Rock 'n' Roll Train
Encyclopedia
"Rock 'N' Roll Train" is a song by Australian rock band AC/DC
. It is the first track on the album Black Ice
to receive radio airplay. The band released a 7-inch vinyl single that featured the song "Rock 'N Roll Train" on Side A, and "War Machine" on Side B. The 7-inch single came in a sleeve with its own unique artwork. The 7-inch vinyl was also made available in the United States through some independent record shops.
As with the success of the Black Ice
album, the single was released to huge success. It was used in many television advertisements, more often being used as ESPN
sports bumpers. It hit No. 1 on the U.S. Billboard Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks, staying there for over three weeks. The song was also one of the first AC/DC songs on the Billboard Hot Modern Rock Tracks chart.
on 17 August. Angus Young
initially conceived the song, and his brother Malcolm Young
created the backing vocal harmony of the chorus ("Running right off the track").
On 27 August 2008, close to midnight, the single was uploaded to AC/DC's official website and AC/DC's MySpace
. It made its worldwide radio debut on at 17:00 New Zealand time on The Rock radio station. Many Australian stations played the song straight after their news services. The song later made its way onto classic rock
radio stations Planet Rock, Virgin Radio Classic Rock
, Radio Caroline
, radio2XS
and Rock Radio
in the UK. The song made its North American debut on on CKQB-FM
in Ottawa
, Ontario
, Canada. "Rock 'n' Roll Train" debuted at number one on the Canadian rock chart
for the week ending 5 September.
On 30 August 2008, the first Saturday of the U.S. college football season, the song was played extensively on ESPN
and ABC
college football broadcasts as intro and bumper music, along with other AC/DC songs "Thunderstruck
" and "For Those About to Rock (We Salute You)
". It was also played on a promo for CBS
's Criminal Minds
. It peaked at number one on the U.S. Billboard Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks chart. In November 2008 the song became AC/DC's first song to enter the U.S. dance chart
.
Throughout the month of November, the World Wrestling Entertainment
website featured the music video
for "Rock 'N' Roll Train", as well as the song "Spoilin' for a Fight", which was the theme to the Survivor Series 2008.
The song was used to open shows on the Black Ice tour. A cartoon was played on the giant video screen above the stage; at the end of this cartoon a life-sized train came crashing out onto the stage. It is at this point that the band came out on stage and proceeded to play the song.
The song "Rock 'N' Roll Train" was also used in an episode of Knight Rider
titled "Knight to King's Pawn".
to accompany the song in London
, where 150 contest winners and their guests were present. The video premiered on 19 September on the band's official website.
On 23 October 2008, the band released the music video online in ASCII
art in a Microsoft Excel
spreadsheet format – the first music video to be produced in such format.
. It also won an APRA Award for Most Played Australian Work Overseas.
AC/DC
AC/DC are an Australian rock band, formed in 1973 by brothers Malcolm and Angus Young. Commonly classified as hard rock, they are considered pioneers of heavy metal, though they themselves have always classified their music as simply "rock and roll"...
. It is the first track on the album Black Ice
Black Ice (album)
Black Ice is the 15th Australian and 14th international studio album by the Australian hard rock band AC/DC. It was produced by Brendan O'Brien and released internationally on 17 October 2008. Guitarists Angus Young and Malcolm Young got together in London in 2003 to start composing tracks...
to receive radio airplay. The band released a 7-inch vinyl single that featured the song "Rock 'N Roll Train" on Side A, and "War Machine" on Side B. The 7-inch single came in a sleeve with its own unique artwork. The 7-inch vinyl was also made available in the United States through some independent record shops.
