AC/DC

Official Website
Official Website

Primary Genre
Rock

Formed
1973

First Album
High Voltage
(1975)

Disbanded
Never

Latest Album
Stiff Upper Lip
(2000)
 Other Genres
Rock and roll
Hard rock
Blues rock

AC/DC is a hard rock band formed in Sydney, Australia in November,

1973 by rhythm guitarist Malcolm Young and his brother, lead guitarist
Angus Young. Their albums have sold in colossal numbers, the total now
being estimated at well in excess of 150 million copies worldwide, with
the 1980 album Back in Black selling over 21 million in the US alone and
42 worldwide, making it the second best selling album in the world[1].
The band has had two distinctive lead singers, and its fans tend to divide
its history into the "Bon Scott era" (1974-80), when they were fronted by
the legendary Bon Scott and the "Brian Johnson era" (1980-present).

Although the group is generally considered to be a pioneer of hard rock

and heavy metal music (they are ranked number 4 on VH1's "100
Greatest Artists of Hard Rock"), the members have always referred to
their music as rock 'n' roll. Their music is rhythm & blues-based with a
higher level of distortion in the lead and rhythm guitars. Overall, AC/DC
is the most successful and well-known band to hail from Australia,
ahead of other notables such as INXS.

AC/DC is currently rumoured to be working on a new studio album, but

as of April 2006, no formal plans to release it have been made. In a 2005
interview with Brian Johnson, he has confirmed that the band does not
know where the album will be recorded and finished. Also during the
year, it was announced that the album might be a double. In a recent
interview (April 2006) with Guitarist magazine, Malcolm Young said "the
band are currently recording and writing material for the eagerly
anticipated next album" and of its contents: "its the same as always ...
rock'n'roll....."

History
Born in Glasgow, Scotland, the brothers Angus, Malcolm and George
Young moved with their family to Sydney, Australia as children. George
began playing guitar first and became a member of Australia's most
successful band during the 1960s, The Easybeats. They were the first
local rock act to score an international hit ("Friday On My Mind" in
1966). Malcolm and Angus soon followed in his footsteps. Malcolm first
played with a Newcastle, New South Wales band called The Velvet
Underground (not to be confused with the New York based Velvet
Underground which included member Lou Reed).
One of the AC/DC's lineups in 1973: Evans, Bailey, M. Young, Clack and
A. Young.
In November 1973, Malcolm started AC/DC in which he was rhythm
guitar and Angus was lead guitar. They recruited drummer Colin
Burgess (ex-The Masters Apprentices), bassist Larry Van Kriedt, and
vocalist Dave Evans. They originally intended to have a keyboardist, but
soon dropped the idea. They played their first gig at a club in Sydney,
Australia on New Year’s Eve 1973.

The early lineups of the band changed often; Colin Burgess was sacked
after passing out on stage (reportedly because someone spiked his drink),
and a number of different bassists and drummers passed through the
band over the next year, some lasting only a few weeks.

Another vital innovation was Angus Young's adoption of his now-famous

school uniform as a regular stage outfit; the original was reputedly
Angus' real uniform from his secondary school, Ashfield Boys High
School, in Sydney. This idea was suggested by the Young brothers' sister,
Margaret.

In September 1974, after skipping a gig, Dave Evans, was replaced by

the band's chauffeur, the charismatic singer Ronald Belford "Bon" Scott,
former lead vocalist with The Spektors (1964-66), The Valentines (1966-
70) and Fraternity (1970-73). This signified the beginning of real success.
With Evans, they had recorded one single, "Can I Sit Next To
You"/"Rockin' In The Parlour". "Can I Sit Next To You" was eventually
recorded with Bon Scott under the title "Can I Sit Next To You Girl".

By early 1975, the line-up had stabilised around Scott, the Young
brothers, Mark Evans (bass) and Phil Rudd (drums), and an Australian-
only album High Voltage had been released. Between 1974 and 1978,
aided by regular appearances on the nationally-broadcast TV pop music
show Countdown, AC/DC became one of the most popular and
successful acts in Australia, scoring a string of hit albums and singles
including their perennial rock anthem "It's a Long Way to the Top (If You
Wanna Rock 'n' Roll)", included on their second album T.N.T. which
again was only released in Australia and New Zealand.
AC/DC signed an international deal with Atlantic Records. They worked
all over the UK and Europe to establish themselves, touring almost
constantly and gaining invaluable experience on the stadium circuit
supporting the top hard-rock acts of the day including Alice Cooper,
Black Sabbath, Kiss, Cheap Trick, Nazareth, Foreigner, Thin Lizzy, and
The Who.

Their next album Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap was released in 1976.
There were slightly different track listings in different territories, and the
album didn't reach the US until 1981 (when AC/DC were at the peak of
their popularity). After 1977's Let There Be Rock, Mark Evans was
replaced by Cliff Williams.

