Stiff Upper Lip [Reissue]

Performer: AC/DC
Engineer: Mike Fraser; Dean Maher; Mike Fraser
Producer: George Young
Distributor: Sony Music Distribution (

Notes: AC/DC: Brian Johnson (vocals); Angus Young, Malcolm Young (guitar); Cliff Williams (bass); Phil Rudd (drums). Recorded at The Warehouse Studio, Vancouver, British Colombia, Canada. Includes bonus disc featuring live performances and 3 videos. AC/DC: Malcolm Young (guitar); Angus Young, Cliff Williams , Phil Rudd, Brian Johnson . Personnel: Brian Johnson (vocals); Angus Young (guitar); Cliff Williams (bass guitar); Phil Rudd (drums). Audio Mixer: Mike Fraser. Liner Note Authors: Masa Ito; Alan Di Perna. Recording information: The Warehouse Studio, Vancouver, British Columbia, Cana (2000). Photographers: Jeffrey Mayer; Martin Philbey; Bob King ; George Chin; Mista Dean Karr. Unknown Contributor Role: Mista Dean Karr. With STIFF UPPER LIP, AC/DC continued down the same road of consistency driven by Angus Young's workmanlike riffing and Brian Johnson's raspy yowl. As it had done for the two decades leading up to this release, the Australian quintet ignored outside musical trends. AC/DC charts its own straight-and-narrow course with equal parts swagger ("House of Jazz"), grinding defiance ("Can't Stop Rock 'N' Roll"), and smoldering menace ("Meltdown"). As is the band's wont, AC/DC seasons the set with a handful of tried-and-true hard-rock anthems, including the call-and-response "Satellite Blues" and the crackling tomcat-anthem title track. Not surprisingly, quite a bit of sexual innuendo bubbles up throughout STIFF UPPER LIP, particularly on "Come and Get It" and "Give It Up." Ever the rock & roll traditionalists, AC/DC even includes an indictment of all things politically correct, "Damned." Stiff Upper Lip, AC/DC's 15th studio album, may not reach the heights of Back in Black or Highway to Hell, but it delivers strongly and satisfyingly. It's the record that the highly touted, Rick Rubin-produced Ballbreaker should have been: a simple, addictive, hard album, bursting with bold riffs and bolstered by a crunching, thrillingly visceral sound. Sure, there are absolutely no new ideas, but that's the point. AC/DC know their strengths and they embrace them. And why shouldn't they? Nobody writes a better riff than Malcolm and Angus Young; each song has a riff so catchy, it feels like you've heard it for years. Is there anything earth-shaking? Hardly, but it's largely terrific nonetheless, just because AC/DC are so good at what they do. It's simple music, to be sure, but it's unassumingly musical and, in a way rather smart. If making music like this was really that easy, why can't anybody else do it this well? Some bands are capable of knocking out one record like this -- one, maybe two. AC/DC do it nearly every time out. They've never really stretched, yet that's why they have one of the most reliable catalogs in rock & roll. When you put on one of their records, you know what you're in for, and they always deliver. With Stiff Upper Lip, they're not at classic status, but they're still top-notch. This may not be the first AC/DC record for a collection, but once you're into their scene, it's a fine place to be. [Legacy reissued the CD in 2007.] ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Rolling Stone (3/30/00, p.65) - 3 stars out of 5 - "...[It] is everything we've come to expect from the band and absolutely nothing more. A wonderfully juvenile set of leering rawk....old-school all the way; this is the classic BACK IN BLACK lineup bashing out minimalist arena rock..." Q (1/01, p.90) - Included in Q's "50 Best Albums of 2000". Q (5/00, p.107) - 4 stars out of 5 - "...Skullbusting riffs behind a cloth-capped...screecher....It's business as usual, but what a mighty business it is." CMJ (3/20/00, p.34) - "...keeps up with the blues rock tradition on which [they've] built [their] massive reputation. For those about to rock, Brian Johnson, the Young Brothers, and Cliff and Phil salute you once again..." Melody Maker (3/21/00, p.47) - 4 stars out of 5 - "...The song remains the same....You know the tunes will be basic, bashed out with a shinbone in the midst of a terrifying boozing session, and the vocals are sure to screech an endearing mixture of bravdo and innuendo....Listen and worship..." Mojo (Publisher) (4/00, p.91) - "...AC/DC are back in business; and business...is good....The overall impression is of a band deconstructing its music to its basic elements...and having a lot of fun putting it all back together." NME (Magazine) (2/26/00, p.37) - 9 out of 10 - "...AC/DC are the greatest....The 'DC are elemental...[They] bring the rock. All you really need to know is that STIFF UPPER LIP is more of that good 'ol 'DC stuff....[The album] would be a 10 out of 10 if it had cannons on it..."

AC/DC is generally regarded as a titanic force in the world of heavy rock, occupying a sphere of seminal influence right alongside Kiss. These Australian guitar gods--led by Angus Young, an axe-wielding man-boy in a school uniform--churn out songs laced with sexual double entendre and heavy riffs. Since the mid-1970s, Angus and his brother, Malcolm, have survived a stormy band history, including the death of original singer/wildman Bon Scott, all the while bashing out their simplistic, yet highly addictive, brand of bluesy riff-rock.

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