Rock and roll started as a branch of the blues tree. It was built with the same three chord structure and the same raw emotion as the blues from the Delta. The roots can be found in Robert Johnson, and the tree limb spread out up the Mississippi to Chicago, and points far beyond.

I don’t think that anybody ever really envisioned rock and roll being complex – three chords and lyrics that mention the basic desires driven by testosterone, sweat, and fun. It began in the juke joints, and ended up appearing in the censored gyrations of Elvis’ hips. But the beauty of the genre is its elegance in its own sheer simplicity. And there are still some practitioners of what I would call the “art” of rock and roll – those that remind us of how raw and simple and powerful and fun good, straight-up rock and roll really is.

AC/DC at the Frank Erwin Center – 36 years after they started – was a not-so-subtle reminder of the beauty and power that is primal rock and roll. Angus Young and friends reminded me of this after all these years. Rock doesn’t have to be intellectual, nor does it have to be epic – it can be simple, guttural, visceral – and AC/DC sure know how to get it done.

Their performance – as a rock and roll show – was gaudy, cheesy, and – classic – all at the same time. Rosie (of “Whole Lotta Rosie” fame) became a monstrous blow-up doll. There were the cannons through “For Those About To Rock”. There were flash pots and flames. Explosions. There was the huge bell for the intro to “Hells’ Bells”. And though they may have been a little over-the-top, they were just right.

Yes, they played all their what-are-now-anthemic hits. But it was the blues, the roots of the band, that got my blood boiling. It was Angus Young, bending notes on his classic Gibson SG, wailing through a Marshall stack – now that is what rock and roll is all about. And he learned his lessons well. A performer he is, much like the blues masters before him. He could work the crowd and bring everyone to their feet. There was his now-historic “strip tease”, removing all schoolboy attire until he was down to nothing more than his shorts. He pulled out all the guitar tricks, playing his SG overhead and one-handed much as the blues masters did in the juke joints to impress the ladies. There was the Chuck Berry (or should I say, T-Bone Walker) duck walk. And of course, there were the same bent blue notes of his predecessors.

Let us not forget the foundation for the band – the rhythm section – that chugs on like a locomotive. Malcolm Young on rhythm guitar provides the bedrock for Angus’ over the top blues-solos-at-double-speed. Together, they create a sound that is, well, what rock and roll is all about.

And it is comforting to know that in a time of electronic drivel and senseless celebrity “musician” BS, there is basic, three chord rock and roll still out there. And the ghosts of the Delta continue to channel themselves through these boys from Glasgow.

For those about to rock – we salute you!

Photo credit: abesselink, Anirudh Koul