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Bon Scott

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Template:Infobox musical artist 2 Ronald Belford "Bon" Scott (9 July 1946 – 19 February 1980) was a Scottish-born Australian rock musician. He is best known as the lead singer, main lyricist and frontman of the hard rock band AC/DC from 1973 until his death in 1980.

Scott was the drummer of The Spektors and the lead singer of The Valentines before joining Fraternity in 1970. They released two albums and some singles, which gave the band moderate success, but they went into hiatus. In 1973, Scott replaced lead singer Dave Evans on AC/DC, and released nine studio albums and four top-40 singles in over 6 years.

Biography

Early life

Bon Scott was born in Kirriemuir, Scotland in July 1946, son of Charles and Isobelle Scott, but they emigrated to Australia in 1952. They initially lived in Sunshine, an outer suburb of Melbourne and in 1956 they moved to Fremantle, where Bon learned drums and bagpipes in Coastal Scottish Pipe Band WA.[1] He always had problems with authority, and this resulted in his dropping out of school at the age of 15. He spent a short time in Fremantle Prison in the assessment centre, and nine months at the Riverbank Juvenile Institution relating to charges of giving a false name and address to the police, having escaped legal custody, having unlawful carnal knowledge, and stealing twelve gallons of petrol. He tried out for the Australian Army, but was rejected for being deemed as socially maladjusted.[2]

Beginnings as a rock singer

After working as a postman, barman and truck packer,[3] Scott joined his first band, The Spektors, as drummer and occasional lead singer. He formed The Valentines as co-lead singer with Vince Lovegrove in 1967, and recorded several songs written by George Young of The Easybeats including "Every Day I Have To Cry" which made the local top 5.[1] The band dissolved after cracking the National Top 30 with their single "Juliette", and he was one of the first Aussie rockers to be charged with possession of marijuana.[4] Bon moved to Adelaide and after joining the band Fraternity they produced the LPs Livestock and Flaming Galah. On their 1971 tour, they gave a concert in Europe as "Fang" which also featured Brian Johnson's band Geordie.[1]

In 1973, just after returning home from a tour of England, Fraternity went into hiatus. In this period, Scott started playing for a band named Peter Head's Mount Lofty Rangers. Bon got into a motorcycle accident and suffered serious injuries after leaving a rehearsal with them.[4] Later, Fraternity reformed, replacing Scott with singer Jimmy Barnes.

Joining AC/DC

Main article: AC/DC

The following year, while working as a driver and odd-jobs man in the Adelaide music scene, Scott first met the members of AC/DC. The band was formed by the brothers Angus and Malcolm Young, younger siblings of Scott's friend George Young. Bon was impressed by the band's energy and drive, and the naive bandmates were, in turn, quite taken with the experienced frontman.[5] Scott replaced their original singer Dave Evans in 1974, and quickly turned AC/DC from a glam band to a stripped back, foot stompin', no-nonsense rock band.[4]

Death

Bon Scott's grave site.

After a night of heavy drinking in London's Camden Town, he passed out in a friend's car and was left to "sleep it off", but was found dead, at the age of 33, in the early hours of 19 February, 1980. The cause of death listed on his death certificate was "Acute alcoholic poisoning" and the verdict of the inquest "Death by misadventure".[6] This was about 7 months after AC/DC's release of Highway To Hell.

Shortly after his death, British singer Brian Johnson replaced him, and AC/DC recorded Back in Black, which is to this day the second best-selling album of all time. The album cover was all black as a tribute to Bon Scott.

