Before AC/DC, one singer showed Angus Young how much punch rock and roll could pack

Angus Young has credited Little Richard as a model for the energy and force he wanted in rock and roll, saying Richard’s music still delivers songs that “pack a punch”. The influence helps explain a connection between Richard’s piano-led performances and AC/DC’s own loud, tightly driven sound.

Young also linked Richard to AC/DC’s singers: he said Bon Scott admired Richard, and that Scott recalled seeing Brian Johnson perform one of Richard’s songs in a London club before Johnson joined the band. Young has also remembered the vocal turn in Richard’s “Keep A Knockin’” as a detail that stayed with him from childhood. The article presents Richard’s stage presence, singing and rhythmic approach as part of the band’s musical inheritance.