As with the success of the Black Ice
Black Ice (album)
Black Ice is the 15th Australian and 14th international studio album by the Australian hard rock band AC/DC. It was produced by Brendan O'Brien and released internationally on 17 October 2008. Guitarists Angus Young and Malcolm Young got together in London in 2003 to start composing tracks...
album, the single was released to huge success. It was used in many television advertisements, more often being used as ESPN
ESPN
Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
sports bumpers. It hit No. 1 on the U.S. Billboard Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks, staying there for over three weeks. The song was also one of the first AC/DC songs on the Billboard Hot Modern Rock Tracks chart.
Background
Originally composed with the title "Runaway Train", the song was first heard by fans on 15 August 2008, at the shooting of the music video in London. The song was notable for being the first song from a major artist to be leaked online legally when one Scottish fan at the video shoot memorized the riff and sung it on YouTubeYouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
on 17 August. Angus Young
Angus Young
Angus McKinnon Young is a Scottish-born Australian musician, and the lead guitarist, songwriter, and co-founder of the rock and roll band AC/DC. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame along with other members of AC/DC in 2003 and is known for his energetic performances,...
initially conceived the song, and his brother Malcolm Young
Malcolm Young
Malcolm Young is a Scottish-born Australian guitarist, best known as a founding member, rhythm guitarist, backing vocalist and songwriter for the Australian hard rock band AC/DC. Young was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2003, along with the other members of AC/DC...
created the backing vocal harmony of the chorus ("Running right off the track").
On 27 August 2008, close to midnight, the single was uploaded to AC/DC's official website and AC/DC's MySpace
MySpace
Myspace is a social networking service owned by Specific Media LLC and pop star Justin Timberlake. Myspace launched in August 2003 and is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. In August 2011, Myspace had 33.1 million unique U.S. visitors....
. It made its worldwide radio debut on at 17:00 New Zealand time on The Rock radio station. Many Australian stations played the song straight after their news services. The song later made its way onto classic rock
Classic rock
Classic rock is a radio format which developed from the album-oriented rock format in the early 1980s. In the United States, the classic rock format features music ranging generally from the late 1960s to the late 1980s, primarily focusing on the hard rock genre that peaked in popularity in the...
radio stations Planet Rock, Virgin Radio Classic Rock
Virgin Radio Classic Rock
A sister station to Absolute Radio, Absolute Classic Rock, is a radio station broadcasting to London via FM DAB, Virgin Media, Sky, Freesat channel 725 and worldwide on the internet...
, Radio Caroline
Radio Caroline
Radio Caroline is an English radio station founded in 1964 by Ronan O'Rahilly to circumvent the record companies' control of popular music broadcasting in the United Kingdom and the BBC's radio broadcasting monopoly...
, radio2XS
Radio2XS
radio2XS is programmed and edited in Sheffield, England and uses the on-air slogan "New Music, Live Sessions and 60 Years of Rock’n'roll".The station was formed in 2002 by ....
and Rock Radio
Rock Radio
Rock Radio is a brand of radio stations in the United Kingdom owned by GMG Radio.96.3 Rock Radio was the first station in the network. It operates in West Central Scotland...
in the UK. The song made its North American debut on on CKQB-FM
CKQB-FM
CKQB-FM is a Canadian radio station, which broadcasts an active rock format at 106.9 FM in Ottawa and 99.9 FM in Pembroke...
in Ottawa
Ottawa
Ottawa is the capital of Canada, the second largest city in the Province of Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the country. The city is located on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario...
, Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, Canada. "Rock 'n' Roll Train" debuted at number one on the Canadian rock chart
R&R (magazine)
R&R was a weekly music trade publication that followed the radio industry and tracked the monitoring of current songs by format, station and audience cumes...
for the week ending 5 September.
On 30 August 2008, the first Saturday of the U.S. college football season, the song was played extensively on ESPN
ESPN
Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
and ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
college football broadcasts as intro and bumper music, along with other AC/DC songs "Thunderstruck
Thunderstruck (song)
"Thunderstruck" is the first song on the 1990 AC/DC album The Razors Edge.The song peaked at No. 5 on U.S. the Billboard Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks. It was released as a single in Germany, Australia, and Japan. The song is said to be inspired by lead guitarist Angus Young's hair-raising experience...
