<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0On February 28, 1980, AC\/DC played the last date of the tour that introduced both their album <\/span>Back in Black<\/span><\/i> and their new singer, Brian Johnson, to the world.\u00a0 It had been one year and a day since they played their last show with singer Bon Scott.\u00a0 The concert a few nights earlier,\u00a0 (February 23), however, was the one that Johnson still remembers.\u00a0 Scott\u2019s mother, Isa, was a special guest at the show in Sydney (the third of seven Australian concerts).\u00a0 Afterwards, she approached Brian and said, \u201cOur Bon would have been proud of you son.\u201d It had been a long year for the band, but especially so for Johnson.\u00a0 There could not have been a better validation for him than getting Mrs. Scott\u2019s approval.\u00a0 It also didn\u2019t hurt that <\/span>BiB<\/span><\/i> had already sold over three million copies in the United States alone, but there was a lot more riding on AC\/DC\u2019s shoulders at this juncture of the band\u2019s career..<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Losing an iconic member can have big time consequences for a band. \u00a0 John Bonham died seven months after Bon.\u00a0 The circumstances were similar;\u00a0 a drinking binge (40 shots consumed in 24 hours) led to his \u2018death by misadventure\u2019 on September 25, 1980.\u00a0 Bonham was 32 years old – a year younger than Scott was when he died.\u00a0 With the passing of their powerful drummer, Zeppelin announced, \u201cWe wish it to be known that the loss of our dear friend, and the deep sense of undivided harmony felt by ourselves and our manager, have led us to decide that we could not continue as we were.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0More recently, The Foo Fighters lost Dave Grohl’s longtime drummer Taylor Hawkins (reportedly from a cardiac problem brought on by drug use), but they hired drummer Josh Freese so the band could carry on.\u00a0 It took many months for them to return to the stage with Freese, but after only two years, he was let go.\u00a0 The Who faced a similar dilemma when Keith Moon died while rehabbing from drug and alcohol addiction.\u00a0 They soldiered on, first with Kenney Jones (Small Faces, Faces) behind the kit from 1978 to 1988 and then for a time with Simon Phillips.\u00a0 Their longest term replacement, Zak Starkey (the son of Beatles legend Ringo Starr), had been given his first drum set by Moon back in the day.\u00a0 Starkey\u2019s connection to \u2018Uncle Keith\u2019 notwithstanding, he was a perfect fit for The Who.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0As of the spring of 2025, The Who booted Starkey from the band – twice.\u00a0 The second time he was asked to release a statement basically saying his other projects were keeping him too busy to tour (which he declined to do saying it was not true).\u00a0 While he is still very much alive, apparent friction with lead singer Roger Daltrey orchestrated his exits (they happened only weeks apart separated by a short term \u2018rehire\u2019 in the midst of it all).\u00a0 Band members come and go (not just drummers – don\u2019t even get me started on the untimely \u2018deaths\u2019 of the drummers in the made for the movies band, Spinal Tap), but before we get too far afield, let us get back to AC\/DC.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0AC\/DC were basking in the success of their 1979 album <\/span>Highway to Hell<\/span><\/i> when they began writing songs for the next album.\u00a0 With Bon on drums (he had been a drummer before he became a lead singer), Angus and Malcolm had begun working on tracks in London.\u00a0 Bon called his mother and reported, \u201cThis [album] is going to be the one!\u201d\u00a0 A few days later (February 19, 1980) he was dead.\u00a0 AC\/DC were obviously in a state of shock when Bon was laid to rest in his hometown of Fremantle in Western Australia.\u00a0 If the Young brothers were at wits end about their future, it was Scott\u2019s father Chick who urged them to keep the band going.\u00a0 On April 1, 1980, Brian Johnson was announced as their new singer.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Johnson had a different singing career with the poppy band Geordie in the early 1970s.\u00a0 They had a couple of UK Top 10 hits before the band broke up in 1978.\u00a0 Bon Scott had actually seen Johnson perform with Geordie.\u00a0 Bon\u2019s comments comparing Brian\u2019s voice to Little Richard had planted the seed that would eventually bring Johnson into the band.