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Shoot to Thrill

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"Shoot to Thrill"
Song by AC/DC
from the album Back in Black
Released25 July 1980
RecordedApril – May 1980
StudioCompass Point (Nassau)
GenreHard rock
Length5:17
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Robert John "Mutt" Lange
Back in Black track listing
10 tracks

Side one

  1. "Hells Bells"
  2. "Shoot to Thrill"
  3. "What Do You Do for Money Honey"
  4. "Given the Dog a Bone"
  5. "Let Me Put My Love into You"

Side two

  2. "Back in Black"
  3. "You Shook Me All Night Long"
  4. "Have a Drink on Me"
  5. "Shake a Leg"
  6. "Rock and Roll Ain't Noise Pollution"
Music video
"Shoot to Thrill" (Iron Man 2 version) on YouTube

"Shoot to Thrill" is a song by Australian hard rock band AC/DC. It is the second track on the 1980 album Back in Black. This song is also the second track of AC/DC Live and AC/DC Live: 2 CD Collector's Edition, and is included on the Iron Man 2 soundtrack.[1] Although the studio version was never released as a single, the song is a fan favourite and a staple on classic rock radio stations.

Music video

[edit]

On 26 January 2010, a new music video for "Shoot to Thrill" was released with exclusive footage from the film Iron Man 2. The live concert footage used in the video was filmed in December 2009 at a concert in Buenos Aires, Argentina at the Estadio Monumental, from which the Live at River Plate DVD was filmed.[1]

Live recordings

[edit]
"Shoot to Thrill (live)"
Single by AC/DC
from the album Live at River Plate
B-side"War Machine (live)"
Released16 April 2011
RecordedDecember 2009
VenueRiver Plate Stadium, Buenos Aires
GenreHard rock
Length5:47
LabelColumbia
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)AC/DC
AC/DC singles chronology
"Money Made"
(2009) 		"Shoot to Thrill (live)"
(2011) 		"Play Ball"
(2014)

Several different live recordings of "Shoot to Thrill" have been released officially. One version, recorded from the Razors Edge World Tour, was released on the 1992 Live album. Another version, recorded from the 1991 Donington show, was released on the deluxe edition of the 2009 box set Backtracks. Another performance, recorded at River Plate Stadium in Buenos Aires in December 2009, was released as a limited edition 7-inch single (backed with a live performance of "War Machine" from the aforementioned show) for Record Store Day 2011, promoting the live DVD Live at River Plate, which was released in May 2011.

Meaning

[edit]

When explaining his lyrical inspiration for the song, lead singer and then-songwriter Brian Johnson recalled reading a British article about a neighbourhood pusher who made daily rounds (almost like a milkman) throughout the London suburbs, selling narcotics to bored, lonely and depressed housewives. These substance-affected homemakers would then peruse the local clubs and bars, seeking out torrid, extra-marital relationships.[citation needed]

Lead guitarist Angus Young has commented that the song's "break-down", which occurs soon after the main solo (a muted and repeating three chord sequence of A Major triad, G Major triad, and a D power chord leading up to a bombastic outro-solo), was inspired by the trio gun-battle climax from Sergio Leone's classic, Italian western The Good, the Bad and the Ugly. In this seminal scene, gun-fighters Clint Eastwood, Lee Van Cleef, and Eli Wallach stare one another down in the centre of a Civil-War cemetery for minutes-on-end to an eventual shoot-out. Young said this sequence in the song was designed to mirror the actual soundtrack selection "Il Triello" by composer Ennio Morricone. Both compositions feature a slow quiet build-up, increasing in tension to a thunderous, cataclysmic finale.[citation needed]

Personnel

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AC/DC

Production

Charts

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Chart (1981) Peak
position
US Billboard Top Tracks[2] 60
Chart (2012) Peak
position
US Billboard Hot Digital Songs[2] 75

Certifications

[edit]
Region Certification Certified units/sales
Brazil (Pro-Música Brasil)[3] Gold 30,000‡
Italy (FIMI)[4] Gold 35,000‡
Mexico (AMPROFON)[5] Platinum 60,000‡
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[6] Gold 30,000‡
United Kingdom (BPI)[7] Gold 400,000‡
United States (RIAA)[8] 2× Platinum 2,000,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Cover versions

[edit]

The song has also been recorded by Halestorm on their EP Reanimate 2.0: The Covers.

Uses in media

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This song has been used in several film and television programs including:

References

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  1. ^ a b "AC/DC's Music To Be Featured In 'Iron Man 2'". Blabbermouth.net. 26 January 2010. Retrieved 13 February 2010.
  2. ^ a b "Back in Black – Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved 6 June 2014.
  3. ^ "Brazilian single certifications – AC/DC – Shoot To Thrill" (in Portuguese). Pro-Música Brasil. Retrieved 28 May 2024.
  4. ^ "Italian single certifications – AC/DC – Shoot to Thrill" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved 13 July 2022.
  5. ^ "Certificaciones" (in Spanish). Asociación Mexicana de Productores de Fonogramas y Videogramas. Retrieved 10 October 2020. Type AC/DC in the box under the ARTISTA column heading and Shoot to Thrill in the box under the TÍTULO column heading.
  6. ^ "Spanish single certifications – AC/DC – Shoot to Thrill". El portal de Música. Productores de Música de España. Retrieved 19 February 2024.
  7. ^ "British single certifications – AC/DC – Shoot to Thrill". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 18 November 2022.
  8. ^ "American single certifications – AC/DC – Shoot to Thrill". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 8 July 2024.
  9. ^ "Shows". Wwe.com. Retrieved 8 June 2021.
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