" and "For Those About to Rock (We Salute You)
For Those About to Rock (We Salute You)
"For Those About to Rock " is a song by the Australian hard rock band AC/DC. The song was first released on AC/DC's eighth studio album For Those About to Rock We Salute You in 1981, and later as a single in 1982. The single's B-side contains an edited live version of "Let There Be Rock", recorded...
". It was also played on a promo for CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
's Criminal Minds
Criminal Minds
Criminal Minds is an American police procedural drama that premiered September 22, 2005, on CBS. The series follows a team of profilers from the FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit based in Quantico, Virginia. The BAU is part of the FBI National Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime...
. It peaked at number one on the U.S. Billboard Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks chart. In November 2008 the song became AC/DC's first song to enter the U.S. dance chart
Hot Dance Club Play
The Hot Dance Club Songs chart is a weekly national survey of the songs that are most popular in U.S. dance clubs...
.
Throughout the month of November, the World Wrestling Entertainment
World Wrestling Entertainment
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. is an American publicly traded, privately controlled entertainment company dealing primarily in professional wrestling, with major revenue sources also coming from film, music, product licensing, and direct product sales...
website featured the music video
Music video
A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...
for "Rock 'N' Roll Train", as well as the song "Spoilin' for a Fight", which was the theme to the Survivor Series 2008.
The song was used to open shows on the Black Ice tour. A cartoon was played on the giant video screen above the stage; at the end of this cartoon a life-sized train came crashing out onto the stage. It is at this point that the band came out on stage and proceeded to play the song.
The song "Rock 'N' Roll Train" was also used in an episode of Knight Rider
Knight Rider (2008 TV series)
Knight Rider was a 2008 series that follows the 1982 TV series of the same title and the 2008 television movie. The series stars Justin Bruening as Mike Traceur, the estranged son of Michael Knight. The series also stars Deanna Russo as Sarah Graiman, Traceur's former girlfriend and love interest....
titled "Knight to King's Pawn".
Track listing
- "Rock 'n' Roll Train" – 4:21
- "War Machine" – 3:09
Music video
On 15 August 2008, AC/DC filmed the music videoMusic video
A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...
to accompany the song in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, where 150 contest winners and their guests were present. The video premiered on 19 September on the band's official website.
On 23 October 2008, the band released the music video online in ASCII
ASCII
The American Standard Code for Information Interchange is a character-encoding scheme based on the ordering of the English alphabet. ASCII codes represent text in computers, communications equipment, and other devices that use text...
art in a Microsoft Excel
Microsoft Excel
Microsoft Excel is a proprietary commercial spreadsheet application written and distributed by Microsoft for Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X. It features calculation, graphing tools, pivot tables, and a macro programming language called Visual Basic for Applications...
spreadsheet format – the first music video to be produced in such format.
Awards
In 2009, "Rock 'n' Roll Train" was nominated for a Grammy award for Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with VocalGrammy Award for Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal
The Grammy Award for Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal was awarded between 1980 and 2011.The award was discontinued after the 2011 award season in a major overhaul of Grammy categories...
. It also won an APRA Award for Most Played Australian Work Overseas.
Chart performance
| Chart (2008) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks | 1 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Modern Rock Tracks | 25 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Club Play | 30 |
| Canadian Hot 100 Canadian Hot 100 The Canadian Hot 100 is a music singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine which ranks songs in Canada. The chart debuted in the Billboard issue dated June 16, 2007 and was made available for the first time via their online services on June 7, 2007... |
45 |
| Japan Hot 100 Japan Hot 100 The Japan Hot 100 is a music singles chart in Japan. It is compiled by Billboard and Hanshin Contents Link ever since February 2008. The chart is updated every Wednesday at billboard-japan.com and every Thursday at billboard.com .... |
44 |
| Portugal Singles Top 50 | 41 |