\u00a0 They had considered a few other singers before Malcolm and Angus tracked Brian down and got him to come to London for an audition.\u00a0 They seemed to hit it off musically and socially.\u00a0 Johnson figured that nothing would come of it and returned to Newcastle before they called to tell him, \u201cMate, you’re in.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Producer Robert \u201cMutt\u201d Lange decided that the best thing for the band was to get them away from the prying eyes in London or Sydney.\u00a0 That is what he told the music press but in reality, part of the reason for the move was the lack of available studio space in London.\u00a0 When an opening came up in the Bahamas, his solution was to go to the Island Record\u2019s Compass Point Studios in Nassau.\u00a0 The remote location and world-class studio were just the ticket according to engineer Tony Platt.\u00a0 He told <\/span>Guitar World<\/span><\/i> author Paul Elliot, \u201cThat helped bring everyone together.\u201d\u00a0 Elliot\u2019s AC\/DC cover feature (July 2025, Vol 45, No. 7) commemorated the 45th anniversary of <\/span>Back in Black<\/span><\/i> under the title <\/span>How Angus Young and Company Recorded the Album That Saved Rock \u2018n\u2019 Roll.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/i>In an interview at the time the album was being recorded, Johnson shared his thoughts with the <\/span>Record Mirror<\/span><\/i> on taking the whole project to a tropical paradise:\u00a0 \u201cActually, it\u2019s quite difficult recording in the Bahamas.\u00a0 All you want to do is lounge on the beach.\u00a0 And you can\u2019t even get a decent pint of beer.\u201d\u00a0 With his tongue planted firmly in cheek, he chuckled and added, \u201cSomehow we managed.\u201d In a different interview, he described what it was like recording during their seven weeks at Compass Point Studios:\u00a0 \u201cIt was hardly any kind of studio.\u00a0 We were [living] in these little concrete cells with a bed and a chair. \u00a0 And this big old black lady ran the place.\u00a0 Oh, she was fearsome, she ruled that place with a rod of iron.\u00a0 We had to lock the doors at night because she warned us about these Haitians who\u2019d come down at night and rob the place.\u00a0 She bought us all these six-foot fishing spears that we kept by the door.\u00a0 It was a bit of a stretch from Newcastle.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Several tropical storms rolled over the island which played havoc with electricity at the studio.\u00a0 The lyrics of <\/span>Hells Bells<\/span><\/i> reference what they were going through:\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cI\u2019m rolling thunder, pourin\u2019 rain \/ I\u2019m comin\u2019 on like a hurricane \/ My lightning\u2019s flashing across the sky \/ You\u2019re only young but you\u2019re gonna die.<\/span><\/i>\u201d\u00a0 The tolling bells at the beginning of the song were meant to announce the album for what it was:\u00a0 \u201dThe whole album was our dedication to Bon Scott – that\u00a0 is why the cover was pure black,\u201d\u00a0 according to Angus.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Certainly the songs they recorded down there were a bit different than their previous album tracks, but it wasn\u2019t just because they had a different singer.\u00a0 Everything that made AC\/DC tick was there, but there was a subtle difference in the music itself (even though their music was anything but subtle).\u00a0 The hard part, for engineer Platt, was getting the \u2018very dry and compact\u2019 AC\/DC sound in that studio.\u00a0 Platt found the rooms at Compass Point were \u2018not sonically complementary to the group\u2019s sound\u2019, but (as Johnson said), \u201cSomehow they managed.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0According to Elliot, \u201cWhile the essence of AC\/DC – the hard riffing, the heavy grooves – remained intact, the tone had shifted a little.\u00a0 It was rock \u2018n\u2019 roll, but with more of a heavy metal edge.\u00a0 And what Mutt Lange had begun with the band on <\/span>Highway to Hell – <\/span><\/i>adding a touch of sheen, while retaining maximum power – was brought into full effect.\u00a0 The sound was huge, and at the highest end of it was Johnson\u2019s voice pushed to the limit.\u201d If Brian wasn\u2019t feeling enough pressure, Lange focused his attention on the vocals and demanded perfection out of each take.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Johnson recounts, \u201cIt was like, \u2018Again, Brian, Again – hold on, you sang that note too long so there\u2019s no room for a breath\u2019.