  #5 in	Music > Classic Rock > Arena Rock
  #34 in	Music > Classic Rock > Album-Oriented Rock (AOR)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com essential recording
Most critics complain Back in Black, the album AC/DC recorded after the death of their original lead screamer Bon Scott, is ridiculously juvenile, obvious, snickering, bludgeoning, derivative, single-minded about sex and booze, a big cartoon. All true, of course, and--on rock 'n' ragers like "What Do You Do For Money Honey," "You Shook Me All Night Long," and the title track--all great. As Scott's replacement Brian Johnson reminds us, loud and crunchy, no-holds-barred "rock and roll ain't noise pollution...it makes good, good sense." Never trust anyone who refuses to drink domestic beer, laugh at the Three Stooges, or crank Back in Black. --David Cantwell

Product Description
CD AUDIO SIDE: Entire Album

DVD SIDE: * Entire album in enhanced LPCM Stereo * The film The Story of Back in Black, featuring interviews with the band, archival footage, and in-studio performances of "Hells Bells," "You Shook Me All Night Long," "Rock And Roll Ain’t Noise Pollution," "Shoot to Thrill," and more * Discography This disc is intended to play on standard DVD and CD players. May not play on a limited number of models. --This text refers to the Audio CD edition.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

107 of 113 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Quintessential AC/DC Album Is Now Even Better!, March 8, 2003

By	highway_star (Hallandale, Florida United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

Released in 1980, "Back In Black" featured new lead singer Brian Johnson who replaced former singer Bonn Scott who died months earlier. With the death of Scott, there were sceptics that thought this was the end of the hard rocking Aussy band. But to their surprise "Back In Black" was a huge success with absolutely no filler tracks. The album produced a number of hits with the title "Back In Black", "Hells Bells" and "You Shook Me All Night Long". In my opinion some of the best songs on the album were not hits such as "Shoot To Thrill", "What Do You Do For Money Honey" and "Shake A Leg". With the addition of Johnson to the line up the band seemed to be stronger than ever, and Angus Young's guitar licks are absolutely amazing. Just listen to the lead guitar in "Shake A Leg" and I'm sure you'd agree. Numerous soundtracks have included AC/DC songs from this album, notably the Steven King film "Maximum Overdrive" which featured "Hells Bells" and "You Shook Me All Night Long". This newley remastered edition of "Back In Black" now on the Epic Label surpasses the older 1994 remastered version in that the volume is pumped up higher, there's definately more bottom end and mid-range. I actually listened to both versions of the disc and this new one blows the other away. The digipack that stores the new remastered version is attractive and there's an excellent booklet inclosed with color photos, etc. of the band. If you want to hear hard rock the way it was meant to be then pick this superb cd up and enjoy.

67 of 73 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "Back in Black" - Remastered., May 17, 2003

By	The Groove (Boston, MA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

At this point, I really don't need to tell you the story behind "Back in Black." You already know that it's the first AC/DC album since founding member Bon Scott's death and the first featuring replacing singer Brian Johnson. You already know that it's one of the biggest-selling albums around the world. And you already know that it's the Aussie-based group's best album to date. What you may NOT know is that the repackaged and remastered edition is a must-have, even if you already own prior versions on LP, cassette, or CD. Re-released around the time the band received Rock and Roll Hall of Fame status, "Back in Black" appears in a Digipak cover with cool photos of the band, as well as a nice booklet with more pictures and a well written commentary by Rolling Stone veteran editor David Fricke. And the sound quality? I personally listened to the previous CD edition and this version back to back, and not only can you hear the difference but also FEEL the difference. The new version projects with more force and clarity. The previous CD was okay as it was, but Sony really took it to a whole new level. You'll get to hear tracks like "Hells Bells," "Back in Back" and "Shoot to Thrill" like you never heard them before. So this review should end any speculation as to whether you should buy "Back in Black" again. You can never own too many copies of an album like this, and Sony gave it the upgrade it richly deserves.

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Still the best, February 18, 2004

By	Docendo Discimus (Vita scholae) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

In February 2003, the American distribution rights to AC/DC's back catalog transferred over to Epic, their new label. Epic then reissued the band's catalog as remastered digipacks containing lavish, expanded booklets with plenty of rare photographs, memorabilia and notes.

Although the digipacks may wear a little too easy, the sound is terrific, clean and muscular, enhancing the raw qualities of the original record. And "Back In Black" certainly deserves this kind of loving treatment; it is AC/DC's best and most popular album by far, having sold well over forty million copies worldwide, which makes it one of the ten best-selling albums ever, regardless of genre.
(AC/DC remains the single best-selling hard rock or heavy metal band in the world, nearing the 150.000.000 mark, and outselling bands like The Rolling Stones, Aerosmith, and even the mighty Led Zeppelin.)

"Back In Black" is one of rock's all-time classic records. Not a single weak track is included, even the lesser-known album tracks are strong, and it is filled with powerful riffs, huge hooks and tough, bluesy grooves.
The lyrics are a joke, of course, all booze and sex and rock n' roll, and Brian Johnson screams rather than sings, but AC/DC at the top of their game wrote the best, catchiest hard rock songs you can imagine, like the grand, anthemic "Hell's Bells" or the magnificent title track.

And AC/DC doesn't just thrash away or plod along like your average heavy metal band; they literally swing on "Have A Drink On Me", and rhythm guitarist Malcolm Young churns out one sturdy riff after another. Just listen to the incredible groove he lays down on songs like "Given The Dog A Bone", "Back In Black", "You Shook Me All Night Long", and the slow, bluesy (and superbly sleazy) "Let Me Put My Love Into You".

Hard rock doesn't get any better than this. In fact, it barely ever gets this good.