Bagpipers claim world record with AC/DC's 'It's a Long Way to the Top'

MELBOURNE, Australia -- Hundreds of bagpipers claimed a caller world record connected Wednesday by belting retired AC/DC’s stone and rotation classical “It’s a Long Way to the Top.”

Billed arsenic “The Great Melbourne Bagpipe Bash,” the eclectic show took spot successful Melbourne’s Federation Square, connected Swanston Street, which was the country of the Australian hard stone band’s 1976 movie clip successful which they played the deed connected the backmost of a flatbed motortruck traveling dilatory done downtown postulation with euphony blaring from speakers.

Federation Square is besides a abbreviated stroll from the Melbourne Cricket Ground wherever AC/DC is scheduled to play their archetypal Australian gig successful a decennary connected Wednesday. Guitarist Angus Young, 70, is the lone set subordinate who played connected the motortruck and is performing connected the latest Australian tour.

Thousands of spectators crammed the quadrate for the satellite grounds attempt. Many of the 374 pipers had to compression done the assemblage to the signifier area. The oldest piper was 98-years-old, organisers said.

Among the bagpipers was Les Kenfield and Kevin Conlon, 2 of the 3 members of Rats of Tobruk Memorial Pipes and Drums who played with AC/DC connected the motortruck 49 years ago.

“It didn't onslaught you astatine the clip however large this lawsuit is until now," Kenfield told Australian Broadcasting Corp. “Now it’s 1 of the top things — astir apt the top happening I’ve ever done successful my life.”

Having been declared satellite grounds holders, the massed pipers played “Happy Birthday” connected request, followed by an impromptu “Amazing Grace” to a cheering crowd, galore utilizing their phones to grounds the moment.

The Australian Book of Records, which has been certifying records since 2012, confirmed that 374 pipers had unneurotic breached a grounds acceptable by 333 pipers successful Bulgaria successful 2012. The U.K.'s amended known Guinness World Records, which confirmed the Bulgarian record, told The Associated Press that it hadn’t been approached to measure the Melbourne grounds attempt.

Many of the enthusiastic spectators wore AC/DC T-shirts. Asked from the signifier who among them were going to the performance afterwards, galore hands went up.

One AC/DC instrumentality who didn’t spot the grounds acceptable was Keegan Kohler, 23, a self-employed electrician from Columbus, Ohio. He had been waiting extracurricular the performance stadium since 4:50 a.m. to guarantee he’d beryllium archetypal successful erstwhile the gates opened astatine 5 p.m. The bagpipes grounds was acceptable adjacent astatine 5:15 p.m.

Kohler had seen AC/DC execute their “Power Up Tour” this twelvemonth successful Cleveland, Washington, D.C., Detroit and Pittsburgh, but expects the acquisition volition beryllium amended successful the band’s location country. He volition spot 2 shows successful Melbourne and 1 successful the band's hometown of Sydney.

“I deliberation Aussie crowds are going to beryllium mode amended than the U.S.," helium said. "I deliberation it’s going to beryllium much eventful, much caput banging, much excitement with the crowds.”

Kohler besides reacquainted himself extracurricular the stadium with Stephen Scott, from Charlotte, North Carolina. The brace archetypal met successful a enactment extracurricular an AC/DC performance successful Detroit.

Scott, a 33-year-old existent property agent, has seen the existent circuit aggregate times successful Europe arsenic good arsenic the United States and wanted to spot the set execute successful Australia.

“I’ve ever talked astir wanting to spot them here. This is the archetypal accidental truly to bash it and possibly the last,” Scott said.

His fiancée Amber Thompson, a 31-year-old artist, said it was Scott’s thought to question 10,000 miles for the concert.

“I bask it, but I astir apt wouldn’t beryllium present if I didn’t cognize him,” she said, referring to Scott, whom she described arsenic the existent fan.