Friday Marks 30th Anniversary Of AC/DC Singer BON SCOTT's Death

The Pulse of Radio reports: It was 30 years ago on Friday (February 19) that AC/DC vocalist Bon Scott was found dead in his car at the age of 33. The Scottish-born singer was enjoying the success of the band's sixth album, "Highway To Hell", and had gone out drinking the night of February 18 in London with several friends. One of those friends drove Scott, who passed out, home and left him to sleep it off in his car. Scott's lifeless body was found the next morning in the car, dead from alcohol poisoning. He was cremated in Australia a week and a half later, clad in jeans and a white T-shirt.

Scott's hard-living persona and genuine skills as a performer and storyteller were a cornerstone of AC/DC's early albums and classic tracks such as "Whole Lotta Rosie", "Let There Be Rock", "It's A Long Way To The Top (If You Want To Rock 'N' Roll)" and "Highway To Hell".

AC/DC guitarist Angus Young told The Pulse of Radio that he and Scott got along so well because they both refused to take life too seriously, and they both had rebellious streaks. "Well, Bon was just... he was just one of those people," he said. "We have a tendency to laugh a lot about... things that go on. You know, Bon was the same. And I think if you're playing rock and roll, there's just a streak of rebellion in you, you know?"

Shortly after his death, AC/DC replaced Scott with another native of Scotland, Brian Johnson of the band GEORDIE. With Johnson, the group recorded "Back In Black", a tribute to Scott that became one of the biggest-selling albums of all time and enshrined AC/DC as one of rock's biggest acts.

When AC/DC was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2003, Scott was posthumously inducted with the rest of the group. Guitarist Malcolm Young said at the time that Scott was never far from their thoughts. "He's never left the band," he said. "That's just the way that we are, you know? We're very tight as a unit. He's always there, you know, as far as we're concerned. You just never forget, you know? There's so many stories, it creeps in every day — and if it's not one of the band, it's a fan, you know, so it's great for us. It just shows you how popular and how long back it remains so popular, you know? And the more time passes, the bigger that Bon gets, in a way."

WaToday.au.com reported that thousands of fans were flocking this week to Fremantle, Australia, where Scott's grave is located, to commemorate Scott's passing.

Fans from Spain, Germany, the U.K., Canada, Italy, France and America have bought tickets this week for the "Highway To Hell" tram tour that visits places around Fremantle that were pivotal in Scott's life. The tour includes his childhood home, his school, and Fremantle Prison, where Scott was processed before going to juvenile detention.

AC/DC are currently on tour in Australia, but have not announced any special events themselves to mark the anniversary of Scott's death.