Stevie Wright's Hard Road Is the AC/DC Prequel Nobody Told You About

The name Stevie Wright probably doesn't ring a bell. It should. Wright was the lead singer of The Easybeats, Australia's first international rock act and the band that gave the world "Friday on My Mind" in 1965. Then he made Hard Road.

Released in 1974 and produced by Harry Vanda and George Young, the duo who would immediately go on to produce AC/DC's first six albums. Hard Road features Malcolm Young on guitar and a teenage Angus Young as the live touring band. The title track is, as patron Gavin Reid puts it, "Highway to Hell was a slower Hard Road." The blueprint was right here.

And then there's "Evie," a 10-minute, three-part rock opera that hit #1 in Australia in 1974, one full year before "Bohemian Rhapsody." Gavin also argues it may have been the template for the Queen epic. Contested, but compelling.

Jay and Chip walked into this episode having never heard of Stevie Wright. What happened when all three hosts sat down with the record, and how the patron community voted: that is the episode.

Sonic touchstones: AC/DC, The Easybeats, Rod Stewart, Slade, Mott the Hoople, Queen.

Timestamps: 0:39 Prior knowledge check | 4:17 Band history and AC/DC connection | 17:01 What works | 43:54 What doesn't | 52:01 The verdict

Episode Highlights

Intro: Didn't I Take You Higher, the album's Funkadelic-flavored groove sets the tone

2:19: Friday on My Mind (The Easybeats), Stevie Wright's origin story and where the story starts

17:40: Hard Road, the title track and the riff that sounds like Highway to Hell's blueprint

21:44: Evie (Let Your Hair Hang Down), ten-minute rock opera, #1 in Australia, predates Bohemian Rhapsody by a year

26:00: Dancing in the Limelight, early AC/DC energy; Chip's standout non-Evie pick

27:11: Life Gets Better, the soul-influenced side of Stevie Wright with a Marvin Gaye warmth

28:59: Didn't I Take You Higher, Funkadelic stomp with a White Lines-style groove

32:29: The Other Side, 50s rock feel, the album's most surprising left turn

40:21: Evie (I'm Losing You), the suite's emotional closer and the moment the whole record earns its ambition

Outro: Hard Road, the verdict lands and the blueprint is confirmed

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