"Hells Bells" | ||||
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![]() Artwork for one of the continental European releases | ||||
Single by AC/DC | ||||
from the album Back in Black | ||||
B-side | "What Do You Do for Money Honey" | |||
Released | 31 October 1980 | |||
Recorded | April – May 1980 | |||
Studio | Compass Point (Nassau) | |||
Genre | Hard rock [1] | |||
Length | 5:12 | |||
Label | Atlantic | |||
Songwriter(s) | ||||
Producer(s) | Robert John "Mutt" Lange | |||
AC/DC singles chronology | ||||
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Music video | ||||
"Hells Bells" on YouTube |
"Hells Bells" is the first track of Back in Black , the seventh studio album by Australian hard rock band AC/DC and their comeback album after the death of lead singer Bon Scott. "Hells Bells" is the second single from Back in Black, released on 31 October 1980. The song also appears on Who Made Who , AC/DC's 1986 soundtrack to the Stephen King film Maximum Overdrive and on both versions of 1992's AC/DC Live .
"Hells Bells" begins with the slow, funereal tolling of a 2,000-pound (900 kg) bronze bell. [2] Manufactured by John Taylor & Co Bellfounders in Loughborough, the sound of the bell was recorded by Tony Platt using Ronnie Lane's mobile studio inside the bell foundry following the completion of the Back in Black tracking sessions at Compass Point Studios in the Bahamas. [2]
"Hells Bells" is widely regarded as one of the band's best songs. In 2020, The Guardian ranked the song number six on their list of the 40 greatest AC/DC songs, [3] and in 2021, Kerrang! ranked the song number seven on their list of the 20 greatest AC/DC songs. [4]
Year | Chart | Peak position |
---|---|---|
1980 | France (IFOP) [5] | 16 |
1981 | ||
Australian (Kent Music Report) [6] | 7 | |
Germany (Official German Charts) [7] | 25 | |
US Mainstream Rock ( Billboard ) [8] | 50 | |
2012 | Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40) [9] | 49 |
Canada Digital Song Sales ( Billboard ) [10] | 39 | |
France (SNEP) [11] | 43 | |
Germany (Official German Charts) [7] | 25 | |
US Digital Song Sales ( Billboard ) [12] | 51 | |
2015 | Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade) [13] | 61 |
2022 | Hungary (Single Top 40) [14] | 32 |
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
Brazil (Pro-Música Brasil) [15] | Gold | 30,000‡ |
Germany (BVMI) [16] | Gold | 250,000‡ |
Italy (FIMI) [17] | Gold | 25,000‡ |
Mexico (AMPROFON) [18] | Platinum | 60,000‡ |
Spain (PROMUSICAE) [19] | Gold | 30,000‡ |
United Kingdom (BPI) [20] | Silver | 200,000‡ |
United States (RIAA) [21] | 3× Platinum | 3,000,000‡ |
Ringtone | ||
Canada (Music Canada) [22] | Gold | 20,000* |
* Sales figures based on certification alone. |
"Hells Bells" was used as the entrance music for former Major League Baseball (MLB) player Trevor Hoffman at home games from 1998 to 2010. [23] [24] The song is played prior to every New Jersey Devils home game as the players come out on the ice. [25]
The German football club FC St. Pauli from Hamburg, French rugby club RC Toulonnais from Toulon and Greek football club PAOK FC from Thessaloniki open all home matches walking out to "Hells Bells", the former often with large fan displays and pyrotechnics. [26] [27] [28]
During the Bells Beach surf competition in Victoria, Australia, "Hells Bells" is played on the loudspeakers at the beginning of the first heat of each competing day. [29]
"Hells Bells" has been featured in a number of films most notably appearing in the Stephen King directed cult classic Maximum Overdrive.
"Hells Bells" played a role in the first violent confrontation between the two immortal Marvel Comics characters Deadpool and Wolverine after being banished to the "Void" by the film's main antagonist "Paradox" in the 2024 film Deadpool & Wolverine , the 34th entry in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, [30] although the song is not featured in the official soundtrack.
AC/DC songs have been a staple in the MCU since its inception, with Back in Black opening the first scene in the first entry of the cinematic franchise Iron Man , and again used in Spider-Man: Far From Home . Shoot to Thrill has been featured in both Iron Man 2 and The Avengers . Originally, a 20th Century Fox production (later incorporated into the greater MCU), Deadpool 2 features the song Thunderstruck which is featured in both that film's soundtrack and the Iron Man 2 soundtrack, but does not appear in the Iron Man sequel.
Back in Black is the seventh studio album by Australian rock band AC/DC, released on 25 July 1980, by Albert Productions and Atlantic Records. It was the band's first album to feature Brian Johnson as lead singer, following the death of Bon Scott, their previous vocalist.
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Back in Black includes one of their best known songs, 'You Shook Me All Night Long' (#35 Pop), and hard rock classics 'Hells Bells', 'Back in Black' (#37 Pop) and 'Rock and Roll Ain't Noise Pollution'.