Bon Scott

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

Bon Scott was an Australian singer and lyricist, the second lead singer of the hard rock band AC/DC from 1974 until his death in 1980. He was born Ronald Belford Scott on 9 July 1946 in Forfar, Scotland, and grew up in Kirriemuir, where his parents ran a bakery. In 1952 the family emigrated to Australia. He got his nickname Bon at school: there was another Ronald in the class, and his classmates played on the words Bonnie Scotland. In Fremantle he learned to drum in a bagpipe band. He left school at fifteen and worked as a farm labourer and a lobster fisherman, among other jobs.

Music and breakthrough

In 1964 he formed his first band, the Spektors, in which he drummed and sometimes sang. He then played in the Valentines and Fraternity, before succeeding AC/DC's original singer, Dave Evans, in 1974. With AC/DC he made seven albums, from High Voltage in 1975 to Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap in 1976, Let There Be Rock in 1977, Powerage in 1978 and Highway to Hell in 1979. The band became popular first in Australia and then internationally. Highway to Hell reached the top twenty in the United States and was the breakthrough.

Influence

On 19 February 1980 Scott died after a night out in London. AC/DC considered stopping, but took on Brian Johnson, the singer of the glam rock band Geordie. The next album, Back in Black, came out five months later and was a tribute to Scott. He is often named as one of the greatest frontmen of all time, and his raw voice and brash, humorous lyrics defined the band's sound.

Listening