They survived the punk rock upheavals of 1976–1978, partly because

they were tagged as a punk rock band by the British music press, a fact,
which to this day, they still detest. They gained a solid cult following in
the UK with their powerful performances and outrageous stage antics;
Angus Young quickly became notorious for mooning the audience and
the group was banned from several British venues. Their meaty hard-
rock sound and Scott's provocative, leering stage persona are also
reputed to have been significant influences on The Sex Pistols' lead
singer Johnny Rotten.

Highway To Hell
It was their 1979 effort, Highway To Hell, produced by Mutt Lange, that
propelled them into the top ranks of hard rock acts; its anthemic title
track is still a radio staple and is still widely popular in the U.S.

Bon Scott died on 19 February 1980. He passed out after a night of

routine partying, and was left in a car owned by an acquaintance named
Alistair Kinnear. Sometime the next day, Bon was found dead by Kinnear
and immediately rushed to the hospital, but was pronounced dead upon
arrival. The official cause of death was listed as "Acute alcoholic
poisoning" and "Death by Misadventure", although a common story cites
choking in one's own vomit as the reason for death. There are many
inconsistencies in the official story, which in recent years have lead to
many conspiracy theories, many involving heroin overdoses.

The band members considered quitting, but they decided Bon would
have wanted AC/DC to continue. Shortly after, the band had lined up
various candidates. But finally a list of two was drawn up: Terry Slesser
and Brian Johnson. Johnson was trying to get Geordie back together,
but he went to the audition and he sang two songs: "Whole Lotta Rosie"
(Let There Be Rock) and "Nutbush City Limits" (Ike & Tina Turner). A few
days later, the band told Johnson that he was the new vocalist of
AC/DC.

Back in Black
With Johnson, they completed the song-writing that was started while
Bon Scott was still alive and began recording Back in Black, also
produced by Lange. This became their biggest-selling album, a hard-rock
landmark . Among the album's hits, the title track, an unstated tribute
to Scott, and "You Shook Me All Night Long", are quintessential AC/DC:
pounding guitars, start-stop rhythms, and the vocal style one critic
affectionately described as "crotch on barbed wire." The follow-up album,
For Those About to Rock We Salute You, released in 1981, also sold very
well and was well received by critics.

The band split with Lange for their self-produced 1983 album, Flick of
the Switch. Amid rumours of alcoholism, drummer Phil Rudd left after an
argument with another band member, possibly Malcolm Young. Rudd
was replaced by Simon Wright from Tytan, after the band held an
anonymous audition. With the new lineup they recorded the less
successful Fly On The Wall, produced by the Young brothers, in 1985.
Many fans and critics felt the band was by this time over the hill,
eclipsed by newer rock bands. An ambitious series of music videos
featuring the band at a bar playing five of the album's ten songs and
supplemented by a variety of goings-on, including an animated fly, was
also released.
In 1986, the group returned to the charts with the title track from Who
Made Who, the soundtrack to Stephen King's film Maximum Overdrive.
The album also included two new instrumentals along with old hits, only
one of which was from the Bon Scott era; the band's first compilation
sold reasonably well. In February 1988 AC/DC were inducted into ARIA
Hall of Fame. The next album, Blow Up Your Video (1988) saw them
reunited with their original producers, Harry Vanda and George Young; it
sold better than any album since For Those About to Rock We Salute You.
Although its production values were an improvement on Flick of the
Switch and Fly on the Wall, it was not the return to the success of their
earlier work many fans had hoped for, despite scoring a British Top 20
single with "Heatseeker".

Following Blow Up Your Video, Wright left the group, replaced by session
veteran Chris Slade. Johnson was unavailable for several months and
the Young brothers wrote the songs for the next record themselves, as
they would do for all subsequent releases. Joining with Bon Jovi
producer Bruce Fairbairn, the first album with this new lineup was The
Razor's Edge, a big comeback for the group that included the hits
"Thunderstruck" and "Money Talks". The album went multiplatinum and
went into the top ten in the United States and elsewhere around the
world.

Ballbreaker
By 1994, a sober Rudd had returned. The departure of Chris Slade was,
however, amicable and mainly due to the band's strong wish to return
with Rudd. According to Angus Young, Slade was the best musician in
AC/DC, but the wish to regroup with Rudd was stronger. With the 1980–
1983 lineup back, the group recorded Ballbreaker (1995) with hip hop
and heavy metal producer Rick Rubin and Stiff Upper Lip (2000).

