Music Appreciation
Released on November 12, 1990, as the second single from AC/DC’s The Razors Edge, “Moneytalks” was written by brothers Angus and Malcolm Young and produced by Bruce Fairbairn.
Musically, it is one of AC/DC’s more pop-oriented hard-rock recordings, built around a simple guitar riff, Malcolm’s tight rhythm playing, Cliff Williams’ bass, Chris Slade’s drums and Brian Johnson’s rasping vocal. The chorus adds backing vocals and an effective call-and-response hook, while Angus contributes a comparatively melodic guitar solo.
The lyrics play with the familiar idea that money talks, presenting wealth as something capable of buying status, luxury, attention and even affection. Yet the song is more satirical than celebratory. The Young brothers approach their wealthy characters from a working-class perspective, poking fun at business high-flyers and the culture of conspicuous consumption.
“Moneytalks” reached No. 23 on the Billboard Hot 100, making it AC/DC’s highest-charting U.S. single, and also reached the Top 40 in Australia and Britain.
The music video, directed by David Mallet, takes the song’s title quite literally. Filmed during a performance at The Spectrum in Philadelphia on November 6, 1990, the clip presents AC/DC in full arena-rock mode, with Angus Young duck-walking across the stage while Johnson works the crowd. As the performance reaches its climax, money rains over both the band and audience—specially printed “Angus Bucks,” dollar-bill replicas bearing Angus’ portrait instead of George Washington’s.
The stunt became part of the subsequent Razors Edge tour, when thousands of the bills were dropped into audiences during “Moneytalks.” Mallet’s video does not need a complicated narrative: an arena full of AC/DC fans scrambling for Angus Young money is about as literal—and as entertaining—a visualization of “money talks” as the band could have devised.