When you begin to think about the plethora of classic metal bands, it’s impossible not to eventually think about the thunderous sounds of AC/DC. Originally coming from Sydney, Australia, the brothers Malcolm and Angus Young would go on to form one of the most well known and loved classic metal bands in the world. Whilst AC/DC consider themselves purely a rock and roll band, a lot of their songs could certainly be considered to fall within the genre of classic metal, although they of course didn’t necessarily fit that description at their release.
AC/DC first came together in 1973, and they underwent numerous changes to their membership before they were able to record and release their first album, the aptly named “High Voltage”, which was released in 1975. The band’s line up was style for some time until the bassist Cliff Williams came in to replace Mark Evans in 1977, specifically for their album “Powerage”. Unfortunately the band’s troubles weren’t going to stop and their lead singer at the time, Bon Scott, died after a night of heavy alcohol consumption and the complications surrounding alcohol poisoning. Scott died only months after the band recorded their well known “Highway to Hell” album, and the band’s future was quickly thrown into doubt. Thankfully their fans rallied ar
ound the band and even Scott’s parents gave their support to the band and so they began a search for a new lead singer. While no lead singer is ever going to be able to bring quite the same style, AC/DC managed to grab themselves the singer Brian Johnson, and later that same year the band recorded and released the album “Back in Black”, which they subsequently dedicated to Scott’s memory. The release of Back in Black propelled the band to new heights and the album was very well received both commercially and critically amongst their fans, it also became the best selling album that they would ever release.
The album that followed for the band was called “For Those About to Rock We Salute You”, and it was their first album to reach number one in the album charts in the United States. The band’s line up wasn’t going to remain stable however and the band decided to kick out their current drummer at the time, Phil Rudd, back in 1983, and recruited Simon Wright to take his place. Although soon after, in 1989, Wright himself would leave the band in order to join the rock group Dio.
In the early 1990s AC/DC found themselves having a slight resurgence after the release of their album, The Razors Edge, Their line up continued to go through a number of changes over the years with the only current original member being Angus Young.