AC/DC (music group)

AC/DC is an Australian hard-rock band formed in 1973 by brothers Malcolm and Angus Young. The band experienced a number of lineup changes over the decades, but the Youngs remained core members until illness forced Malcolm to depart in 2014. AC/DC became one of the top-selling artists in the world following the release of its album Back in Black (1980), which sold more than ten million units in the United States alone. Though its popularity waned in the following decades, the band continued to perform and release new albums. In 2014, AC/DC released its seventeenth studio album, Rock or Bust, the first release that did not feature founding member Malcolm Young.

Early Career

AC/DC was founded in 1973 by Australian brothers and guitarists Angus and Malcolm Young. Angus was only fifteen when the band first formed and often wore his school uniform while performing, a look that became the band's signature style. The brothers recruited Dave Evans on vocals and older brother George Young to produce their first singles. After relocating to Melbourne, they enlisted drummer Phil Rudd and bassist Mark Evans. Singer Dave Evans left the band in 1974 and was replaced by Ronald Belford "Bon" Scott, a friend of the Youngs'. Scott was a seasoned rock vocalist with a criminal record, which suited the band's hard-rock image.

AC/DC released High Voltage, its debut album, in February 1975. Its follow-up, T.N.T., was released in December of the same year. AC/DC's popularity grew exponentially during this time, eventually spilling over into international markets. A selection of songs from these first two albums were combined to form a third studio album, also titled High Voltage (1976) but released internationally, unlike the debut album, which was only available in Australia. AC/DC then embarked on a world tour. The band's next album, Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap hit shelves in September 1976; it was quickly followed in March 1977 by Let There Be Rock, AC/DC's first album to make the US charts. Shortly after the album's release, bassist Evans left the band. He was soon replaced by Cliff Williams, who was featured on AC/DC's next album, Powerage (1978).

AC/DC also made headlines for its outrageous live performances, evident on its first live album, If You Want Blood You've Got It (1978), recorded during the Powerage tour. The band experienced a surge of success with the release of 1979's Highway to Hell, which became AC/DC's first album to sell one million copies. The group's glory was short lived, however; on February 19, 1980, Scott was found dead in the passenger seat of a friend's car. The official coroner's report stated that Scott had "drunk himself to death."

Despite the tragedy, AC/DC continued touring and writing new music. That March, band members brought in Brian Johnson to replace Scott on vocals. A month later, AC/DC recorded its most successful album, Back in Black, which was a tribute to Scott. The album was released in July 1980 to critical and commercial acclaim. Back in Black went on to become one of the best-selling albums of all time.

Later Years

The new lineup proved just as popular with fans. The group's second album featuring Johnson, titled For Those About to Rock We Salute You (1981), sold just as well and became the band's first and only album to reach number one on US charts. Following the release of its next album, Flick of the Switch (1983), drummer Rudd parted ways with the band and was replaced by Simon Wright; Wright, in turn, left after recording 1988's Blow Up Your Video and was replaced by Chris Slade.

The band experienced a slump through the rest of the decade before making a comeback with 1990's The Razor's Edge, which features the hit single "Thunderstruck." Though the band was less sensational than it was in earlier decades, it still drew enormous crowds on tour. Rudd returned in 1994 and contributed to the group's next album, Ballbreaker (1995), which was incredibly well received by critics and sold more than one million copies within six months of its release. Stiff Upper Lip (2000), released five years later, fared similarly well.

In 2001 AC/DC signed a multi-album deal with Sony, which produced a number of reissued albums and DVD sets. In 2003, the band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. It did not release another studio album until 2008's Black Ice, which was followed by the band's first world tour in seven years.

AC/DC ignited with a younger fan base when several of its songs were featured in the Iron Man (2009) and Iron Man 2 (2010) films; the inclusion led to the release of a soundtrack album in conjunction with the latter film that consisted solely of tracks from AC/DC's back catalogue. Their song "War Machine," originally released on Black Ice, won the Grammy Award for best hard-rock performance in 2010.

The band celebrated its fortieth anniversary in 2013. That year, Johnson announced that one of AC/DC's members had health problems. It was later revealed that Malcolm Young would be taking a break from the band due to ongoing health concerns. He was replaced in the recording studio by his nephew, Stevie Young, for 2014's Rock or Bust. Prior to the release of the album in December, drummer Rudd was arrested and charged with attempting to procure a murder. He was also charged with possession of drugs and threatening to kill. The first charge was dropped, but the other two remained. He was later sentenced to eight months of home confinement. This made touring with the band impossible, so AC/DC rehired former drummer Slade to take his place.

Malcolm Young died on November 17, 2017, at the age of sixty-four, following a three-year battle with dementia—the health concern that had prompted his earlier retirement. In a statement quoted by Daniel Kreps for Rolling Stone, Angus Young said, "As his brother it is hard to express in words what he has meant to me during my life, the bond we had was unique and very special. He leaves behind an enormous legacy that will live on forever. Malcolm, job well done." George Young, Malcolm and Angus's older brother and the band's longtime producer, had died the previous month at age seventy.

Bibliography

"AC/DC." Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, rockhall.com/inductees/acdc/. Accessed 6 Dec. 2017.

"AC/DC Bio." Rolling Stone, www.rollingstone.com/music/artists/ac-dc/biography. Accessed 6 Dec. 2017.

"AC/DC Confirm Chris Slade Will Replace Phil Rudd on Their 2015 Tour." The Guardian, 13 Feb. 2015, www.theguardian.com/music/2015/feb/13/acdc-confirm-chris-slade-will-replace-phil-rudd-2015-tour. Accessed 6 Dec. 2017.

Engleheart, Murray. AC/DC: Maximum Rock & Roll. With Arnaud Durieux, HarperEntertainment, 2007.

Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "AC/DC: Biography." AllMusic, RhythmOne, www.allmusic.com/artist/ac-dc-mn0000574772/biography. Accessed 6 Dec. 2017.

Fink, Jesse. The Youngs: The Brothers Who Built AC/DC. St. Martin's Press, 2014.

Hann, Michael. "What Now for AC/DC, after Phil Rudd's Arrest and Malcolm Young's Retirement?" The Guardian, 6 Nov. 2014, www.theguardian.com/music/musicblog/2014/nov/06/what-now-for-acdc-phil-rudd-arrest-malcolm-young-retirement. Accessed 6 Dec. 2017.

Kreps, Daniel. "Malcolm Young, AC/DC Guitarist and Co-founder, Dead at 64." Rolling Stone, 18 Nov. 2017, www.rollingstone.com/music/news/malcolm-young-acdc-guitarist-and-co-founder-dead-at-64-w512164. Accessed 6 Dec. 2017.

Popoff, Martin. AC/DC: Album by Album. Voyageur Press, 2017.