Career
Both Angus and Malcolm were in a band with George and his music partner Harry Vanda called Marcus Hook Roll Band. The project released an album in Australia called Tales of Old Grand Daddy.
Prior to forming AC/DC, Angus Young played in a local group called Kantuckee. Kantuckee's line-up included Bob McGlynn (vocals), Angus Young (guitar), Jon Stevens (bass) and Trevor James (drums). The band split and was later called Tantrum with the following line up: Mark Sneddon (vocals-guitar), Angus Young (guitar), Jon Stevens (bass) and Trevor James (drums).
Young was 18 when he and Malcolm formed AC/DC in 1973. Young was on lead guitar, Malcolm on rhythm guitar, Colin Burgess on drums, Larry Van Kriedt on bass guitar and Dave Evans on vocals. The band had a recording contract with Albert Productions; it had also produced the work of the Easybeats.
"Can I Sit Next To You Girl", the band's first single, was later re-recorded with Bon Scott as their vocalist. They decided upon the name AC/DC, suggested by their sister Margaret, who saw the letters "AC/DC" on the back of her sewing machine.
Young tried a number of stage costumes, such as Spider-Man, Zorro, a gorilla, and a parody of Superman named Super-Ang, before settling on his signature schoolboy look at the suggestion of his sister. To match this image, the press and public were told that Young was born in 1959, not 1955. The original uniform was created by his sister Margaret, and, when it fell apart from wear and tear, he used his uniform from Ashfield Boys High School in Sydney.
AC/DC released their debut album, High Voltage, exclusively in Australia on 17 February 1975, along with a single "Baby, Please Don't Go" / "Love Song". Over the next three years, AC/DC cemented themselves as a popular hard rock act, especially in Australia, with the follow-up albums T.N.T., Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap, Let There Be Rock and Powerage. All their albums until this point were produced by Young's brother George in partnership with Harry Vanda. Their 1979 studio album, Highway to Hell, became their best-selling at the time and launched them to new heights of fame.
Months after this, Scott died from alcohol poisoning. Questions were raised as to whether the band could continue without him. Young and his other bandmates soon decided they should finish the work they had begun for their new album, so they recruited ex-Geordie singer Brian Johnson to replace Scott. Five months later, Back in Black was released as a tribute to Scott. It quickly became a huge success, far outselling any of their previous albums, and going on to reach 27x multi-platinum in the US alone, and selling 50 million copies, the second-highest-selling album worldwide, behind only Michael Jackson's Thriller. AC/DC's next album, For Those About to Rock We Salute You, cemented their position as the most popular hard rock act of the time.
AC/DC's popularity declined with their next three albums, Flick of the Switch, Fly on the Wall and Blow Up Your Video. AC/DC looked as though they had reached their peak early in the 1980s and by the end of the decade were in decline. Malcolm Young missed the majority of the band's 1988 Blow Up Your Video World Tour to address his drinking problem. He eventually became sober and returned to the band. During his absence, he was replaced by his nephew, Stevie Young.
The band's 1990 studio album, The Razors Edge, brought them back into the spotlight, reaching 5x multi-platinum in the US alone and selling between 10 and 12 million copies worldwide. Over the next 10 years, AC/DC released two other studio albums, Ballbreaker and Stiff Upper Lip, which confirmed their renewed popularity and success. After a lengthy eight-year hiatus, AC/DC returned with a new studio album, Black Ice, in 2008. Black Ice debuted at number 1 in 29 countries and was certified multi-platinum in 14 of those, becoming one of their most successful albums worldwide, and was followed by a hugely successful world tour. In 2010, AC/DC released an album of songs used for the Iron Man 2 soundtrack they had put together; this reached number one in many countries around the world, including the UK, and number four in the US. Malcolm Young confirmed in 2011 that AC/DC were working on a 16th studio album.
In April 2014 Malcolm was forced to leave the band due to ill health, leaving Young the sole continuous founding member left in the band. In May it was revealed that Stevie Young, Malcolm and Young's nephew, would stand in for his uncle to record AC/DC's latest record. In September, Malcolm officially retired, while Stevie was made AC/DC's official full-time rhythm guitarist. AC/DC released Rock or Bust in the fall of 2014. In March 2016, after the departure of both Malcolm Young and drummer Phil Rudd, AC/DC was set back with yet another departure: long-time lead singer Brian Johnson was ordered by doctors to stop performing or face total hearing loss. Young, determined to finish what the band started, recruited Guns N' Roses singer Axl Rose to stand in for Johnson for the remainder of the Rock or Bust World Tour. On 30 September 2020, the band's official Twitter account announced the pending release of a new album, Power Up, with the lineup of Angus Young, Stevie Young, Brian Johnson, Cliff Williams and Phil Rudd.
In 2003, AC/DC were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and the following year they were ranked number 72 on Rolling Stone's list of the "100 Greatest Artists of All Time". VH1 ranked them number 23 on their list of the "100 greatest artists of all time" and number 4 in their list of the "100 greatest artists of hard rock".
