Kitch's Top 10 Classic Australian Rock Songs - #9 "Thunderstruck"

 "Thunderstruck" - AC/DC

 

Writer(s): Angus & Malcolm Young

Album: The Razor’s Edge

Released: 1990

Peak Chart Position: #4

They thought AC/DC were dead, then the boys came roaring back with this gem from The Razor’s Edge. It was the first song from the smash-hit album, and hearing it for the first time would’ve had critics eating their words pretty damn quickly. A few bars in, and pretty much everyone realised that Angus, Malcolm and co, who had Chris Slade on drums for this one, were far from gone. Even the film-clip is awesome.

Another one of those songs that’s instantly recognisable from the opening guitar riff. The song launched it’s album into the stratosphere, and AC/DC haven’t looked back since. It hit #4 on the ARIA chart, reached #5 on the US Billboard Chart. Interestingly, aside from any given current album, ‘Thunderstruck’ is the only song released post the For Those About To Rock album that the band still plays live with regularity.

To further illustrate it’s long-lasting and worldwide popularity, ‘Thunderstruck’ has had more than a million downloads since being made available via iTunes. Why? Because it’s a ripping song. Not bad for a song twenty-five years old. ‘Thunderstruck’ is close to my favourite AC/DC track, which is truly saying something, because they’ve got dozens of gems.