Although music acts are often portrayed as rivals due to the competitive atmosphere of the music industry, there are also long-lasting friendships born out of collaborations. For instance, Black Sabbath and AC/DC got to know each other better during the European leg of the Sabbath’s Technical Ecstasy Tour. As both are known for their stage antics, this tour even witnessed an unforgettable incident — Geezer Butler got incredibly drunk, pulled a knife at Malcolm Young, and fortunately, Ozzy Osbourne stopped him.
Ozzy is known for his admiration of AC/DC’s efforts, and it’s safe to say that he is a big fan of the band. A few years after this incident, AC/DC released their ‘Highway To Hell,’ and Ozzy got addicted to this album. He described the members of AC/DC as good friends and revealed that this album was his favorite. Years later, Osbourne used Angus and Malcolm Young’s power in his ‘Mr. Tinkertrain,’ confirming that the band heavily inspired him. As Angus revealed in one of his past interviews, Ozzy even had a nickname for AC/DC.
In 2016, Angus Young gave an interview that appeared on AC/DC’s YouTube channel. He spoke about his motivation behind guitar playing and gave details about AC/DC’s music. According to Young, he learned to play guitar, although nothing forced him to play the instrument. After arguing that music has a lot of power, the guitarist also revealed that Ozzy Osbourne calls AC/DC ‘meat and potatoes.’ As Young said, this is one of the best descriptions of the band.
“I play guitar when I feel like playing guitar,” said Angus Young, “That’s how I learned to play. It was a never, ‘You must do that,’ it was a case of you wanted to do that, and you felt like doing it.” He continued by revealing the nickname Ozzy gave AC/DC. “The music has a lot of power. It’s simple, but it’s also kind of complex. Ozzy Osbourne calls us ‘meat and potatoes’ – it’s as good a description as any.”
Angus Young then talked about his stage performances and what he intends to do on stage. He stated that he wanted to reach out to all the fans in hopes of making the person at the back of the hall hear the band’s sound and enjoy the show as much as the crowd standing closer to the stage. Young then added that he loses himself while playing his guitar during a performance and doesn’t want to get off as soon as he is on stage.
“You’re also trying to communicate to the whole building,” added Young, saying he needs to communicate with all fans when on stage. “You’re hoping that that sound gets to the very back of the hall so that they’re getting the same feeling as the people who are close.”
“Over the years, you can pace yourself,” Young said, “Maybe I’m lucky – I always get a second and third wind. Sometimes, I do not know where it comes from. Sometimes I look, and I feel tired, and then, out of the blue, I play a bit of music, and then I go, ‘Oooh. What am I doing?’ And I’ve moved from one end of the stage to the other. Once you are on stage, you go, ‘I can’t get off now.’ The real world goes away, and you get into another world. You get on, get on, and that’s it.”
So, Angus Young said that Ozzy Osbourne nicknamed AC/DC ‘meat and potatoes,’ and it’s the perfect description since they focus on giving the fans the most basic, simple, and essential sound. He then revealed he loses it when he is on stage, and his main aim is to make everyone enjoy every bit of the show. As it appears, Ozzy’s nickname is pretty accurate, as the AC/DC members aim to be themselves on stage and focus completely on music to help their fans enter another world.
