Guns N' Roses bassist Duff McKagan is sharing his thoughts on the 2016 tour Axl Rose did with AC/DC during an appearance on The Church Of What Happens Now podcast.
Rose stepped in to help AC/DC complete the final two legs of the group’s “Rock Or Bust” tour after Brian Johnson was advised by doctors to stop performing or risk total hearing loss after the singer punctured his left ear drum while racing at the 2008 Watkins Glen International.
“The way Axl did that was amazing,” raved McKagan, on hand to promote the May 31 release of his album, “Tenderness.” “He was, like, 'If you guys don't mind, I'm going to try out. They need a hand.’
“Bon Scott's his all-time hero. We told him, ‘Dude, you know you don't really have to try out for AC/DC.’ But he was really nervous. He went to Atlanta and got the gig.
“I saw him twice on that tour: I flew to London to see him, and I flew to Cleveland. It was great,” added the bassist. “We got to know Angus Young through that. Angus has come out and played with us a bunch of times.
“There’s that thing when he was 14 or 15, like, ’Man, one day, if I ever got to be in AC/DC…’ He was singing with a broom, and he finally got to do it. Amazing.”
AC/DC’s status following the 2016 run was unknown, following the retirement of bassist Cliff Williams while Johnson sought assistance with his health issue.
However, band members were spotted at a Vancouver recording studio last summer as reports surfaced that the group were working on a new album that is expected to include unused recordings by late guitarist and band cofounder Malcolm Young, who passed away in 2017 at the age of 64 after retiring from the group three years earlier due to dementia.
Longtime AC/DC engineer Mike Fraser recently confirmed that the band have been in the studio working on a project, without providing further context or details, as fans await official news from the group.
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