Recently, Coda Collection released a rare interview given by Malcolm Young of AC/DC . The conversation took place in 2003 and had never been published before. The guitarist passed away in 2017 at the age of 64, due to complications from dementia that forced him to leave the band.
During the chat, Malcolm spoke about his family, and especially about the influence of his older brothers, Alex and George, who each had their own band. George played in the Easybeats , who charted in 1967 with the single "Friday On My Mind". Alex played in a band called Grapefruit , which was one of the first bands on the Beatles , Apple. "It was John Lennon who gave them the name Grapefruit," Malcolm revealed.
The musician shared a bit about how he brought his brother Angus Young into the band that would later become AC/DC. “We never really played together. I preferred the Beatles and the Stones, and Angus liked a heavier sound, like Hendrix and Cream, with the guitar leading the way. I used to listen to songs as songs – the drums, the vocals, the musical side of it. I used to focus on the strings, the whole scene around the guitar. At some point, I happened to be forming a band. We were looking for a keyboardist, but instead we ended up with Angus (laughs).”
Malcolm also revealed that Angus Young's classic "schoolboy" look emerged as an idea for him to develop in his performance. To that end, it was suggested that he have something that would create a familiar impression on people. The idea of wearing a school uniform came from their sister. "She passed that idea to him and that little guy became larger than life," said Malcolm.
Near the end of the interview, the artist praised vocalist Bon Scott and criticized AC/DC's first frontman, Dave Evans. “The first vocalist, people celebrated when he left,” said Young. “He was so bad. Bon came in a week later. He had songs, ideas, motivation. He's serious. We were happy to have someone like that. We were happy to be playing. He had bigger plans.” Check out the full interview.
READ ALSO: Angus Young reveals he created AC/DC's "Highway to Hell" in the bathroom.