4 Classic AC/DC Songs You Might Have Missed

AC/DC recently announced a 2025 North American tour dubbed the Power Up Tour.

The current lineup features lead guitarist Angus Young, singer Brian Johnson, rhythm guitarist Stevie Young, drummer Matt Laug, and bassist Chris Chaney. This is the band’s first run of North American shows since 2016.

It also marks Johnson’s full-time return to the stage. During the 2016 Rock or Bust World Tour, a battle with hearing loss sidelined the singer. Axl Rose from Guns N’ Roses sang in his place. However, Johnson did perform with AC/DC at the 2023 Power Trip Festival in Indio, California.

As fans speculate over potential set lists, you probably don’t need a reminder of the group’s gigantic hits from the past 50 years. So, this list highlights four classic AC/DC songs you might have missed.

“Sin City” from Powerage (1978)

AC/DC’s fifth studio album was the first to feature Cliff Williams on bass. The colossal riff on “Sin City” has the kind of power associated with “Highway to Hell” and “Back in Black.” Still, those two remain classic rock radio staples while many outside the diehards probably don’t know “Sin City.” If you’ve come for this track, it’s worth your time to stick around for the rest of Powerage.

“Walk All Over You” from Highway to Hell (1979)

AC/DC knows how to begin a song. This track starts with a slow, quiet build. You can imagine fans whipping themselves into a frenzy, anticipating what will drop. Bon Scott goes full carnal on this number—a man with a chip on his shoulder in a kind of X-rated strut. The half-time chorus features a hook built for the communal catharsis, lust, or whatever may have happened at a ’70s rock concert. The guttural jam reaches its apex with Angus Young burning through high-speed Chuck Berry licks.

“Stiff Upper Lip” from Stiff Upper Lip (2000)

This is the final album George Young produced for the band before he died in 2017. It sounds like vintage AC/DC and moved them away from Rick Rubin’s slick production on Ballbreaker. Meanwhile, Brian Johnson delivers strutting double entendres in his familiar glass-in-the-throat style. AC/DC has gotten more mileage out of bare-bones rock and roll than just about any group. The concert-like endings to songs—with a final flurry of guitar runs and closing drum fills—endure through their vast catalog. Also, the music video opens with the band driving in a Hummer while listening to the Bon Scott-era anthem “It’s a Long Way to the Top (If You Wanna Rock ’n’ Roll).”

“Hell Ain’t a Bad Place to Be” from Let There Be Rock (1977)

The fourth album sounds like it was recorded in a garage. Before Robert John “Mutt” Lange arrived for Highway to Hell, AC/DC recordings sounded raw, unhinged, and ferocious. That’s to take nothing away from Lange’s massive productions, but hearing the band’s less-produced shows you just how great they already were without the studio magic. It almost sounds like they’re blowing up the mics on this recording. “Whole Lotta Rosie” and the title track are rock standards, but “Hell Ain’t a Bad Place to Be” isn’t so bad either.

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