AC/DC/Osaka, Japan 2006

Even Cliff Williams has finally hinted at retirement, making AC/DC’s future even more uncertain. In 2014, Malcolm Young suffered from dementia and Phil Rudd was arrested. In 2016, Brian Johnson withdrew due to hearing loss, and this time Cliff announced, “After this tour, I will withdraw from touring and recording.” Of the “Golden Five” who have been loved for many years, Angus Young is left alone. This work, which appeared at such a timing, is a famous recording left in Japan by the “Golden Five”. It is an audience album of “February 22, 2001: Osaka Castle Hall Performance”. This is a part of the third Japan tour, but first let’s look back at “STIFF UPPER LIP JAPAN TOUR 2001”. ・February 19, 2001: Yokohama Arena ・February 20, 2001: Yokohama Arena ・February 23, 2001: Osaka Castle Hall [This work] In this way, the 2001 Japan tour consisted of a total of three performances. It was the last day at Osaka Castle. The person who recorded such an Osaka performance was a master who was rumored to be the best in Osaka in the 1990s. In recent years, our store has produced many works by this master, including David Bowie’s “A REALITY IN OSAKA: THE LAST CONCERT IN JAPAN (Wardour-169)”, Prince’s “ONE NITE ALONE IN OSAKA”, KANSAS’s “OSAKA 2001”, etc. RAINBOW “OSAKA 1995 1ST NIGHT” is very popular. This work is the latest work of the original master series, and is the best recording of the 2001 Japan tour. As the above masterpieces demonstrate, the skill of this master recording artist is exquisite. The quality of this work is also consistent with its reputation. In the opening song “You Shook Me All Night Long”, there is a scene where AC/DC’s volume becomes too loud and becomes over-peak, but it is corrected immediately. From the second song “Stiff Upper Lip”, the same clear sound as the masterpieces mentioned above spreads. This fact is also the great thing about being a master. I don’t know if the recording was done while listening to it with earphones on, but even if I was listening to it, my ears for distinguishing the recorded sound in the high volume of the scene are far beyond normal people, so I just recorded it without listening. It would be even more amazing if it was adjusted. In any case, there is no doubt that they are highly skilled, and you can fully enjoy the sound that can only be produced by their sense and technique. The musical tone is not only clear, but also extremely thick and direct. Although it was supposed to be a large Osaka Castle Hall, there was no reverberation at all in the venue, and it was filled with plenty of sound that gave a sense of zero distance. Even if you take this one point, it is a quality that can be called “just like a sound board”, but even so, this work is definitely an audience recording. What made me keenly aware of this was the enthusiasm in the venue. Because it is tuned to a loud musical tone, you don’t really feel the loud cheers even between songs, but the enthusiasm before the performance that was recorded before the adjustment was super realistic. This was his first visit to Japan in 19 years, since 1982. The enthusiasm of the audience gathered there was strange, and even though they had been waiting impatiently for it, the “huge oazuke” that they had been waiting for seemed like it was about to burst… no, it was starting to burst. Not only the standard “Angus!” call, but also roars can be heard from every corner, and even a wild yell (?) of “Come on, come on!” The visit to Japan nine years later in 2010 was also amazing, but the atmosphere swirling around this work is far from that. There’s no way AC/DC was to blame for being backed by such abnormal enthusiasm. As I wrote earlier, the cheers of this work are at a modest volume, but the enthusiasm oozes out from the band’s enthusiastic performance. His excitement was amazing, as he said, “I couldn’t play like this in front of an audience that was dying.” The “Golden Five” left AC/DC one by one. The five members who created the world-class masterpiece “BACK IN BLACK” and continued to rock the earth are no longer together. Even if Brian recovers, Cliff withdraws his retirement, and Angus forgives Phil, Malcolm cannot return. The one and only magic will never return again. It is precisely at this moment in time that the enthusiasm of 2001, which has overcome “19 years”, pierces my heart. The rock’n’roll that the “Golden Five” left behind in Japan is a passionate performance that can only be achieved by overcoming a long period of time. This is a “Japanese masterpiece” recorded by the most famous recording artist of our time. Live at Osaka-Jo Hall, Osaka, Japan 22nd February 2001 TRULY PERFECT SOUND(from Original Masters) Disc 1 (60:22) 1. Intro 2. You Shook Me All Night Long 3. Stiff Upper Lip 4. Shot Down In Flames 5. Thunderstruck 6. Hell Ain’t A Bad Place To Be 7. Hard As A Rock 8. Shoot To Thrill 9. Rock And Roll Ain’t Noise Pollution 10. Sin City 11. Bad Boy Boogie Disc 2 (61:56) 1. Hells Bells 2. Get It Hot 3. The Jack 4. Back In Black 5. Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap 6. Highway To Hell 7. Whole Lotta Rosie 8. Let There Be Rock 9. T.N.T.10. For Those About To Rock (We Salute You) Brian Johnson – lead vocals Angus Young – lead guitar Malcolm Young – rhythm guitar, background vocals Cliff Williams – bass, background vocals Phil Rudd – drums