In 2002, Q magazine put AC/DC at the very top of the "50 Bands To See
Before You Die" list. AC/DC have entered into a long-term, multi-album
deal for new recordings, which will be released through Epic Records.
In March 2003, the walls at New York City's historic Waldorf Astoria
hotel shook, as AC/DC performed "Highway To Hell" during part of their
induction to the Rock'n'Roll Hall Of Fame, and "You Shook Me All Night
Long" with guest vocals by Steven Tyler of Aerosmith, who inducted
AC/DC into the hall of fame. "AC/DC became the litmus test of what rock
does," Tyler said. "Does it make you clench your fist when you sing along?
Does it scare your parents to hell, and piss off the neighbours? Does it
make you dance so close to the fire that you burn your feet--and still don't
give a rat's ass? Does it make you want to stand up and scream for
something that you're not even sure of yet? Does it make you want to boil
your sneakers, and make soup outta your girlfriend's panties? (audience
laughter) If it doesn't, then it ain't AC/DC". Alongside the band were two of
Scott's nephews. In a brief acceptance speech, the band again thanked
the fans for their support. Brian Johnson quoted the band's 1977 song
"Let There Be Rock," written by Bon Scott. "In the beginning, back in
1955, man didn't know about the rock 'n roll show and all that jive. The
white man had the schmaltz, the black man had the blues, but no one
knew what they was gonna do, but Tchaikovsky had the news, he said, let
there be rock", Johnson said, "Bon Scott wrote that. And it's a real privilege
to accept these awards tonight."

In May 2003, Malcolm Young accepted the Ted Albert Award for
Outstanding Service to Australian Music and paid special tribute to Bon
Scott. That same year, the Recording Industry Association of America
upgraded the group's US sales figures, increasing their cumulative sales
from 46.5 million to 63 million, making AC/DC the fifth-best-selling
band in US music history, behind The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd,
and the Eagles. The RIAA also certified the classic Back in Black album
as double diamond (20,000,000) US sales, making it the sixth-best-
selling U.S. album in history. As of 2005, the album has sold 21 million
copies, moving it into fifth place.

On July 30 of the same year, the band gave a performance with the
Rolling Stones at the "Sarsfest", Toronto Rocks, in Toronto, Canada. Held
before an audience of 500,000, the concert was held to help the city
overcome the effects of the 2003 SARS epidemic.

Johnson has long been working on a musical version of Helen of Troy; he

was inspired to do so after seeing Cats and describing it as 'fucking shite,
wrist-cuttingly bad'.

On 1 October 2004 Melbourne's road Corporation Lane was officially

renamed "ACDC Lane" in honour of the band (street names in the City of
Melbourne cannot contain the "/" character). It is near Swanston Street,
the location where, on the back of a truck, the band recorded their video
for the 1975 hit "It's a Long Way to the Top". (Two members of the band
were born in Melbourne.) There is another street named after the band in
Leganés, Spain (near Madrid) Calle de AC/DC, close to other streets
named after Iron Maiden and Rosendo, Spanish hard rock legend.

In March, 2005, an official two-disc DVD set containing music videos,

live clips and promotional videos called Family Jewels was released. The
first disc is from the Bon Scott era (with live videos shot ten days before
his death), and the second disc is from the Brian Johnson era.
[edit]
Name

It has been said by Angus Young that the name's origins are from the
back of his sister Margaret Young's sewing machine. The acronym
"AC/DC" stands for "Alternating Current/Direct Current" and refers to
electrical currents. Angus Young liked the way that this name
symbolized the band's energy and "High Voltage Rock'n'Roll".

The band was initially unaware of the bisexual connotation of the term;
public response brought it to their attention. This public perception was
exacerbated by their early "glam rock" image, which included satin
jumpsuits (common rock attire in the early '70s) and other costumes
including Angus' schoolboy persona. Note that many bands adopted a
deliberately theatrical and androgynous look at the time, including two of
Malcolm's heroes: The Rolling Stones and Marc Bolan.

Some have suggested that the name stood for "Anti-Christ/Devil's

Children", After Christ /(the) Devil Comes and "Anti Christ / Death to
Christ; the rumour has long persisted both among critics who, already
disliking the band's image, use it to paint the band as Satanists, The
band has stated this is not true and these accusations are laughed at
(Malcolm adding, "Me mum would kill me for that!") . This was also denied
stating publicly, "We write songs like this to make a point and to give the
listeners a picture in their minds." (For example, the band states that
Highway To Hell was written about living life on the road with a touring
rock band.)

