In a world exclusive, Australian Story has been granted access to the family and friends of the late, great lead singer of AC/DC, Bon Scott.
Introduced by Brian Johnson, Bon’s successor as AC/DC front man, the program features the first interview ever recorded with Bon’s younger brother, Derek Scott.
It also includes comments from Bon’s old friends Jimmy Barnes, John Brewster of The Angels, and Johnny Young of Young Talent Time.
“He was the best rock and roll singer I’ve ever seen. To this day, I don’t think there’s a singer in the world that can hold their own against him.” – Jimmy Barnes
“He never worried about tomorrow. Tomorrow is another day.” – Derek Scott, brother.
“He wanted to go home, he wanted to be with his family. Unfortunately he went for the bottle instead.” – Johnny Young
Members of Bon’s previous bands The Valentines and Fraternity deliver fascinating insights into his state of mind at the time of his death in 1980, aged 33.
Bruce Howe, Bon’s housemate for five years and the bass player in Fraternity, noticed a big change when he last saw Bon in late 1979.
“He wasn’t bubbly and laughing. Maybe he’d come to the state where he’d achieved his dream, he found his holy grail, but found that his holy grail might have looked like an empty goblet,” he told the program.
Derek Scott was worried about his brother’s drinking.
“My mother always told him off, ‘you’re drinking too much, you’re drinking too much.’ But you could only say it once, maybe twice. After that, he argued.”
Australian Story also tracked down the man who drove the car which collided with Bon’s motorcycle in a near-fatal accident in Adelaide in 1974, a few months before Bon auditioned for AC/DC.
“The rider came halfway through the windscreen and his helmet hit the roof of the vehicle,” he told the program.
“About 36 hours later we opened the newspaper and we learnt that it was Bon Scott.”
Producer: Ben Cheshire
