AC/DC Poised To Shatter International Sales Records With 'Plug Me In'

Kathy McCabe of Australia's The Daily Telegraph reports that AC/DC is poised to shatter international sales records with the release of a definitive live retrospective DVD collection "Plug Me In" this week.

More than 500,000 copies have already been ordered worldwide for the concert footage compilation which is being released in North America on Tuesday, October 16.

Fans can preview some of the rare footage exclusively online with The Daily Telegraph, starting today with a blistering "Rock n' Roll Damnation" featuring late frontman Bon Scott at the Apollo Theatre in Glasgow in April 1978. Watch the clip below.

The first AC/DC release since the band came to Columbia Records earlier this year, the AC/DC "Plug Me In" DVD collection (regular box artwork, collector's edition artwork) brings together for the very first time an astonishing five hours of definitive live concert and television performances — many of them previously unavailable — chronicling the ongoing career (now in its fourth decade!) of a groundbreaking rock and roll powerhouse whose music transcends the test of time.

"AC/DC has delivered the most dynamic rock and roll music in the world," said Steve Barnett, Chairman, Columbia Records. "Columbia is honored to be releasing this definitive career-spanning retrospective featuring many of AC/DC's finest filmed performances."

Disc One of the AC/DC "Plug Me In" DVD collection begins with a performance of "High Voltage" performed in October 1975 on Australia's "King of Pop" awards show. The first disc of "Plug Me In" is devoted to the band's formative years (1975-1979) with the late Bon Scott capturing the group in its full early glory with more than 20 performances including rare black-and-white video footage of the notorious St. Albans High School concert on March 3, 1976; the very first UK television appearance in July 1976; pristine live full-color stereo concert performances from Glasgow and Essex University in 1978; and three songs — including the very first public performance of "Highway To Hell" — from Netherlands television in 1979. Bonus material on Disc One includes a Bon Scott interview from November 1977; extraordinary band interviews from 1976; and four songs recorded live in Nice on December 15, 1979, one of Bon Scott's last concerts with the band before his tragic death on February 19, 1980.

Disc Two of the AC/DC "Plug Me In" DVD collection covers the band's second great epoch: the Brian Johnson era which began with the release of "Back In Black" in 1980 and continues to this day. In addition to more than 20 performances drawn from three decades of concerts around the world — including an extremely rare Japanese television appearance from February 1981, blistering '80s and '90s sets from Detroit to Moscow, incredible footage from 1996's "Ballbreaker" tour (including the "Beavis & Butthead" intro),and 21st century barnburners in Paris, Munich, and Toronto — "Plug Me In" includes a fantastic array of bonus material including the AC/DC Donnington interview on the "Old Grey Whistle Test" (August 1984) and AC/DC's in-concert performance of "Rock Me Baby" with THE ROLLING STONES.

A deluxe collector's edition of "Plug Me In" — containing a third DVD of 21 additional rare performances spanning both the Bon Scott and Brian Johnson eras as well as a treasure trove of facsimile reproductions of authentic AC/DC memorabilia — will also be available for a limited time beginning Tuesday, October 16.

AC/DC "Plug Me In" track listing:

DVD 1 (2 hours 22 mins):

01. High Voltage (King Of Pop awards) - October 1975 (4:02)
02. It's A Long Way To The Top (If You Wanna Rock 'N' Roll) (Bandstand) (4:41)
03. School Days (St Albans) - March 1976 (5:40)
04. TNT (St Albans) - March 1976 (4:46)
05. Live Wire (Rollin Bolan) - July 1976 (6:12)
06. Can I Sit Next To You Girl (Rollin Bolan) - July 1976 (4:14)
07. Baby Please Don't Go (Melbourne) - December 1976 (11:49)
08. Hell Ain't A Bad Place To Be (Sight & Sound) - October 1977 (5:13)
09. Rocker (Sight and Sound) - October 1977 (8:10)
10. Rock 'n Roll Damnation (Apollo) - April 1978 (3:44)
11. Dog Eat Dog (Apollo Glasgow) - April 1978 (4:26)
12. Let There Be Rock (Apollo) - April 1978 (8:27)
13. Problem Child (Rock Goes To College) - October 1978 (4:44)
14. Sin City (Rock Goes To College) - October 1978 (5:23)
15. Bad Boy Boogie (Rock Goes To College) - October1978 (9:06)
16. Highway To Hell (Veronika) - July 1979 (4:12)
17. The Jack (Veronika) - July 1979 (5:19)
18. Whole Lotta Rosie (Veronika) - July 1979 (5:19)

DVD 1 Bonus Footage:

* Band Interview at Airport 1976 (2:16)
* Band Interview at Covent Garden (2:27)
* "Problem Child" - Melbourne (3:56)
* "Baby Please Don't Go" (Germany, incomplete) (2:10)
* "Dirty Deeds" on Network Sounds (0:40)
* Bon Scott Interview (15:11)
* "Rock n' Roll Damnation" – Top of the Pops (2:47)
* Australian Music to the World interview in Atlanta (1:31)
* Nice Super 8 movie (3.34

