Here's a report on the 2008 AC/DC "Black Ice" tour as it made its way to Oakland Coliseum. This has been one of my most popular posts, so I'm highlighting it for those who may have missed it.
This was a great live gig, perhaps one of the best I'd seen all year. The band delivered a performance with the energy & enthusiasm of men half their age. And it was L O U D !
I managed to get quite a few decent photos and videos from my smuggled Canon G9 
The set list has not varied much on this tour, but here's what was played in Oakland:
- Rock N' Roll Train *
- Hell Ain't a Bad Place To Be *
- Back In Black *
- Big Jack *
- Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap
- Thunderstruck
- Black Ice
- The Jack
- Hells Bells *
- Shoot to Thrill
- War Machine *
- Anything Goes
- You Shook Me All Night Long *
- T.N.T. *
- Whole Lotta Rosie
- Let There Be Rock
- Solo *
Encore: - Highway To Hell *
- For Those About To Rock (We Salute You) *
* = Video posted on YouTube.
It was a good mix of AC/DC's hits along with some new material. I suppose no set list is perfect, and I would have preferred to skip "Hell Ain't a Bad Place to Be" or "Anything Goes" in place of "Jailbreak" or even "Decibel" from "Black Ice" but that just reflects my personal opinion. I'm sure others would have their own quibbles. With a catalog of 30 years, I think this was about as good as it gets and I'm really just nit picking at this point. Bottom line: this was a great concert. Or as many AC/DC fans have commented on Youtube it was "the best ever, man. I was there!"
While some are critical of AC/DC for sticking to a formula, I think it's a pretty successful one. If Buddy Holly were still around, I wouldn't expect him to change a whole lot either. Of course, AC/DC's got 30 years of this formula, but the more I listen to their recent "Black Ice" CD, the more I think it's better than 90% of the new music out there today, Coldplay included.
Singer Brian Johnson (now 61) was in great form. I thought his voice was better than I've heard on videos from more than 10 years ago. Perhaps by allowing a day's rest between gigs, they've found a way to keep things going until he's 71. I sure hope so. He's belting it out with energy to spare and can still hit the high notes.
Angus Young put on a great show dressed in his usual Aussie schoolboy outfit ripping guitar solos throughout the evening. He's not running around on stage quite as much as he did in the past, but he's not phoning it in either. He worked the audience into a frenzy and sweated more than many a marathon runner in this nearly 2 hour show. Honestly, I don't know how he manages to play as well as he does while running around, spinning on the floor and never missing a beat. It may be a bit of showmanship, but its still impressive. Unfortunately, I ran out of memory and could not get the full version of his guitar solo on video. Sorry 'bout that!
Overall, it was a great concert and tribute to the fact that old guys can still rock. If you've caught AC/DC on tour or are planning to, let me what you think.
- AC/DC: Official Site, News, Tour, Wikipedia, Set list
- Amazon: Black Ice
, Back in Black, Highway to Hell, Stiff Upper Lip
- Photos & Video: PicasaWeb, Youtube
- Reviews: Oakland Tribune, SF Chronicle, More Photos
- GuitarVibe: Coldplay in Phoenix, Review of Black Ice
Yewr right, man that was a great gig. Reminds me of the Moscow 1991 concert.
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Posted by: Madonna | December 24, 2008 at 02:48 AM
I am 56 and took my four teenagers 260 miles down to Phoenix on 12-10-08 to teach these rock deprived kids what they have been missing ! I spent $272.00 for each ticket in section 109 straight back from the stage and after experiencing the timeless, jaw-dropping, never thinkin about sitting down, screaming our voices out, display of the absolute best rock band this planet will EVER have I think that I would spend a grand for a seat because this could be the last time I might ever get to see them again. I have been to concerts for just about everyone in the last 35 years but the quality of the sound at the volume it was and they were as old as me was flat out mindnumbing for everyone in the place. The energy from the crowd showed how rock starved we all really are. Thanks AC/DC for shaving 25 years off of my attitude. WOW !
Posted by: Mike from AZ | December 27, 2008 at 09:28 PM
Awesome Show in Little Rock, AR!!! I wish I could do it all over again.
Posted by: Joy | February 03, 2009 at 06:53 PM
I've seen them on friday 13th of march 09 in Rotterdam , Netherlands.
It was a great performance , they still rocks. this concert was as good as the last I saw in november 2000.After 8 years they still are great rockers. I loved the intro , and I loved to see Angus on the platform... Really Great !
Posted by: Eric | March 14, 2009 at 11:24 AM
Just found your blog through Google, and I have to say I thoroughly enjoy it.
Thank you for the valuable info and video about AC/DC Concert. I’m looking forward to the additional valuable information here.
Posted by: Music Careers | April 13, 2009 at 01:26 AM
I wish I could see Angus play the guitar live...
Posted by: Tom Fontana | July 19, 2009 at 09:39 AM
Hi,
I was wondering if you could post a permalink to my friend's guitar website in the guitar section of your blog. I would contact you via email or some other type of private message but I can't find your email address anywhere on your page. Cool website, by the way.
Anyways, the link to the site is http://www.rhythmstrummer.com and it's focus is on acoustic guitar lessons for beginners. Thanks for your time and I hope you're having a great day.
Sincerely,
Nick
Posted by: Nicholas | September 16, 2010 at 07:20 PM