AC/DC are an Australian hard rock band, formed in November 1973 by brothers Malcolm and Angus Young, who continued as members until Malcolm's illness and departure in 2014.Commonly referred to as a hard rock or blues rock band, they are also considered pioneers of heavy metal and are sometimes classified as such, though they have always dubbed their music as simply "rock and roll".
AC/DC underwent several line-up changes before releasing their first album, High Voltage, on 17 February 1975; Malcolm and Angus were the only original members left in the band. Membership subsequently stabilised until bassist Mark Evans was replaced by Cliff Williams in 1977 for the album Powerage. Within months of recording the album Highway to Hell, lead singer and co-songwriter Bon Scott died on 19 February 1980 after a night of heavy alcohol consumption. The group considered disbanding, but buoyed by support from Scott's parents, decided to continue and set about finding a new vocalist. Ex-Geordie singer Brian Johnson was auditioned and selected to replace Scott. Later that year, the band released the new album, Back in Black, which was made as a tribute to Bon Scott. The album launched them to new heights of success and became their all-time best-seller.
The band's next album, For Those About to Rock We Salute You, was their first album to reach number one in the United States. AC/DC declined in popularity soon after drummer Phil Rudd was fired in 1983 and was replaced by ex-A II Z drummer Simon Wright, who left to join Dio in 1989.
Brothers Malcolm, Angus, and George Young were born in Glasgow, Scotland, and moved to Sydney with most of their family in 1963.George was the first to learn to play the guitar. He became a member of the Easybeats, one of Australia's most successful bands of the 1960s.
Malcolm and Angus Young developed the idea for the band's name after their sister, Margaret Young, saw the initials "AC/DC" on a sewing machine. "AC/DC" is an abbreviation meaning "alternating current/direct current" electricity. The brothers felt that this name symbolised the band's raw energy, power-driven performances of their music.
"AC/DC" is pronounced one letter at a time, though the band are colloquially known as "Acca Dacca" in Australia. The AC/DC band name is stylised with a lightning bolt separating the "AC" and "DC" and has been used on all studio albums, with the exception of the international version of Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap.
In November 1973, Malcolm and Angus Young formed AC/DC and recruited bassist Larry Van Kriedt, vocalist Dave Evans, and Colin Burgess, ex-Masters Apprentices drummer. Pushing hard for the band's success were Australia's legendary roadie Ray Arnold and his partner Alan Kissack. Gene Pierson booked the band to play at Bondi Lifesaver on New Year's Eve, 1973.
By this time, Angus Young had adopted his characteristic school-uniform stage outfit. The idea was his sister Margaret's.
If you want to check out some of their songs I recommend you to start with:
"T.N.T." & "The Jack" from the T.N.T. album
"Hells Bells" "Back in Black" &"You Shook Me All Night Long" from the Back in Black album
"Highway to Hell"
These are my personal favourites.
Current members
Angus Young – lead guitar (1973–present)
Cliff Williams – bass guitar, backing vocals (1977–present)
Brian Johnson – lead vocals (1980–present)
Stevie Young – rhythm guitar, backing vocals (1988 tour, 2014–present)
Chris Slade – drums (1989–94, 2015–present)
Former members
Malcolm Young – rhythm guitar, backing vocals (1973–2014)
Dave Evans – lead vocals (1973–74)
Bon Scott – lead vocals (1974–80)
Mark Evans – bass guitar (1975–77)
Phil Rudd – drums (1975–83, 1994–2015)
Simon Wright – drums (1983–89)
Some of the most known albums of AC/DC are:
T.N.T. (1975)
High Voltage (1976)
Highway to Hell (1979)
Back in Black (1980)
For Those About to Rock We Salute You (1981)
Fly on the Wall (1985)
And, one of their recent albums is Rock or Bust (2014)
In my opinion , it is little what I said here about AC/DC and there is so much more to tell but I think that I might have caught your interest a little so I'll leave that up to you. Take care and Rock 'n Roll everyone.
