AC/DC is an Australian rock band formed in Sydney in 1973 by Scottish-born … Read Full Bio ↴AC/DC is an Australian rock band formed in Sydney in 1973 by Scottish-born brothers Malcolm and Angus Young. Their music has been variously described as hard rock, blues rock, and heavy metal, but the band calls it simply "rock and roll".

AC/DC underwent several line-up changes before releasing their first album, 1975's High Voltage. Membership subsequently stabilised around the Young brothers, singer Bon Scott, drummer Phil Rudd, and bassist Mark Evans. Evans was fired from the band in 1977 and replaced by Cliff Williams, who has appeared on every AC/DC album since 1978's Powerage. In February 1980, about seven months after the release of their breakthrough album Highway to Hell, Scott died of acute alcohol poisoning after a night of heavy drinking. AC/DC considered disbanding, but at Scott's family's request, the remaining members opted to continue the band, bringing in longtime Geordie vocalist Brian Johnson as Scott's replacement. Later that year, the band released their first album with Johnson, Back in Black, which was dedicated to Scott's memory. The album launched AC/DC to new heights of success and became one of the best selling albums of all time.

The band's eighth studio album, For Those About to Rock (We Salute You) (1981), was their first album to reach number one in the United States. Prior to the release of their next album, Flick of the Switch (1983), Rudd left the band and was replaced by Simon Wright, being in turn replaced by Chris Slade in 1989. The band experienced a commercial resurgence in the early nineties with the release of their twelfth studio album The Razors Edge (1990); it was their only album to feature Slade, who was replaced by the returning Rudd in 1994. Rudd has since recorded five more albums with the band, starting with, and including, Ballbreaker (1995). Their fifteenth studio album Black Ice was the second-highest-selling album of 2008, and their biggest chart hit since For Those About to Rock, eventually reaching No.1 worldwide.

The band's line-up remained the same for twenty years, until 2014 with Malcolm Young's retirement due to early-onset dementia (he died in 2017) and Rudd's legal troubles. Malcolm was replaced by his nephew Stevie Young, who debuted on AC/DC's 2014 album Rock or Bust, and on its accompanying tour, previous drummer Chris Slade filled in for Rudd. In 2016, Johnson was advised to stop touring due to worsening hearing loss. Guns N' Roses frontman Axl Rose stepped in as the band's vocalist for the remainder of that year's dates. Long-term bass player and background vocalist Cliff Williams retired from AC/DC at the end of the Rock or Bust tour in 2016 and the group entered a four-year hiatus. A reunion of the Rock or Bust line-up was announced in September 2020 and the band's seventeenth studio album Power Up was released two months later.

AC/DC have sold more than 200 million records worldwide, including 75 million albums in the United States, making them the ninth-highest-selling artist in the United States and the 16th-best-selling artist worldwide. Back in Black has sold an estimated 50 million units worldwide, making it the second-highest-selling album by any artist, and the highest-selling album by any band. The album has sold 25 million units in the US, where it is the fourth highest-selling album of all time. AC/DC were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on 10 March 2003. AC/DC ranked fourth on VH1's list of the "100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock" and were named the seventh "Greatest Heavy Metal Band of All Time" by MTV. In 2004, AC/DC ranked No. 72 on the Rolling Stone list of the "100 Greatest Artists of All Time". Producer Rick Rubin, who wrote an essay on the band for the Rolling Stone list, referred to AC/DC as "the greatest rock and roll band of all time". In 2010, VH1 ranked AC/DC number 23 in its list of the "100 Greatest Artists of All Time".

Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AC/DC

Discography
High Voltage (1975) (Australia only)
T.N.T. (1975) (Australia only)
High Voltage (1976) (international version)
Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap (1976)
Let There Be Rock (1977)
Powerage (1978)
Highway to Hell (1979)
Back in Black (1980)
For Those About to Rock (We Salute You) (1981)
Flick of the Switch (1983)
Fly on the Wall (1985)
Blow Up Your Video (1988)
The Razors Edge (1990)
Ballbreaker (1995)
Stiff Upper Lip (2000)
Black Ice (2008)
Rock or Bust (2014)
Power Up (2020)

Decibel
AC/DC Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Take up all your time,
Kick up your heels, lookin' fine,
And you come riding blind,
You come rollin' back a while,
Wind blowin' on ya,
We're gonna move on and on,
Sweating heat, soak you all,
Being out will make you crawl all night

Decibel, decibel,

Has you from deep inside,
You were waving then you smiled,
Give me rock and roll,
They're in love,
Love, in the rain,
They're in there rocking standing proud

Decibel,
That's the history of rock and roll,
Decibel

Rain is coming on,
We're gonna ride along,
A hundred miles in all,
Getting in night til dawn,
Spread the joy going on,
Yeah, hard and long,
Staring down, with a shock hit the ground,

Decibel,
Decibel,
Decibel,
You come rolling back a while,

Decibel,
Decibel

Overall Meaning

AC/DC's song "Decibel" is a classic rock anthem that celebrates the iconic history of rock and roll. The song begins by urging listeners to let loose and enjoy life: "Take up all your time, kick up your heels, lookin' fine." The lyrics then focus on the power of rock music to move people, including lines like "Wind blowin' on ya, we're gonna move on and on" and "Give me rock and roll, they're in love, love, in the rain."

At its heart, "Decibel" is all about the sheer energy and passion that rock and roll can inspire. The lyrics repeatedly reference the titular "decibel," suggesting that the music is so loud and intense that it can shake listeners to their core. Lines like "Has you from deep inside" and "Staring down, with a shock hit the ground" drive this point home, emphasizing the visceral impact that rock music can have.

Overall, "Decibel" is a song that celebrates the raw power of rock and roll, urging listeners to embrace its energy and let it take them on a wild ride.

Line by Line Meaning

Take up all your time,
Devote yourself completely to enjoying your time and having fun.

Kick up your heels, lookin' fine,
Dance and have a good time, while looking and feeling great.

And you come riding blind,
You come along without really knowing what you're getting into.

You come rollin' back a while,
You return to an earlier time, perhaps to recapture a past feeling of freedom.

Wind blowin' on ya,
The wind literally blowing on you, as you move forward.

We're gonna move on and on,
Continuing to go forward in a non-stop progression.

Sweating heat, soak you all,
Hot weather causing you to sweat.

Being out will make you crawl all night
Being out and enjoying yourself so much that you can't stop at just one event and you continue enjoying yourself all night.

Decibel, decibel,
The loudness of rock and roll music.

Has you from deep inside,
Rock and roll music has the power to move you on a deep emotional level.

You were waving then you smiled,
Rock and roll music has the power to cause people to wave their hands and smile.

Give me rock and roll,
The desire for and love of rock and roll music.

They're in love,
The people listening to and creating the music are in love and hooked on it.

Love, in the rain,
The love for rock and roll music remains even when faced with difficulty, like rain.

They're in there rocking standing proud
The people playing and listening to rock and roll music are proud to be associated with it and continue to do so.

Decibel,
The loudness of rock and roll music.

That's the history of rock and roll,
The loudness of rock and roll music has always been a defining characteristic of the genre.

Decibel
The loudness of rock and roll music.

Rain is coming on,
Rain is starting to fall.

We're gonna ride along,
We're going to keep going and not let the rain stop us.

A hundred miles in all,
Traveling a long distance.

Getting in night til dawn,
Enjoying oneself non-stop throughout the night until morning.

Spread the joy going on,
Spreading happiness and joy around as we continue to move forward.

Yeah, hard and long,
Going strong and not giving up.

Staring down, with a shock hit the ground,
Feeling overwhelmed and surprised by the intensity of the music.

Decibel,
The loudness of rock and roll music.

You come rolling back a while,
You return to an earlier time, perhaps to recapture a past feeling of freedom.