1973–1974: Formation and name

AC/DC were formed in the Australian pop music scene of the early to mid-1970s, which is described as the third wave of rock music in Australia. Many local 1960s artists – e.g., the Easybeats and the Masters Apprentices, had attempted to gain international recognition but achieved limited commercial success overseas and disbanded after returning to Australia. Newer artists and veterans of the 1960s beat boom developed a variety of genres, which included a harder blues rock style dubbed pub rock. Popular Australian bands – e.g., Sherbet and Skyhooks, played mainstream pop or adopted a glam rock approach.

In November 1973, brothers Malcolm and Angus Young formed AC/DC in Sydney with drummer Colin Burgess from the Masters Apprentices, bass guitarist Larry Van Kriedt and vocalist Dave Evans. Earlier, for two years, Malcolm and Evans had been members of a Newcastle-based band called Velvet Underground (not the American group of the same name), and Angus, who would only jam with his friends, had his own band called Tantrum. In 1973, the young brothers had joined the studio-only band, Marcus Hook Roll Band and contributed towards the first recordings for its debut album, Tales of Old Grand-Daddy (1974), although the pair left before it was issued. The initial AC/DC formation was made up of Malcolm, Burgess and ex-Velvet Underground bass guitarist, Mick Sheffzick. Later, the rest of the members joined when Van Kriedt replaced Sheffzick, Evans responded to an ad in the Sydney Morning Herald and Angus passed an audition.

1974–1976: Bon Scott joins

In September 1974, Bon Scott, a vocalist previously with the Valentines (1966–1970) and Fraternity (1971–1973), joined AC/DC after his former bandmate Vince Lovegrove introduced him to George during their stopover in Adelaide in August. Scott worked as a chauffeur for the group until an audition promoted him to lead singer. Like the Young brothers, Scott was born in Scotland, emigrated to Australia in his childhood and had a passion for blues music. Scott also had experience as a songwriter and drummer. Their debut single's tracks were re-written and the vocals were re-recorded by Scott. With Scott's inclusion, "[their] working-class style, boogie-rock sound and earthy humour fell into place", according to music journalist Ian McFarlane. Scott's first concert for AC/DC was on 5 October 1974 at the Masonic Hall in Brighton-Le-Sands, New South Wales.

1976–1977: Initial success and record deal

Browning sent promo material to contacts in London, which came to the attention of Phil Carson of Atlantic Records. AC/DC signed an international deal with Atlantic in 1976. On their arrival in London in April, their scheduled tour with Back Street Crawler was cancelled due to the death of that group's guitarist, Paul Kossoff. As a result, AC/DC returned to playing smaller venues to build a local following until their label organised the Lock Up Your Daughters tour sponsored by Sounds magazine, starting in June 1976. At the time, punk rock was breaking and came to dominate the pages of major British music weeklies, including NME and Melody Maker. AC/DC were sometimes identified with the punk rock movement by the British press, but they hated punk rock, believing it to be a passing fad. Browning wrote that "it wasn't possible to even hold a conversation with AC/DC about punk without them getting totally pissed off".

1977–1980: Cliff Williams joins and death of Bon Scott

In May 1977, Mark Evans was fired. This was due to "musical differences" and personality clashes with Angus. He was replaced on bass guitar by Cliff Williams, a former member of the UK bands Home (1970–1974) and Bandit (1976). Scott explained that Williams was more experienced, while Malcolm wanted a bass guitarist and backing vocalist. Evans' autobiography, Dirty Deeds: My Life Inside/Outside of AC/DC, released in 2011, predominantly dealt with his time in AC/DC.

AC/DC's first American radio exposure was through Bill Bartlett at Jacksonville station WPDQ-FM/WAIV-FM in 1975. Two years later, they played their first concert there, as a support act for Canadian group Moxy in Austin, Texas, on 27 July 1977. From booking agent Doug Thaler of American Talent International and the management of Leber-Krebs, they experienced the country's stadium circuit, supporting rock acts Ted Nugent, Aerosmith, Kiss, Styx, UFO and Blue Öyster Cult; they co-headlined with Cheap Trick. AC/DC released their fifth studio album, Powerage, on 5 May 1978. The sole single from Powerage was "Rock 'n' Roll Damnation" (June 1978). An appearance at The Apollo, Glasgow, during the Powerage Tour was recorded and released as If You Want Blood You've Got It (1978).

1980–1983: Brian Johnson joins and rebirth

Following Scott's death, the members briefly considered quitting. Scott's parents advised the members that he would have wanted them to carry on, so they decided to continue and sought a new vocalist. Fat Lip vocalist Allan Fryer, ex-Rick Wakeman vocalist Gary Pickford-Hopkins, and the Easybeats' singer Stevie Wright were touted by the press as possible replacements. Various other candidates were considered by the group: ex-Moxy member Buzz Shearman, who was unable to join due to voice issues, Slade vocalist Noddy Holder, and ex-Back Street Crawler vocalist Terry Slesser. During their auditions, the group brought in ex-Geordie singer Brian Johnson, who impressed the group. Johnson sang Ike & Tina Turner's "Nutbush City Limits" and then "Whole Lotta Rosie" from Let There Be Rock. After they worked through the rest of the applicants in the following days, Johnson returned for a second audition. Angus later recalled that Scott himself had praised Johnson's singing.

1983–1990: Line-up changes and commercial decline

Instead of Lange, their ninth studio album, Flick of the Switch (1983), was produced by the group's members themselves. It was a return to the rawness and simplicity of their early albums, but received mixed reviews and was considered underdeveloped and unmemorable; one critic stated that they "had made the same album nine times". Flick of the Switch eventually reached number four on the UK charts, and the top five in Australia, and Finland. AC/DC had minor success with the single "Guns for Hire", reaching number 84 on the Billboard Hot 100. Rudd has had long-term drug and alcohol addictions. His friendship with Malcolm had deteriorated and eventually escalated into a physical confrontation, after which Rudd was fired partway through the Flick of the Switch sessions in mid-1983. Rudd was replaced by ex-A II Z drummer Simon Wright in July 1983, after they held over 700 auditions in the US and UK. Simon Kirke and Paul Thompson were two drummers who auditioned.

1990–1999: Popularity regained

The band's twelfth studio album, The Razors Edge, was recorded in Vancouver, Canada and was mixed and engineered by Mike Fraser and produced by Bruce Fairbairn, who had previously worked with Aerosmith and Bon Jovi. Released on 24 September 1990, it was a major success for the band, reaching the top three in Australia, Canada, Finland, Germany, Switzerland, and the US. Its lead single, "Thunderstruck" (September 1990), peaked at number 5 on Billboard's Mainstream Rock chart, number 4 on the ARIA Singles chart, and number 13 on the OCC's UK Singles Chart. Its second single, "Moneytalks" (12 November 1990), peaked at number 23 on the Billboard Hot 100. By 2006, the album had achieved 5× Platinum status in the US.

1999–2014: Popularity confirmed and Black Ice

AC/DC recorded their fourteenth studio album, Stiff Upper Lip, in 1999, which was produced by George at The Warehouse Studio in Vancouver. Released in February 2000, it was better received by critics than Ballbreaker but was considered lacking in new ideas. The title track was issued as a single in January 2000, which remained at number one on the US Mainstream Rock charts for four weeks. The other singles, "Satellite Blues" and "Safe in New York City", reached number one and number seven, respectively, on the same chart. Its supporting tour began on 1 August 2000 and ended on 8 July 2001. The show at the Olympiastadion in Munich, Germany, on 14 June was filmed for Stiff Upper Lip Live, released on 4 December 2001.