The name AC/DC is pronounced one letter at a time, although the band
is nicknamed by its Australian fans as "Acca Dacca", a parody of the
AC/DC name.
[edit]
Members
See also: Minor members of AC/DC
Main members and discography (Australian releases)
Year Lead Rhyth Lead Bass/vocals Drums Album
guita m vocals
r guitar,
vocals
1 Larry VanColin
973 Dave Kriedt Burgess
1 Evans Peter
Rob Bailey
974 Clack
1 George Tony
High Voltage
975 Young Currenti
1 T.N.T. + Dirty Deeds
Phil Rudd
976 Bon Mark Evans Done Dirt Cheap
1 Scott Let There Be Rock
977 Cliff
Powerage
1 Williams
978 Highway To Hell
1 Back in Black
979 For Those About to
1 Rock
980
1 Flick of the Switch
981
1 Fly on the Wall
982 Simon Who Made Who
1 Wright
983 Blow Up Your Video
1
984 The Razor's Edge
1
985 Chris Live + Live: 2 CD
1 Slade Collector's Edition
986
1
987 Ballbreaker
1
988
1 Angu
Malcol
989 s
m
1 Youn Stiff Upper Lip
Young
990 g
1
991
1
Brian
992
Johns
1
on
993
1
994
1
995
[edit]
Discography

Main article: AC/DC discography

[edit]
Studio Albums

• 1975: High Voltage (Australia)

• 1975: T.N.T.

• 1976: Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap (Australia)

• 1976: High Voltage

• 1976: Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap

• 1977: Let There Be Rock

• 1978: Powerage

• 1979: Highway to Hell

• 1980: Back in Black

• 1981: For Those About to Rock We Salute You

• 1983: Flick of the Switch

• 1984: '74 Jailbreak

• 1985: Fly on the Wall

• 1986: Who Made Who

• 1988: Blow Up Your Video

• 1990: The Razor's Edge

• 1995: Ballbreaker

• 1997: Volts

• 2000: Stiff Upper Lip

[edit]
Live Albums

• 1978: If You Want Blood You've Got It

• 1992: Live
 • 1992: Live: 2 CD Collector's Edition

• 1997: Live from the Atlantic Studios

• 1997: Let There Be Rock: The Movie

[edit]
Influences and tributes
[edit]
Influence on rock music and other artists

AC/DC is cited by many later hard rock, heavy metal and progressive
rock bands as an influence, including Bon Jovi, The Darkness, Def
Leppard, Dokken, Dream Theater, Faster Pussycat, Great White, Guns N'
Roses, Hanoi Rocks, Iron Maiden, Megadeth, Metallica, Mötley Crüe,
Motörhead, Ozzy Osbourne, Poison, Ratt, Saxon, Scorpions, Skid Row,
Twisted Sister, UFO, Van Halen, Whitesnake, and Y&T.

Many artists within the punk rock, hardcore punk, grunge, garage rock
and alternative rock movements have also cited AC/DC as an influence.
Whilst AC/DC themselves were initially critical of the British punk
movement of the late 1970s, many artists within the scene drew on
AC/DC's energetic, basic and (as some may argue) anti-commercialist
approach to rock music.

AC/DC's legacy on the Australian music scene should not be

underestimated. Virtually every Australian rock band to emerge since the
mid 1970s has been influenced by AC/DC, including their
"contemporaries" within the Australian pub rock movement which
emerged at the same time. Some of the notable Australian acts who have
acknowledged the influence of AC/DC include Blood Duster, Frenzal
Rhomb, INXS, Jet, The Living End, Midnight Oil, Powderfinger,
Silverchair, and You Am I.
[edit]
Tributes by other artists

Many artists have paid tribute to the works of AC/DC, and many tribute
albums have also been issued. The list is very extensive - examples
include the following:

• Thrash metal group Exodus covered two songs "Overdose" (on their
1989 album Fabulous Disaster) and "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap"
(on the digipack version of their 2004 album Tempo of the Damned)

• Guns N' Roses released a song cover of "Whole Lotta Rosie" while
supporting a tour for their critically acclaimed album Appetite for
Destruction, which was released in 1987.
 • In 1989 or 1990, the Canadian heavy metal group Annihilator
released a song cover of "Live Wire" and appeared on their 1996
live album In Command.

• Power metal group Iced Earth covered two songs "Highway to Hell"
and "It's a Long Way to the Top (If You Wanna Rock 'N' Roll)" on
the 2002 covers album Tribute to the Gods.

• 2004 saw the release of a tribute to AC/DC album The Rock-A-Billy

Tribute to AC/DC.

• In 2005, Nerf Herder frontman Parry Gripp released his first solo
album titled For Those About to Shop, We Salute You as a parody of
the title For Those About To Rock (We Salute You). The album cover
is also parody of the international version of Dirty Deeds Done Dirt
Cheap.
[edit]
Cover Bands

• The Bon Scott Band (Spanish)

• AM/FM (German)

• AB/CD (Swedish/Italian)

• BC/DC (Canadian)

• ACtion in DC (Dutch)
[edit]
All-Female Cover Bands

• AC/DShe

• Whole Lotta Rosies

• Thund-Her-Struck

• Hell's Belles
[edit]
Other-Genre Cover Bands

• Hayseed Dixie (Bluegrass)