MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Lots of of bagpipers claimed a brand new world document on Wednesday by belting out AC/DC’s rock and roll traditional “It’s a Long Way to the Top.”
Billed as “The Great Melbourne Bagpipe Bash,” the eclectic efficiency passed off in Melbourne’s Federation Sq., on Swanston Avenue, which was the scene of the Australian onerous rock band’s 1976 movie clip wherein they performed the hit on the again of a flatbed truck touring slowly via downtown visitors with music blaring from audio system.
Federation Sq. can be a brief stroll from the Melbourne Cricket Floor the place AC/DC is scheduled to play their first Australian gig in a decade on Wednesday.
Guitarist Angus Younger, 70, is the one band member who performed on the truck and is acting on the most recent Australian tour.
Asanka Ratnayake through Getty Pictures
1000’s of spectators crammed the sq. for the world document try.
Lots of the 374 pipers needed to squeeze via the group to the stage space.
The oldest piper was 98-years-old, organisers stated.
Among the many bagpipers was Les Kenfield and Kevin Conlon, two of the three members of Rats of Tobruk Memorial Pipes and Drums who performed with AC/DC on the truck 49 years in the past.
“It didn’t strike you at the time how big this event is until now,” Kenfield advised Australian Broadcasting Corp. “Now it’s one of the greatest things — probably the greatest thing I’ve ever done in my life.”
Having been declared world document holders, the massed pipers performed “Happy Birthday” on request, adopted by an impromptu “Amazing Grace” to a cheering crowd, many utilizing their telephones to document the second.
The Australian E book of Information, which has been certifying information since 2012, confirmed that 374 pipers had collectively damaged a document set by 333 pipers in Bulgaria in 2012.
The U.Ok.’s higher identified Guinness World Information, which confirmed the Bulgarian document, advised The Related Press that it hadn’t been approached to evaluate the Melbourne document try.
Lots of the enthusiastic spectators wore AC/DC T-shirts. Requested from the stage who amongst them have been going to the live performance afterwards, many fingers went up.
One AC/DC fan who didn’t see the document set was Keegan Kohler, 23, a self-employed electrician from Columbus, Ohio. He had been ready exterior the live performance stadium since 4:50 a.m. to make sure he’d be first in when the gates opened at 5 p.m. The bagpipes document was set close by at 5:15 p.m.
Kohler had seen AC/DC carry out their “Power Up Tour” this 12 months in Cleveland, Washington, D.C., Detroit and Pittsburgh, however expects the expertise might be higher within the band’s dwelling nation. He’ll see two reveals in Melbourne and one within the band’s hometown of Sydney.
“I think Aussie crowds are going to be way better than the U.S.,” he stated. “I think it’s going to be more eventful, more head banging, more excitement with the crowds.”
Kohler additionally reacquainted himself exterior the stadium with Stephen Scott, from Charlotte, North Carolina. The pair first met in a line exterior an AC/DC live performance in Detroit.
Scott, a 33-year-old actual property agent, has seen the present tour a number of instances in Europe in addition to the US and wished to see the band carry out in Australia.
“I’ve always talked about wanting to see them here. This is the first opportunity really to do it and maybe the last,” Scott stated.
His fiancée Amber Thompson, a 31-year-old artist, stated it was Scott’s concept to journey 10,000 miles for the live performance.
“I enjoy it, but I probably wouldn’t be here if I didn’t know him,” she stated, referring to Scott, whom she described because the true fan.
