Angus Young

Angus Young
Angus Young live with AC/DC on November 23, 2008 in St. Paul, Minnesota
Background information
Genres	Hard rock, heavy metal, blues rock, rock and roll
Occupation(s)	Musician, songwriter, producer
Instrument	Guitar
Years active	1970–present
Labels	EMI, Epic, Atlantic, Albert
Website	acdc.com or http://acdcrocks.com/

Angus McKinnon Young (born 31 March 1955) is a Scottish-born Australian musician, and the lead guitarist, songwriter, and co-founder of the hard rock band AC/DC. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame along with other members of AC/DC in 2003 and is known for his energetic performances, schoolboy-uniform stage outfits, and his popularization of Chuck Berry's duckwalk. In 2003, Rolling Stone magazine ranked Angus Young at # 96 in their list of the 100 greatest guitarists of all time. In 2011 he was ranked as the 24th best guitarist on their new list of 100 greatest guitarists.

Life and career

Angus Young, the youngest of seven children of William (1911–1985) and Margaret Young (1913–1988), was born in Glasgow, Scotland. He dropped out of school at 15. He moved with his parents to Sydney, Australia in 1963 with his older brothers Malcolm and George, who also became musicians, and their older sister Margaret. Older brother Alex, another musician, stayed in Scotland. Angus first started playing on banjos but re-strung them with six strings. Angus first started playing guitar on a cheap acoustic model purchased second-hand by his mother. Angus's first Gibson SG was bought second-hand circa 1970 from a music shop just down the street from his home:

I got out and got a Gibson SG that I played until it got wood rot because so much sweat and water got into it. The whole neck warped. I bought it second-hand, it was about a '67. It had a real thin neck, really slim, like a Custom neck. It was dark brown.

Formation of AC/DC

Prior to forming AC/DC, Young played in a local group called Kantuckee. Kantuckee's lineup included Bob McGlynn (vocals), Angus Young (guitar), Jon Stevens (bass) & Trevor James (drums). The band split and was later called Tantrum with the following line up: Mark Sneddon (vocals-guitar), Angus Young (guitar), Jon Stevens (bass) and Trevor James (drums). He was 18 when he and his older brother Malcolm formed AC/DC in 1973 with Angus on lead guitar, Malcolm on rhythm guitar, Colin Burgess on drums, Larry Van Kriedt on bass guitar and Dave Evans on vocals. "Can I Sit Next To You Girl," their first single, was later re-recorded with Bon Scott as their vocalist. They may have gotten the name AC/DC after seeing the letters "AC/DC" on the back of a sewing machine, or it may be credited to George Young's wife, Sandra.

Angus tried a number of stage costumes, such as Spider-Man, Zorro, a gorilla, and a parody of Superman, named Super-Ang, before settling on his signature schoolboy look at the suggestion of his sister. To match this image the press and public were told that Young was born in 1959, not 1955. The original uniform was from his secondary school, Ashfield Boys High School in Sydney.

Personal life and recent events

Young prefers to keep his life private. He and his wife Ellen live in Kangaroo Point in the Sutherland Shire, in Sydney, and also own a home in Aalten, Netherlands where his wife is from. Although a smoker, Angus is a teetotaller.

On 24 August 2006, Young received Kerrang! magazine's Legend Award from the editor, Paul Brannigan. Brannigan called AC/DC "one of the most important and influential rock bands in history".

Equipment

Young performing live in 2001 on the Stiff Upper Lip tour in Germany

Guitars

Angus Young has used Gibson SGs in various forms (his original, and the basis for his current signature model, was a 1970–72 SG) throughout his career. He also used a modified version of the SG called the Jaydee SG, which was made custom for Angus by Jaydee guitars. The Jaydee SG featured signature lightning bolt inlays on the fretboard. Gibson made a custom SG for Angus with lightning bolt inlays to replace the Jaydee SG. Young's 1970 SG has T Top pickups. Another 1964 SG that he used on the recording of Ballbreaker, has patent # pickups. All of these are vintage-output Alnico II or V pickups with matched coils typically reading 7.5k ohm. All of his pickups "are the original ones that came on the guitar(s)." He uses Ernie Ball strings (.009-.042).