Scott was buried in Fremantle Cemetery,[7] and his gravesite has become one of Australia's most treasured cultural icons. More than 26 years after Scott's death, the National Trust of Australia has decreed his grave important enough to be included on the list of classified heritage places.[8] On 9 July, 2006, the plaque was stolen from the site on what would have been his 60th birthday.[9]

Scott was rated by the UK magazine Classic Rock in their July 2004 issue, as the Greatest Frontman ever, in the list of 100 greatest frontmen.[10] On 25 February, 2007, there will be a Celebration Concert at the Claremont Showgrounds in Perth to raise money for a proposed statue of Bon Scott to be placed in Fremantle. Acts will include The Angels, Rose Tattoo and The Screaming Jets among others.[11]

Discography

EPs and LPs

Year of release Band Title
1968 The Valentines I Can Hear Raindrops
1969 The Valentines My Old Man's a Groovy Old Man
1971 Fraternity Livestock
1972 Fraternity Flaming Galah
1975 Fraternity Season of Change
1971 Blackfeather At the Mountains of Madness
1975 AC/DC High Voltage (Aus.)
1975 AC/DC T.N.T. (Aus.)
1976 AC/DC High Voltage
1976 AC/DC Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap (Aus.)
1976 AC/DC Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap
1977 AC/DC Let There Be Rock (Aus.)
1977 AC/DC Let There Be Rock
1978 AC/DC Powerage
1978 AC/DC If You Want Blood You've Got It
1979 AC/DC Highway to Hell
1984 AC/DC '74 Jailbreak
1997 AC/DC Volts
1997 AC/DC Live from the Atlantic Studios
1997 AC/DC Let There Be Rock: The Movie

Singles

With The Valentines

  • "Every Day I Have To Cry" / "I Can't Dance With You" (1967)
  • "She Said" / "To Know You Is To Love You" (1967)
  • "I Can Hear The Raindrops" / "Why Me?" (1968)
  • "Peculiar Hole In The Sky" / "Love Makes Sweet Music" (1968)
  • "My Old Man's A Groovy Old Man" / "Ebeneezer" (1969)
  • "Nick Nack Paddy Wack" / "Getting Better" (1969)
  • "Juliette" / "Hoochie Coochie Billy" (1970)

With Fraternity

  • "Seasons Of Change" / "Sommerville" (1971)
  • "The Race, Pt. 1" / "The Race, Pt. 2" (1971)
  • "If You Got It" / "Raglan's Folly" / "You Have A God" (1971)
  • "Welfare Boogie" / "Getting Off" (1972)

With Blackfeather

  • "Seasons of Change" / "On The Day That I Die" (1971)

With Mount Lofty Rangers

  • "Round and Round" / "Carey Gully" (1974)

With AC/DC[12][13]

References

  1. ^ a b c "Bon Scott Story". Crabsody in Blue. Retrieved 2006-09-30.
  2. ^ (Walker 1994, p. 39)
  3. ^ (Walker 1994, p. 32)
  4. ^ a b c Ankeny, Jason. "Bon Scott Biography". AllMusic Guide. Retrieved 2006-12-26.
  5. ^ "AC/DC Biography". AC/DC Bedlam in Belgium. Retrieved 2006-12-26.
  6. ^ Jinman, Richard (2005-02-19). "25 years on, AC/DC fans recall how wild rocker met his end". The Guardian. Retrieved 2006-12-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  7. ^ "Bon's Highway leads to the National Trust". Metropolitan Cemeteries Board. 2006-02-15. Retrieved 2006-12-15. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  8. ^ Laurie, Tiffany (2006-02-15). "Grave News is Great News for Scott fans". The West Australian. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  9. ^ "Bon's grave robbed". News.com.au. Retrieved 2006-10-07. (now inactive)
  10. ^ "Archive news - June 2004". Crabsody in Blue. Retrieved 2007-01-15.
  11. ^ "Bon Scott Celebration Concert". Retrieved 2007-01-15.
  12. ^ "Charts & Awards - Billboard Singles". All Music Guide. Retrieved 2007-01-16.
  13. ^ "EveryHit". Retrieved 2007-01-16.

Sources

Wikimedia Commons has media related to AC/DC.
Wikiquote has quotations related to Bon Scott.
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