\u00a0 He wouldn\u2019t let anything go past him.\u00a0 Mutt had this thing where he didn\u2019t want people to listen to the album down the road and say there\u2019s no way someone could sing that, they\u2019ve dropped that in, even the breaths had to be in the right place.\u00a0 And you cannot knock a man for that, but he drove me nuts.\u00a0 I\u2019d be sitting there going, \u2018Arrggghhhh!\u2019\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0As the sessions were nearing the end, the band asked their manager, Ian Jeffery, to find a bell to include on the album (for the previously mentioned intro to <\/span>Hell\u2019s Bells<\/span><\/i>).\u00a0 Platt suggested they use the bells at a local church but when he tried, the recording came with the added sounds of a flurry of birds flying away when the pealing of the bells startled them.\u00a0 The foundry they contacted had to push their order forward to get it done before the seven weeks of sessions were done.\u00a0 When the bell was finally recorded with Ronnie Lane\u2019s Mobile Studio, they found it to be perfectly tuned for the track.\u00a0 With tracking complete, the final mix was done at Electric Lady Studios in New York City.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The label suits were not at all in tune with releasing an album with an all-black cover.\u00a0 Angus and Malcolm insisted the all-black design was a \u2018sign of mourning\u2019 for Bon Scott.\u00a0 Atlantic Records eventually caved and accepted it with one condition:\u00a0 the band had to put a grey outline around the AC\/DC logo on the cover.\u00a0 The album was released in the United States on July 25, 1980 and in the U.K. (and the rest of Europe) on July 31.\u00a0 It debuted at No. 1 on the British album charts and reached No. 4 on the American charts.\u00a0 <\/span>Rolling Stone<\/span><\/i> magazine called the chart placement, \u201can exceptional showing for a heavy-metal album.\u201d\u00a0 Having topped the Brit charts for two weeks, it stayed in the American Top 10 for more than five months.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Recording <\/span>BiB<\/span><\/i> had its trials and tribulations for Johnson and company, but the next big test would be the upcoming tour.\u00a0 Would the fans accept Johnson?\u00a0 They knew they had a strong album, but Brian was especially worried about how they would react to hearing him sing Scott\u2019s songs.\u00a0 In a 1991 interview, Angus confirmed that a few of Bon\u2019s lyrics were used on some of the new <\/span>BiB<\/span><\/i> tracks while others were, “Echoes of his spirit and sense of humor.\u201d\u00a0 For example, Bon\u2019s lyrics in <\/span>HIghway to Hell<\/span><\/i> and <\/span>Let There Be Rock<\/span><\/i> were intentionally meant to poke a little fun at religion.\u00a0 Johnson took a similar tract on <\/span>Hell\u2019s Bells<\/span><\/i> when he sang: \u201c<\/span>If good\u2019s on the left, then I\u2019m sticking to the right!<\/span><\/i>\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The <\/span>Back in Black <\/span><\/i>tour started with six rather low key shows in Belgium and Holland, the first being held in Namur.\u00a0 Right off the bat, Johnson met a Dutch fan with a Bon Scott tattoo on his arm who told him, \u201cBon was my hero, but now [that] he\u2019s gone, I wish you all the luck in the world.\u201d\u00a0 Brian recalled the effect the comment had on him:\u00a0 \u201cI just stood there shaking.\u201d The album was still five weeks away from being released in Europe, yet when Johnson took the stage for the first show, he spotted a big banner being held aloft that said: \u201cR.I.P. Bon Scott – Good Luck Brian.\u201d\u00a0 Still, Brian was nervous and there were a few flubs (Malcolm gave him a good \u2018bollocking\u2019 when he sang the same lyrics to two songs (\u201cAnxiety and adrenaline caused brain-freeze,\u201d Brian said)).\u00a0 Overall, Johnson remembered, \u201cWe had enough spirit to cover up any mistakes,\u201d while Angus acknowledged the new singer with a compliment:\u00a0 \u201cWe still think Bon\u2019s around.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The North American tour kicked off in Canada when the album was released there on July 25, 1980.\u00a0 There were mixed, but mostly positive reviews coming in.\u00a0 One British writer gave the album four out of five stars, yet claimed it was too soon after Bon\u2019s death to, \u201cGreet a new AC\/DC album with the ecstasy with which I expected.\u201d\u00a0 The reviewer went on to label Brian as a \u2018copy of Bon\u2019 but still concluded, \u201c<\/span>Back in Black<\/span><\/i> remains a genuine excellent AC\/DC album.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0David Fricke was more effusive in his <\/span>Rolling Stone<\/span><\/i> review:\u00a0 \u201c<\/span>Back in Black<\/span><\/i> is not only the best of AC\/DC\u2019s six American albums, it\u2019s the apex of heavy metal art:\u00a0 the first LP since <\/span>Led Zeppelin II <\/span><\/i>that captures all the blood, sweat, and arrogance of the genre.\u201d\u00a0 <\/span>Record Mirror\u2019s<\/span><\/i> headline, \u201cPOWER IS RESTORED,\u201d introduced Robin Smith\u2019s review where he said, \u201cThe resurrection shuffle starts here.\u00a0 Brian was the perfect choice, possessing an almost uncanny feel for the band\u2019s songs.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Johnson\u2019s only misstep was making a statement in Smith\u2019s review that said, \u201cBon is still around and watching.\u00a0 At night in my hotel room I had proof that he was there in some form.\u00a0 I know he approves of what the new lineup is trying to do.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t want the band to split up or go into a long period of mourning.\u00a0 He wanted us to build on the spirit he left behind.\u201d\u00a0 Included in his comments was his humble take on his role in AC\/DC:\u00a0 \u201cI hope I\u2019ve been accepted by AC\/DC fans.\u00a0 They want the band to go on as well.\u00a0 Certainly I\u2019ve had no letters or phone calls saying \u2018get out\u2019.\u201d\u00a0 Brian wasn\u2019t saying he was being visited by the ghost of Bon Scott, but his\u00a0 first comments would come back to haunt him later in the tour.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Def Leppard opened for AC\/DC at the New York Palladium on August 1.\u00a0 Joe Elliot, Leppard\u2019s lead singer, was celebrating his twenty-first birthday as they released their debut album <\/span>On Through the Night.<\/span><\/i>\u00a0 The two bands shared management with Peter Mensch so they had also opened for AC\/DC on the <\/span>Highway to Hell<\/span><\/i> tour.\u00a0 Leppard heard <\/span>BiB<\/span><\/i> ahead of its release so they knew what was coming.\u00a0 Elliot met Johnson for the first time backstage in New York and the conversation they had was \u2018a little weird\u2019 according to Joe.\u00a0 He knew Brian was a bit older and a seasoned veteran with a few Geordie hits under his belt from the early 70s, yet Brian asked Joe, \u201cWhat the hell am I supposed to do?\u201d\u00a0 This was Johnson\u2019s first time in the States and he was aware that Elliot had already done a lot of gigs on this side of the pond.\u00a0 Elliot told him, \u201cJust be yourself, man.\u00a0 That is all you can do.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Elliot had seen Scott on the previous tour so his first impression of Johnson was, \u201cCompared to Scott (bare chested, all attitude), [Brian] looked like Andy Capp.\u00a0 I thought \u2018Hmm, I\u2019m not sure about this.\u2019\u00a0 But as it turned out, Brian was perfect for that band and maybe the only guy who could have done it.\u00a0 He had the voice for it.\u00a0 And that record – it was just amazing.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The Australian press were the ones who took delight in amplifying Brian\u2019s statements about \u2018the spirit of Bon Scott\u2019 being with them.\u00a0 The sensational headlines (<\/span>Brian Talks to Bon\u2019s Ghost<\/span><\/i>) were largely ignored by the record buying public.\u00a0 In the end, <\/span>Back in Black<\/span><\/i> has sold more than 50 million albums making it the second-biggest-selling album behind only Michael Jackson\u2019s <\/span>Thriller.\u00a0 <\/span><\/i>The album is bigger than anything by Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, the Rolling Stone, or The Beatles, yet the legacy of <\/span>BiB<\/span><\/i> isn\u2019t just about sales.\u00a0 As Malcolm Young once said, \u201cThe emotion of that album, it will be around forever.\u201d \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n FTV:\u00a0 You were expecting something else?\u00a0 This was filmed not long after Brian Johnson joined the band.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0On February 28, 1980, AC\/DC played the last date of the tour that introduced both their album Back in Black and their new singer, Brian Johnson, to the world.\u00a0 It had been one year and a day since they played their last show with singer Bon Scott.\u00a0 The concert a few nights earlier,\u00a0 (February 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