Angus Young SG

Angus Young and Gibson Guitar Corporation have collaborated to make the Angus Young SG. It features a pickup designed by Young himself (the Angus Young Signature Humbucker) in the bridge position, and a '57 Classic Humbucker in the neck. The neck has "lightning bolt" inlays.

Amplifiers

Young mainly uses a reissued version of the Marshall 1959 with model 1960 AX and BX 4x12 cabinets loaded with Celestion G12M "Greenbacks".

Effects

The only "effect" that Young has ever implemented into his signal was the Schaffer-Vega Diversity System, a wireless unit that he would begin using in 1977. Not only was it used as the intended wireless unit, but it was also used as a compressor and a booster in his signal to "fatten up" his tone. Ever since adding it to his rig, it was used on several albums in the studio for chosen rhythm guitar tracks and all lead guitar tracks. It is still used in his live rig to this day.

Influence

Angus Young has stated that he first began playing guitar when, "I was little, teeny. I would sort of dabble around five or six years old. That's when I started hearing Little Richard."

Young's energetic guitar style has been an influence on many young rock n roll guitarists. When Canadian band Anvil were asked what it was like to tour with AC/DC, they mentioned that Angus Young has a big heart and should bring AC/DC to Calgary.

In an interview with The Guitar Show, Angus noted his influences to include his brother Malcolm Young, Chuck Berry and Freddie King, while playing licks relating to Jimi Hendrix, John Lee Hooker and The Kinks "You Really Got Me". Young has indicated that he was also influenced by Keith Richards, as well as Chuck Berry's style, including his banter with audiences, guitar playing and duck walk. When the band would cover Chuck Berry songs in their early years, audiences would recognise the song, while noting their renditions were very different to the source material.

Style

Young plays a solo during a performance of "Let There Be Rock"

Angus Young's playing style is very straight blues playing in both the minor and major pentatonic twelve bar blues. In AC/DC's earlier recordings, power chords can be heard in songs such as "T.N.T." and "It's a Long Way to the Top (If You Wanna Rock 'n' Roll)". He also utilises touches of Scottish folk in his playing, and pull-off arpeggios (pull-offs, played one-handed) are a popular trick, appearing in songs such as "Who Made Who", "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap", "Sin City", "Thunderstruck", "Let There Be Rock" (live). In 1976, the band recorded an instrumental arrangement of the Scottish traditional song "Loch Lomond", retitled "Fling Thing", which has appeared in their stage act over the years. The title refers to the Highland Fling. Young occasionally provides backing vocals along with Malcolm and bassist Cliff Williams on songs such as "T.N.T." and "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap".

A common criticism of AC/DC is that their songs are excessively simple and formulaic. In reply, Young stated in an interview with the Atlanta Gazette in 1979:

It's just rock and roll. A lot of times we get criticised for it. A lot of music papers come out with: 'When are they going to stop playing these three chords?' If you believe you shouldn't play just three chords it's pretty silly on their part. To us, the simpler a song is, the better, 'cause it's more in line with what the person on the street is.

Stage antics

Angus Young onstage antics at Scotiabank Place in Ottawa 2009

Angus Young is famous for his wild onstage antics: intense jumps and running back and forth across the crowd. Once Young would clamber on to Bon Scott's or Brian Johnson's shoulders during concerts and they would make their way through the audience with smoke streaming from a satchel on his own back, while he played an extended improvised guitar solo, usually during the song "Rocker" with Scott or during "Let There Be Rock" with Johnson. He frequently does Chuck Berry's duck walk, as well as a kind of spasm, during which he throws himself to the ground, kicking, shaking, and spinning in circles, while playing the guitar. He first feigned a spasm to avoid embarrassment when he tripped over a lead at a gig.

External links

• ACDC.com Official Website
• Angus interview with Gibson Guitars