July 25, 1980: AC/DC Release “Back In Black”

Left to right: Cliff Williams, Phil Rudd,

Angus Young, Malcolm Young, Brian Johnson

July 25, 1980: AC/DC release their album Back In Black. It was their 1st without original lead singer Bon Scott, but Brian Johnson was brought in, and it was as if there was no difference: A music historian once wrote that Johnson had the voice most likely to infuriate the parents of a 14-year-old boy.

Three of the the group's classic members were from Scotland. Lead singer Ronald Belford "Bon" Scott was from Forfar, in Fife. Lead guitarist Angus Young and rhythm guitarist Malcolm Young, his older brother, were from Glasgow.

The Young family was full of musicians, but Britain's "Big Freeze" of the Winter of 1962-63 led them to take advantage of a British program that allowed families to move to Australia. The Scott family had done so earlier, in 1952. The Gibb brothers, Barry, Robin, Maurice (together, The Bee Gees) and Andy also took advantage of this.

The Young brothers settled in a suburb of Sydney. In Australia's other big city, Melbourne, they met a native, drummer Philip Rudzevecuis, a.k.a. Phil Rudd. Bass guitarist Cliff Williams was from Romford, Essex, England, a northeastern suburb of London. In 1977, he replaced original AC/DC bassist Mark Evans.

Margaret Young, sister of Malcolm and Angus, pointed out the symbol "AC/DC" on the AC adapter of her sewing machine. A.C./D.C. is an abbreviation for methods of sending electricity: Alternating Current and Direct Current. The brothers felt that this name symbolized the band's raw energy. And while the band's name is usually written with a slash ( / ) between the AC and the DC, the band's logo separates the letters with a lightning bolt. The band's name is pronounced one letter at a time: Ay, Cee, Dee, Cee. However, just as Paul McCartney of The Beatles was nicknamed "Macca," AC/DC were nicknamed "Acca Dacca."

Some people have suggested that "AC/DC" refers to bisexuality, but, in the case of the band, it's not true: They were one of the most aggressively macho bands of all time, though their songs never suggested criminality. One of the songs on Back In Black is titled "Let Me Put My Love Into You," which suggests seeking consent. In their actual lives, they received a lot of consent.

Bon met the Young brothers in Adelaide, Australia in 1974. By 1975, they had hit songs; by 1979, they were worldwide stars. With songs like "Dirty Deeds," "T.N.T." and "Highway to Hell," the band became symbols of youthful rebelliousness. Angus played a Gibson SG guitar, red with horns, suggesting the Devil. But he dressed like a boy in a private school, complete with cap and shorts, and copied Chuck Berry's "duck walk." It became as identified with the band as Scott's piercing vocals.

Scott died on February 19, 1980, in London, from drinking too much, effectively an alcohol overdose. Later in the year, John Bonham, the drummer for Led Zeppelin, died from the same thing, and that band broke up.

AC/DC did not: At Bon's funeral, his mother, Isabelle, told the surviving members that he wouldn't have wanted them to disband. So they searched for a replacement, and found Johnson, lead singer of the band Geordie. A "Geordie" is a native of Newcastle, which, as the American sportswriter Chuck Culpepper put it, is where "England begins to think about turning into Scotland." So Johnson was already something of a kindred spirit.

The album includes the title track; plus "You Shook Me All Night Long," which may be the band's best-known song; "Have a Drink On Me," which Scott had written, and became something of an irony; and "Hell's Bells," which not only harkened back to Scott's song "Highway to Hell," but became an introduction song to several sports teams, including one that I root for, the NHL's New Jersey Devils.

AC/DC continued to have hits into the early 1990s, and were elected to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2003. They were the 2nd Australian-based act elected, after The Bee Gees.

Rhythm guitarist Malcolm Young died in 2017, at age 64. He had retired from the band in 2014, due to dementia, and was replaced by Stevie Young, son of the eldest Young brother, Steve Young, who was a musician, but was never a member of the band. The other classic members are still alive as of July 25, 2022: Brian Johnson, Angus Young, Cliff Williams and Phil Rudd.

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July 25, 1980 was a Friday. These Major League Baseball games were played:

* The New York Yankees lost to the Kansas City Royals, 6-1 at Royals Stadium (now Kauffman Stadium) in Kansas City. Rich Gale outpitched Luis Tiant. George Brett went 1-for-3 with a walk and an RBI. Clint Hurdle hit a home run for the Royals, and Reggie Jackson hit one for the Yankees.

* The New York Mets beat the Cincinnati Reds, 2-0 at Shea Stadium. Pat Zachry, one of the players the Mets got from the Reds in the Tom Seaver trade 3 years earlier, pitched a 6-hit shutout. John Stearns drove in both of the Mets' runs.

* The Houston Astros beat the Montreal Expos, 9-8 at the Olympic Stadium in Montreal. Nolan Ryan and Steve Rogers (not Captain America) started, and neither got the decision. The Expos led 7-2 after 6 innings. The Astros scored 7 runs in the top of the 9th, and the Expos could only come back with 1 in the bottom half.

* A doubleheader was split at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia. The Philadelphia Phillies won the opener, 5-4. Mike Schmidt went 4-for-4 with 2 home runs and 4 RBIs, the most important of which came in the bottom of the 12th, when he drew a walk on Larry Bradford with the bases loaded. The winning run was scored by Randy Lerch, normally a pitcher, pinch-running for Bob Boone.

The Atlanta Braves won the nightcap, 3-0. Tommy Boggs pitched a 7-hit shutout. Schmidt went 0-for-4 in this game. Pete Rose went 0-for-5 in the 1st game, then failed to get a hit as a pinch-hitter in the 2nd game.

* The Milwaukee Brewers beat the Baltimore Orioles, 5-0 at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore. Reggie Cleveland pitched a 4-hit shutout, outpitching Jim Palmer. Gorman Thomas hit 2 home runs. Robin Yount went 1-for-4 with 2 RBIs. Paul Molitor went 2-for-5.

* The Toronto Blue Jays beat the Seattle Mariners, 5-3 at Exhibition Stadium in Toronto.

* The Cleveland Indians swept a doubleheader from the California Angels, 9-8 and 10-2 at Cleveland Municipal Stadium. Rod Carew was injured, and did not play.

* The Oakland Athletics beat the Detroit Tigers, 5-3 at Tiger Stadium in Detroit. Rookie Rickey Henderson went 3-for-5 with a stolen base.

* The Texas Rangers beat the Chicago White Sox, 6-4 at Comiskey Park in Chicago.

* A doubleheader was split at Metropolitan Stadium in the Minneapolis suburb of Bloomington, Minnesota. The Boston Red Sox won the opener, 7-5. Dwight Evans hit 2 home runs. The Minnesota Twins won the nightcap, 6-0. Carl Yastrzemski went 1-for-4 with an RBI in the 1st game, but didn't play in the 2nd game.

* The St. Louis Cardinals beat the San Diego Padres, 3-2 at San Diego Stadium (later Jack Murphy Stadium and Qualcomm Stadium). Dave Winfield went 1-for-4.

* The Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Chicago Cubs, 7-6 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles.

* And the Pittsburgh Pirates beat the San Francisco Giants, 5-1 at Candlestick Park in San Francisco. Willie Stargell did not play.