Credit: Far Out / ACDC
October 24th, 2026 · 8:45pm BST
The chance to join one of the world’s premier hard rock outfits sounds like a childhood fantasy or the plot of a cheesy 1990s coming-of-age film. However, in the case of AC/DC, it was far from a straightforward process before they found their knight in shining armour when Brian Johnson arrived.
They were already unsure if they should go on following the devastating death of Bon Scott in 1980, which sent them into a state of despair. After a period of soul-searching, they eventually vowed to carry on after concluding that it would be Scott’s wish for them to continue, but nobody was queuing up to replace him.
By this point, the band had established themselves as titans of hard rock, which made others fearful about whether they could fill Scott’s shoes.
They were right to question this, too. Upon listening to AC/DC’s earliest hits, it is difficult to imagine anybody but Scott delivering the vocals. In actuality, though, Scott was not their original vocalist. It was Dave Evans who had first taken the role of lead singer with the band, although he did not last very long within the band, quickly becoming frustrated with the economic difficulties which arise when you are a member of a rock band.
Once Scott arrived, they stepped up a level and became internationally recognised rock ‘n’ roll heavyweights. Then, Scott passed away in 1980 of alcohol poisoning in London. This left AC/DC with the unenviable task of having to either disband or find a replacement singer. After deciding against throwing in the towel, the process began of finding somebody who could hold a candle to the unique vocals of Bon Scott.
While in the early stages of recruitment, the band considered some pretty off-the-wall choices. Initially, the group considered taking on Noddy Holder, of Slade fame. However, Holder quickly refused, remarking that “my loyalty was to Slade”, despite the band having largely fallen from relevance by 1980.
In 2020, he explained, “They did approach me – not directly to me but they approached my management – whether I’d like to join AC/DC. I think they probably heard that Slade was sort of on the verge of breaking up and apparently, I was approached to join them.”
Further reading: From The Vault
Even after AC/DC became an all-conquering stadium-dwelling juggernaut, Holder believes he made the right choice, stating in the same Planet Rock interview, “I don’t look back with regret on things like that. Not at all. At the time, you know, it was an offer that I had – I’ve had an offer to join many bands over the years – but no, I don’t regret not joining AC/DC.”
The festive favourite then described Johnson as the “perfect choice”, before insisting, “If I was to go back in time, I’d have probably made exactly the same decision”
In a similar vein, the band set their sights on sweating lunatic Iggy Pop, who also had no interest in joining. At this time, Iggy had resurrected his career in Berlin with David Bowie rescuing him from the abyss, and didn’t feel like joining someone else’s band was a wise choice at that stage, stating in 2023 to the New York Times, “I listened to their record. I thought I can’t fill that bill. I wasn’t like, ugh, I don’t like them. It was quite well made. They do careful work. But I’m not what they needed.”
After facing rejection by two legends of rock and roll, AC/DC began to pursue people from further afield. Namely, the group approached the Maltese singer Marc Storace, of the group Krokus. Storace was asked to join the ranks of the Aussie rockers by the CEO of a Birmingham-based company who had created a light show for Krokus and presumably had some connections with AC/DC.
On paper, this should have been a straightforward decision, considering Krokus were far less successful than AC/DC. However, Storace had only just been given the opportunity to front them in 1979 and wasn’t willing to go back on his commitment.
To this day, he still fronts Krokus and holds no regrets about what could have been. The Maltese singer told the Italian publication Linea Rock, “The thing about AC/DC is it’s not realistic to think that way when you think why I decided that way. And I wouldn’t change a minute,” adding, “I’m happy. I have a loving wife. I have two beautiful children. They’re intelligent. They’re doing their own thing. I have my own house. I’m an ambassador for Peugeot. It’s great to be alive.”
Despite the repeated rejections, all’s well that ends well, and AC/DC eventually landed on Johnson to take the mantle. Johnson didn’t know what he was going to do with his life, even working as a mechanic in the late 1970s after his band Geordie collapsed. Therefore, when he got wind that there was a chance of fronting AC/DC, he didn’t take any persuading and felt like a lottery winner.
Immediately, Johnson proved to be a natural fit for the band and continues to be a vital member of the hard rock outfit to this day. If only AC/DC weren’t told no by the other names, they would never have rescued Johnson, who, in turn, rescued them from the gutter too.
