Ronald Bedford "Bon" Scott, the rabble rousing, beer swilling, cold sweating, foul mouthed lead singer for the hard rock band AC/DC died 30 years ago today of what was probably alcohol poisoning. Although his demise at the very early age of 33 was tragic, it was not shocking. Scott, whose most famous quote may have been, "It keeps you fit- the alcohol, nasty women, sweat on stage, bad food - it's all very good for you." was a rock n' roller with a love of life that wore hard on him.
Today in Sydney church bells tolled for him. In his hometown of Fremantle fans walked about visiting locations near and dear to Scott and to the story of his life before and after he became famous. The jail where Scott was held as a child, the graveyard that holds his remains and his favorite hometown bar, Little Creatures, are all on the itinerary of AC/DC fans. AC/DC, with Scott's replacement, London's Brian Johnson, are scheduled to perform concerts in Sydney (hometown of Angus and Malcolm Young) this weekend to honor Bon Scott.
The Young brothers started AC/DC in 1973 in Sydney but it wasn't until 1974 that Scott joined the group replacing Dave Evans as lead singer. He first sung on the album High Voltage which included the hits "T.N.T." and "It's a Long Way to the Top (If you Wanna Rock n' Roll)". It was Michigan radio station AM 600 WTAC (now a Christian radio station) that first introduced AC/DC to America and the station manager, Peter Cavanaugh, booked them for their first US performance at Flint's Capitol Theater. The last record Bon Scott made with the group was Highway to Hell in 1979. After a night of hard partying he was found in a friend's car passed out choked on his own vomit (Spinal Tap quote). Deciding that Scott would have wanted the band to continue, AC/DC hired Brian Johnson and went on to record their most popular record to date, Back in Black the next year.
AC/DC is currently touring in support of their recent album, Black Ice.
I feel safe in New York City!
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