10 Most Rocking AC/DC Songs

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AC/DC has never been known as a band that does ballads, so it may seem a little ridiculous to put together a list of the 10 most rocking AC/DC songs because pretty much every single AC/DC song rocks. So why do we do it? Because we love freaking AC/DC. Because we love writing about AC/DC. And because we change our mind about our favorite AC/DC songs every week.

# 10 – Sin City – Powerage

“Sin City” is one of the great cuts from AC/DC’s 1978 album Powerage, produced by Harry Vanda and George Young. The album also marked Cliff Williams’ first appearance on an AC/DC studio album, giving the rhythm section the lineup that would carry into the band’s biggest years. Bon Scott sounds completely at home singing about temptation, money, danger, and excess, while Angus Young and Malcolm Young lock into one of those riffs that could only belong to AC/DC. Phil Rudd keeps the whole thing moving with that deceptively simple groove that never gets in the way. “Sin City” is dirty, dangerous, and built to be played loud.

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# 9 – Who Made Who – Who Made Who

“Who Made Who” arrived in 1986 as the title track to AC/DC’s soundtrack album for Stephen King’s Maximum Overdrive. The album mixed earlier AC/DC recordings with three new tracks, and this was the one that immediately sounded like a full-blown single. Brian Johnson delivers the title question with just enough menace, while Angus and Malcolm Young build the song around a lean, mechanical riff that fits the movie’s machines-gone-wild theme perfectly. There is something almost futuristic about the groove without the band ever sounding like anything but AC/DC. It is simple, strange, and incredibly effective.

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# 8 – For Those About to Rock (We Salute You) – For Those About to Rock We Salute You

“For Those About to Rock (We Salute You)” is AC/DC turning a concert finale into a song. The 1981 album was produced by Robert John “Mutt” Lange and recorded in Paris, with the band using the Rolling Stones Mobile unit at H.I.S. Studios during the sessions. Brian Johnson’s second album with AC/DC gave him an anthem that would become permanently tied to the band’s live show. The riff keeps building until the famous cannon blasts arrive and the whole thing turns into a literal salute to the crowd. AC/DC has written faster songs, but very few feel bigger than this one.

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# 7 – Back In Black – Back In Black

There are rock riffs, and then there is the opening riff to “Back in Black.” The title track from AC/DC’s 1980 album was recorded at Compass Point Studios in Nassau with producer Robert John “Mutt” Lange and became one of the defining songs of the Brian Johnson era. Johnson had the impossible job of joining the band after Bon Scott’s death, yet Back in Black did not sound like a group falling apart; it sounded massive. Angus Young’s lead work, Malcolm Young’s rhythm guitar, Cliff Williams’ bass, and Phil Rudd’s drums leave exactly the right amount of space around that riff. This one does not need any extra decoration because the groove does all the talking.

# 6 – High Voltage – High Voltage

“High Voltage” was one of AC/DC’s earliest declarations of exactly what the band was going to be. The song first appeared in Australia in 1975 and later became the closing track of the international High Voltage album in 1976. Bon Scott sells the whole thing with that cocky grin you can practically hear in his voice, while Angus and Malcolm Young make the riff feel effortless. The original recording also featured George Young on bass and Tony Currenti on drums. Long before AC/DC became one of the biggest bands in the world, “High Voltage” already had the attitude completely figured out.

# 5 – Girls Got Rhythm – Highway to Hell

“Girls Got Rhythm” is the second track on AC/DC’s 1979 breakthrough album Highway to Hell, and it wastes absolutely no time getting to the point. Robert John “Mutt” Lange’s production tightened the band’s sound without sanding away any of the dirt that made them great. Bon Scott sounds like he is having the time of his life, and the Young brothers answer him with a riff that struts just as hard as the lyric. Cliff Williams and Phil Rudd keep the groove so locked down that the song practically walks out of the speakers. It is AC/DC swagger in three and a half minutes.

# 4 – Heatseeker – Blow Up Your Video

“Heatseeker” kicked open AC/DC’s 1988 album Blow Up Your Video with exactly the kind of straight-ahead attack the title promised. Harry Vanda and George Young returned as producers, reconnecting the band with the team behind much of its early work. Brian Johnson sounds ferocious, Angus Young fires off one riff after another, and Simon Wright’s drumming gives the track a slightly different punch from the classic Phil Rudd years. The song became a strong UK and Australian single and helped give the band fresh momentum at the end of the 1980s. There is nothing subtle about “Heatseeker,” which is exactly why it belongs on this list.

# 3 – Highway To Hell – Highway to Hell

“Highway to Hell” opens AC/DC’s 1979 album with one of the greatest guitar riffs ever recorded. Produced by Robert John “Mutt” Lange, the track put a sharper studio edge around the band’s sound without taking away any of Bon Scott’s personality. Scott turns the grind of nonstop touring into a title that sounds like a celebration, while Angus and Malcolm Young drive the song with a riff that is almost impossible not to recognize immediately. Cliff Williams and Phil Rudd give it the kind of steady foundation that lets every guitar hit land harder. It became AC/DC’s first U.S. Top 50 single and remains one of the songs that defines the band.

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# 2 – Thunderstruck – The Razors Edge

“Thunderstruck” announced AC/DC’s 1990s resurgence with one of the most instantly recognizable guitar introductions of the band’s career. The opening track on The Razors Edge was produced by Bruce Fairbairn and recorded in British Columbia with Chris Slade on drums. Angus Young’s rapid-fire guitar figure creates tension before the entire band crashes in and turns the song into a stadium chant. The single reached number five on Billboard’s Mainstream Rock chart and quickly became one of AC/DC’s signature songs. More than three decades later, the opening notes still have the power to make an arena explode.

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# 1 – Let There Be Rock – Let There Be Rock

“Let There Be Rock” is AC/DC turning the creation of rock and roll into a six-minute sermon delivered at full volume. Recorded at Albert Studios in Sydney for the band’s 1977 album Let There Be Rock, the track was produced by Harry Vanda and George Young and features the classic lineup of Bon Scott, Angus Young, Malcolm Young, Mark Evans, and Phil Rudd. Bon tells the story like a preacher who has seen the light, while Angus answers every declaration with guitar that sounds ready to blow the walls apart. The song keeps building instead of backing down, and by the end it feels less like a track than a commandment. If this list is about the most rocking AC/DC songs, “Let There Be Rock” has to sit at number one.

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