AC/ DVD 2 (2 hours 30 minutes):

01. Shot Down In Flames (Tokyo) - February 1981 (3:27)
02. What Do You Do For The Money - (Tokyo) - February 1981 (2:38)
03. Shook Me All Night - February 1981 (4:55)
04. Let There Be Rock (Tokyo) - February 1981 (5:29)
05. Back In Black (Largo 81) - December 1981 (3:34)
06. TNT (Largo 81) (3:39)
07. Shoot To Thrill (Houston) - October 1983 (5:23)
08. Guns For Hire (Detroit) - November 1983 (5:24)
09. Dirty Deeds (Detroit) - November 1983 (4:12)
10. Flick Of The Switch (Largo 83) (3:27)
11. Bedlam In Belgium (Largo 83) (3:24)
12. Back In Black (USSR) - September 1991 (2:15)
13. Highway To Hell (USSR) - September 1991 (3:36)
14. Whole Lotta Rosie (USSR) - September 1991 (4:16)
15. For Those About To Rock (USSR) - September 1991 (6:52)
16. Gone Shooting (VH1 Session) - July 1996 (6:03)
17. Hail Caesar (Sydney Screen Mix) - 1996 Tour (5:43)
18. Ballbreaker (Sydney Screen Mix) - 1996 Tour (4:29)
19. Rock N Roll Ain't Noise Pollution (Sydney Screen Mix) - Tour 1996 (6:34)
20. Hard As a Rock (Stade De France) - June 2001 (5:02)
21. Hells Bells (Stade De France) - June 2001 (5:49)
22. Ride On (Stade De France) - June 2001 (6:27)
23. Stiff Upper Lip (Munich) - June 2003 (3:54)
24. Thunderstruck (Munich) - June 2003 (5:24)
25. If You Want Blood (Toronto) - July 2003 (5:35)
26. The Jack (Toronto) - July 2003 (9:50)
27. You Shook Me All Night (Toronto) - July 2003 (4:27)

DVD 2 Bonus Footage:

* Beavis and Butthead intro to Ballbreaker tour (1:16)
* "Hells Bells" in Brussells (3:40)
* Donnington BBC interview with Angus (1:03)
* Warmup for VH1 (4:20)
* "Rock Me Baby" - Jam with THE ROLLING STONES (6:43)

DVD 3 (Bonus DVD) (2 hours 7 minutes):

01. Girl's Got Rhythm (Australian TV) - 1979 (3:30)
02. She's Got Balls (St. Albans High School 76) (6:20)
03. Long Way To the Top (St Albans High School 76) (7:08)
04. Let There Be Rock (BBC Sight & Sound 77) (5:57)
05. Bad Boy Boogie (Apollo Glasgow 78) (7:49)
06. House Is On Fire (Detroit 83) (3:06)
07. Guns For Hire (Band rehearsals 84) (3:50)
08. Boogey Man (Sydney 96) (10:49)
09. Girl's Got Rhythm (Sydney 96) (4:08)
10. Highway to Hell (Dublin 1996) (7:01)
11. Let There Be Rock (Stuttgart 2000) (10:55)
12. Angus Statue Intro (Stiff Upper Lip Tour Film 2001) (1:26)

Live at Houston Summit 83 (Whole Concert segment runs 53 minutes):

01. Guns For Hire (5:31)
02. Shoot To Thrill (5:32)
03. Sin City (5:24)
04. House Is On Fire (3:58)
05. Back In Black (4:12)
06. Bad Boy Boogie (14:33)
07. Rock 'n Roll Ain't Noise Pollution (5:07)
08. Flick Of The Switch (3:25)
09. Hells Bells (5:24)

The AC/DC "Plug Me In" DVD box set is both a Holy Grail for aficionados of AC/DC as well as an ideal and comprehensive introduction to the music and history of a pioneering band that continues to define the electrifying possibilities of rock and roll.

Formed in Sydney, Australia in 1973 by brothers Angus and Malcolm Young (still the most formidable electric guitar team in rock),AC/DC released its first album, "High Voltage", in 1975. The group has gone on to sell nearly 70 million albums in the U.S. alone, making AC/DC one of the five best-selling bands in American music history. The "Back In Black" album has achieved RIAA double diamond status, for sales in excess of 21 million copies in the United States, and is the U.S.'s fifth largest-selling album ever.

AC/DC was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2003.

Watch footage of AC/DC's September 1991 performance at Tushing Airfield, Moscow, Russia — taken from "Plug Me In" — in the following formats: Windows Media, Real Media, Quicktime.

AC/DC performing "Rock n' Roll Damnation" (featuring late frontman Bon Scott) at the Apollo Theatre in Glasgow in April 1978: