As the legendary old rockers continue their tour through Europe, accompanied by Guns'N'Roses singer Axl Rose, here are 10 things you need to know about the iconic band.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/D. DeSlover
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10 facts about AC/DC
They've existed for over 40 years, but if you're still unfamiliar with the rock band AC/DC, this is what you need to know.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/D. DeSlover
Let's just call it rock 'n' roll
Some say AC/DC is a hard rock band. Others describe their style as heavy metal. But they call their own music purely rock 'n' roll. The song titles tend to confirm that: 10 of them include the term "rock 'n' roll." Add those with the words "rockin" and "rock," and you'll lose count.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/D. DeSlover
Power-driven name
The idea for the name is attributed to Malcolm and Angus Young's sister Margaret, who saw the abbreviation for "alternating current / direct current" on her sewing machine and thought it was cool. The band initially didn't know that AC/DC is also slang for bisexuality. That led to embarrassing moments at the beginning. Others claimed AC/DC was an abbreviation for anti-Christ devil children.
Image: Sony Music
Five rocking grandpas
With singer Brian Johnson, the average age of the members of AC/DC is just under 65. Replacing Johnson with Axl Rose, who's 54, lowers the average by only three years. Old rockers perhaps, but AC/DC can feel young in comparison to The Rolling Stones, whose age averages out at 71.5.
Image: Sony Music
The world's most famous school uniform
Legend has it that Angus Young was always in such a hurry to get rocking in the garage after school that he didn't bother to take off his uniform. It became his trademark onstage, with pyrotechnics concealed in his school bag. He has also tried out Spiderman and Zorro costumes, but they didn't go down as well. To this day, the school duds are his main getup - even if he often ends up shirtless.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/J.M.Vidal
The first megahits with Bon Scott
The first singer, Dave Evans, was in the band for only a year. In 1974 he was replaced by Bon Scott, who led the era of hits like "T.N.T.," "Whole Lotta Rosie," and "Highway to Hell." Scott died in 1980 in the back seat of a car after a night of heavy drinking. His successor was Brian Johnson, still called the "new guy" even though he's been on board for over 35 years.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/H.Schiffler
Damaged voice and hearing
Brian Johnson hasn't spared his vocal cords in the past four decades. He had already started hitting the high E in the early 70s, with his first band Geordie. That took its toll: He increasingly had to shout to emit his legendary sounds. Earlier this year, the band announced that Johnson would be taking a break due to hearing issues. Whether he'll ever come back is unclear.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/J.Woitas
Drummer with a hardcore lifestyle
Despite a 10-year break in the 80s, Phil Rudd was the band's longest-serving drummer. In 2014, he was arrested and charged with attempting to procure a murder, threatening to kill and drug possession. Those legal problems and the bad rep led AC/DC to replace him with their former drummer Chris Slade.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/R. Setford
Crime against a rock song
The well-behaved Celine Dion, famous for her song "My Heart Will Go On" in the movie "Titanic," decided to cover "You Shook Me All Night Long" with her colleague Anastacia in Las Vegas. The result destroyed all the sex appeal of AC/DC's classic hit; music experts called it the world's worst cover song of all time.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/De Poulpiquet
Not on Spotify
Everybody talked about Taylor Swift's boycott of Spotify, but she's not the only superstar to have snubbed the streaming platform: You won't find AC/DC on it either. Several videos are available on YouTube - but live concerts are obviously way better.
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Record-breaking noise levels
AC/DC concert goers can expect a sound level of 130 decibels. In comparison, a jackhammer quietly hits 105, while an airplane taking off reaches 140 decibels. That probably explains why the best spots at the 2015 open-air concert in Cologne were up in the trees behind the fence. The whole city could sing along.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/R. Goldmann
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When AC/DC announced that singer Brian Johnson wouldn't be taking part in the "Rock or Bust" tour in March 2016, it didn't sound good at all. Doctors had advised him to quit before turning completely deaf.
"I had trouble hearing the guitars on the stage," Johnson explained on the //www.acdc.com/: band's homepage. The decision to leave AC/DC after 36 years in the band was one of the darkest he had ever taken. Ten US concerts were initially cancelled because of his hearing issues.
Guns'N'Roses singer Axl Rose to the rescue
But the tour had to go on, so the band searched for a replacement. While they were casting different singers, paparazzi spotted AC/DC leaving the rehearsal room closely followed by Axl Rose.
Then they were seen together on the fringes of the Coachella festival, where Gun'N'Roses had given a spectacular reunion concert.
Despite having a broken foot, singer Axl Rose accepted the offer to stand in for Johnson for the rest of AC/DC's tour. Fans were skeptical at first.
During his first appearance with the legendary band on May 7 in Lisbon, Rose demonstrated that he could in fact howl in Brian Johnson's footsteps.
Axl Rose sings while Angus Young jumps aroundImage: picture-alliance/AP Photo/A. Franca
He had to perform seated, but Dave Grohl of the Foo Fighters lent him his stage throne. To compensate, Angus Young jumps around even more than usual.
It's not over for AC/DC
After original member Malcolm Young's departure in 2014 due to illness, many thought it was the end of AC/DC. Fans expressed the same fears after Brian Johnson stepped down.
But it won't end until Angus Young retires, declared Dave Evans, who sang for AC/DC in its early years.
AC/DC feat. Axl Rose will be stopping in Germany, playing Hamburg on May 26 and Leipzig on June 1. They've added a third concert on June 15, in Düsseldorf - it will also be the last concert of the European leg of their tour.