08/06/2020
Number 2!
Today, we continue our mission to listen to the top-selling 100 albums of all time with Back in Black, AC/DC's triumphant rapid return to music after the tragic loss of their lead singer, Bon Scott. This hard-hitting album has sold over 50 million copies, making it the top-selling rock album of all time and second top-selling album altogether.
Beyond the tens of millions of copies sold, it is easy to overlook the legacy of something like Back in Black. The album didn’t signify any sort of change or cultural marker; it instead proved the power of stasis, of doing something well, then doing it again but louder and with more money. In a sense, the success of Back in Black helped predict the current reboot moment: Give the people what they want, but more. The music does not feel of any time or place; it means now what it meant then. The record’s ultimate legacy comes less from the artists it influenced or even the songs that remain staples of whatever is left of commercial rock radio than in its confirmation that evolution can be an overrated quality. And, as ever, AC/DC were their own best messengers for this simple idea, laid bare in the final moments of their most famous work: “Rock’n’roll ain't no riddle, man.”¹
¹ excerpt from Pitchfork, Steve Kandell, June 16th, 2019.
