T.N.T. (song)

"T.N.T." is a song released in 1975 by Australian hard rock band AC/DC, taken from their Australian album T.N.T. and the international version of High Voltage. It was released as a single in 1976 and was written by Bon Scott, Angus Young and Malcolm Young. It peaked at No.19 on the Australian Kent Music Report Singles Chart.^[1] The song's title is a reference to the explosive chemical TNT.

"T.N.T."
Single by AC/DC
from the album T.N.T.
B-side	"Rocker"
Released	1 March 1976 (1976-03-01)
Recorded	1975
Studio	Albert (Sydney)
Genre	Hard rock
Length	3:35
Label	Albert
Songwriter(s)	Angus Young Malcolm Young Bon Scott
Producer(s)	Harry Vanda George Young
AC/DC singles chronology
"It's a Long Way to the Top (If You Wanna Rock 'n' Roll)" (1975) "T.N.T." (1976) "Jailbreak" (1976)

A slightly modified line from the song, "Lock up your daughters", was used as the title of AC/DC's first headlining tour of Great Britain in 1976 after the band's move from Melbourne, Australia, to London, earlier that year. "T.N.T." later appeared on Live and the Live: 2 CD Collector's Edition, with Brian Johnson, Cliff Williams, and Chris Slade providing vocals, bass, and drums, respectively.

In January 2018, as part of Triple M's "Ozzest 100", the 'most Australian' songs of all time, "T.N.T." was ranked number 81.^[2]

Personnel

• Bon Scott – lead vocals
• Angus Young – lead guitar
• Malcolm Young – rhythm guitar, backing vocals
• Mark Evans – bass guitar^[3]
• Phil Rudd – drums
• Harry Vanda – producer
• George Young – producer

Charts

Chart (1976–1977)	Peak position
Australian (Kent Music Report)[4]	19

Certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Brazil (Pro-Música Brasil)[5]	Gold	30,000‡
Denmark (IFPI Danmark)[6]	Gold	45,000‡
Germany (BVMI)[7]	Gold	250,000‡
Italy (FIMI)[8]	Platinum	70,000‡
Mexico (AMPROFON)[9]	Platinum+Gold	90,000‡
Portugal (AFP)[10]	Gold	20,000‡
United Kingdom (BPI)[11]	Gold	400,000‡
United States (RIAA)[12]	3× Platinum	3,000,000‡
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Covers

• American death metal band Six Feet Under recorded a cover version of the song for their album Graveyard Classics.

Anthrax version

"T.N.T."
Song by Anthrax
from the EP Anthems
Released	19 March 2013
Genre	Heavy metal
Length	3:37
Label	Megaforce Nuclear Blast
Songwriter(s)	Angus Young Malcolm Young Bon Scott
Producer(s)	Anthrax Jay Ruston Rob Caggiano

The Anthrax cover of this song was released on their 2013 covers EP Anthems. They debuted the song live 21 February 2013 at The HiFi in Brisbane, Australia ahead of Soundwave. Later on their tour in the US, Slash and Kirk Hammett (at separate gigs) joined them for this song.^[13][14]

In popular culture

• The Anthrax version of the song is used for the Calgary Flames' goal song.
• The song was played in commercials for the 2004 film Napoleon Dynamite.
• The song appears on the soundtrack and the intro to the 2002 skateboarding video game Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 4.^[15]
• After the September 11 attacks, the song was included on a widely circulated Clear Channel employee's list of potentially upsetting songs.^[16]
• The song is featured in the 2006 film Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby.
• TNT's NASCAR coverage NASCAR on TNT used the song as its theme music from 2010 to 2014.^[17]
• It appears in a 2023 commercial for Wal-Mart.
• The Fremantle Football Club in the AFL play the song after every home game victory.
• The Northwestern Wildcats football team plays the song after every home game turnover.

References

1. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, NSW: Australian Chart Book Ltd. ISBN 0-646-11917-6. Note: Used for Australian Singles and Albums charting from 1974 until Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) created their own charts in mid-1988. In 1992, Kent back calculated chart positions for 1970–1974.
2. "Here Are The Songs That Made Triple M's 'Ozzest 100'". Musicfeeds. 27 January 2018. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
3. Saulnier, Jason (30 September 2011). "Mark Evans Interview". Music Legends. Archived from the original on 7 November 2012. Retrieved 6 May 2013.
4. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 11. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
5. "Brazilian single certifications – AC/DC – T.N.T." (in Portuguese). Pro-Música Brasil. Retrieved 28 May 2024.
6. "Danish single certifications – AC/DC – T.N.T." IFPI Danmark. Retrieved 1 October 2021.
7. "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (AC/DC; 'T.N.T.')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Retrieved 21 December 2022.
8. "Italian single certifications – AC/DC – T.N.T." (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved 30 December 2021.
9. "Certificaciones" (in Spanish). Asociación Mexicana de Productores de Fonogramas y Videogramas. Retrieved 13 July 2022. Type AC/DC in the box under the ARTISTA column heading and T.N.T. in the box under the TÍTULO column heading.
10. "Portuguese single certifications – AC/DC – T.N.T." (PDF) (in Portuguese). Associação Fonográfica Portuguesa. Retrieved 23 May 2022.
11. "British single certifications – AC/DC – T.N.T." British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 26 January 2024.
12. "American single certifications – AC/DC – T.N.T." Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 8 July 2024.
13. "Anthrax Covers AC/DC's 'T.N.T.'". Ultimateclassicrock.com. 22 February 2013. Retrieved 11 October 2016.
14. "Anthrax Cover AC/DC's 'T.N.T.' – Exclusive Song Premiere". Loudwire.com. 22 February 2013. Retrieved 11 October 2016.
15. "Tony Hawk 4 Soundtrack". IGN. 9 October 2002. Retrieved 23 November 2021.
16. "Clear Channel Banned Songs". snopes.com. 18 September 2001. Retrieved 13 August 2012.
17. Pockrass, Bob (31 May 2018). "The theory (and money) behind NASCAR prerace shows". ESPN.com. ESPN. Retrieved 29 March 2024.