Bon Scott died in early 1980, right after the band had their big commercial breakthrough with 1979’s Highway to Hell. Instead of packing it in, the band quickly hired Brian Johnson and started writing. The band didn’t stray from what made them famous with most of the songs either about sex, rock and roll or a combo of the two. The 6th best selling album in U.S. history, Back in Black has sold 22 million albums. “Hells Bells,” “Back in Black,” “Rock and Roll Ain’t Noise Pollution” were all hits, but nothing came close to the enduring success of “You Shook Me All Night Long.”
Fun Fact: Bon Scott wrote a bunch of songs before his death that would have been used on this album. The band felt it wasn’t right to profit off his work.
Learn more about the album:
AC/DC Overcome Tragedy with Triumphant Back in Black
10 Things You Might Not Know About AC/DC’s Back In Black
The inside story of AC/DC’s Back In Black, the biggest-selling rock album of all time
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