AC/DC - Bonfire (5CD Box Set) (2003)

When Bon Scott died at the age of 33, many thought this wasthe end of AC/DC. The band rebounded by recruiting vocalistBrian Johnson (a Scott favourite) and releasing their best-selling album ever, BACK IN BLACK. BONFIRE is a five-disc tribute to the pugnacious and raspy-voiced Scott, overflowing with the bare-fisted riffs and ribald lyrics that were the trademark of his edition of the band. Recorded live at New York's Atlantic Studios, Disc 1 was originally a promotionalonly release that's been bootlegged countless times over the years. All thriller, no filler, this recording overflows with plenty of classics ranging from the band's cheeky tribute to venereal disease ("The Clap") to the tale of an over-sexed Rubenesque female fan ("Whole Lotta Rosie".) Discs Twoand Three are an expanded version of the soundtrack to the 1980 concert film "Let There Be Rock". Recorded before a French audience, AC/DC's in-your-face performance transcended any cultural differences and the audience often sang along despite language barriers. Entitled VOLTS, Disc Four consists of work-in-process studio recordings of material such as "Touch Too Much" and "Get It Hot" with different lyrics than the finished versions. The inclusion of the slow blues of "Ride On" shows another side to AC/DC often lost among the lascivious offerings of "Beatin' Around The Bush" and "She's Got Balls". A re-mastered version of BACK IN BLACK completes this set marking the end of one era and the beginning of another.