Thunderstruck – AC/DC – 1990

This week saw the death of Malcolm Young, the co-founder and longtime songwriter and rhythm guitarist with AC/DC. His passing comes as an unfortunate reminder that I have neglected to mention them here on my site, because AC/DC is not only the greatest rock band to come out of Australia, but one of the best in the genre, from any part of the world.

I lived in Sydney – the hometown of AC/DC – when Thunderstruck was released in 1990, and it the first time I was properly introduced to the band. Hearing Brian Johnson’s raw and gritty vocals, and watching Angus Young as a thirty-something, strut across the stage wearing his trademark school uniform in this stylised concert video, was a breath of fresh air.

It’s many years later now and I’ve listened to AC/DC extensively since I was a teenager, but Thunderstruck is hard to top, and it remains one of my favourite tracks from their mighty catalogue. Although the band has gone through a plethora of incarnations and line-up changes, their sound has remained largely unchanged, and a lot of that can be attributed to Malcolm Young.

Rest well good sir, but rest loud.